Individually, we are one drop. Together, we are an ocean. —Ryunosuke Satoro

Dr. Cheryl Kempinsky

Dr. Cheryl Kempinsky completed her doctorate in philosophy at the California School of Professional Psychology, Alliant International University in 1990. She pursued a pre-doctoral internship in child and adolescent and family therapies at the San Francisco Valley Child Guidance Clinic in Northridge, California.  She has been licensed as a psychologist in California since 1993 (PSY 13481).

As a clinical psychologist she has been practicing DBT for over 20 years. She has been trained over the years in group skills training, individual therapy, suicide and crisis management, and exposure therapy by both Marsha Linehan and Behavioral Tech, LLC, her training institute. She completed two intensive trainings in 2007 and 2009, and she completed online training protocols for both Management of Anxiety and Panic for Adolescents, and Behavioral Activation for the treatment of depression. In October 2017, Dr. Kempinsky completed an intensive training for the treatment of children and their families using Dialectical Behavior Therapy for children (DBT-C).

Dr. Kempinsky consults with clinicians and families on the application and integration of DBT as it is practiced with children, adolescents and adults. She conducts both individual psychotherapy and group skills training at DBT Associates of Southern California. She has taught graduate courses in ethics and law, clinical interviewing, and forensic psychology. She is a Board Member of the National Education Alliance for Borderline Personality Disorder.

Donna S. Shields, MSW

Donna S. Shields received her BA in Social Work from the University of Michigan and an MSW from State University of New York at Buffalo. She started her career in Boston where she was a Caseworker at Jewish Family and Children’s Service and then a Counseling Consultant at an elementary school in Lexington. She specialized in work with families, parents, students and teachers. She also represented the school district on a Massachusetts Department of Special Education project that revised the state evaluation and educational planning manual for special needs students.

After earning an MA in Student Personnel Administration in Higher Education from Teachers College, Columbia University, she was the Director of Student Activities at Simmons College in Boston. She completed doctoral coursework at UCLA for a degree in Higher Education Administration and then joined a management consulting firm in Southern California. She worked with corporations and not-for-profit organizations in: performance management systems, leadership development, team building, conflict resolution, change management, communication, strategic planning and implementation, management and supervisory training and customer service improvement. She founded Strategic Consulting, Inc. in 1995 and was a Partner until she retired in 2007.

Donna served on the Board of Hill ‘n Dale Family Learning Center and WISE Senior Services in Santa Monica, California before she joined the NEABPD Board in 2010. She currently serves on the Education Committee and Governance/Nominations Committee Chair.

Donna is married and lives in Pacific Palisades. She has three grown children. Her daughter was diagnosed with BPD when she was 14. She was trained as a Family Connections Leader ten years ago and has co-lead over 25 Family Connections, TeleConnections, Graduate Connections, and DBT Skills Training classes. She is currently creating an on-going support group in Los Angeles for family members who have completed the Family Connections Classes.