Banks (they/she) is a graduate student at Columbia University concurrently pursuing an Ed.M. in Psychological Counseling, a M.A. in Mental Health Counseling, and an Advanced Certificate in Sexuality, Women & Gender. She received a B.A. in Art History and a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Southern California (USC), before relocating from Los Angeles to New York in 2020. As a student member of the American Psychological Association (APA), Banks conducts and supports research that explores the intersections of spiritual beliefs/practices and marginalization, as well as consensual non-monogamy (CNM) and psychological health. She employs psychotherapeutic approaches that are culturally sensitive, LGBTQIA+ affirmative, person-centered and strengths-based. Banks draws from a wide range of modalities including psychodynamic, existential, and narrative therapies, investigating topics such as storytelling, attachment, pleasure, meaning, purpose, and beyond. To support folks in addressing their own self-determined questions and concerns, Banks takes a collaborative approach, recognizing the client as the expert on their own life. Banks is committed to meeting people wherever they are on their path and walking alongside them with curiosity, authenticity, and compassion, whether that be for a few sessions or a few years.
Banks was born in New Haven, CT and grew up in Princeton, NJ. She is twenty-six years old, white, able-bodied, queer, gender queer, and CNM. Outside of school and research, Banks enjoys going to see live music, practicing yoga, and visiting art museums. She won ‘closet nerd’ in her high school yearbook and can often still be found with her nose in a good book.