Ellen Zupkus, Ph.D.

I am delighted to introduce myself as a part of Mosaic Counseling. As a licensed psychologist in both NJ and NY, I have enjoyed a long and fulfilling career in psychology over the past 45 years.

I began my career as a school psychologist working with children, adolescents, and adults with a variety of special needs including Autism Spectrum Disorders, Emotional Regulation Impairment, Intellectual Disabilities, Specific Learning Disabilities, and Traumatic Brain Injury, Communication Impairment and Orthopedically Impaired individuals.  After earning my Ph.D. from Seton Hall University, I held positions in a variety of clinical settings which included private practice, inpatient mental health hospitals, residential schools, conducting evaluations and consulting with NJ Family and Criminal Courts as well as working within NJ prisons with both adolescents and adults.

I recently concluded my full-time career at Rutgers University where I served as a Clinician Administrator, a role in which I developed, implemented, and successfully supervised a number of mental health programs for 15 years. As a result of these experiences, I am skilled in treatment of a variety of needs for adolescents and adults including adjusting to life changes, depression, anxiety, trauma, issues related to divorce, blended families, step-parenting, being part of a sandwich generation, caring for elderly parents, LGBTQ+ issues, sexual conduct and issues of aging and late-stage adulthood. For the Courts, I have conducted risk assessment evaluations for sexual conduct disorders, disorderly conduct disorders, violence risk assessments, and sexual identity disorders. In addition, I am skilled at serving as a family therapist to those who require court-ordered family reunification therapy.

Throughout my long and fruitful career, I have acquired several effective therapeutic tools that are essential to helping one live a life of internal peace and fulfillment. Some of the tools and treatment techniques I utilize consist of the best practices of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Trauma Focused Therapy and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, with a strengths-based approach. I offer my clients a safe and welcoming environment in which they are free to explore their feelings and behavior within a warm, empathic, and supportive space. I also provide a direct approach in the terms of the goal-oriented course therapy will take. I take a serious approach to making progress over the course of therapy; this element is essential to my therapeutic work. I look forward to partnering with you on your wellness journey.