Wellness Center

In 2018, two VCS students identified that their peers were struggling with a variety of mental wellness issues that were impacting their ability to thrive. With a plan in mind, they approached school administration with an idea — the Wellness Center. Now fully realized and assisting students in grades 5-12, the Wellness Center is an on-campus, referral-based service run by a licensed marriage and family therapist that is dedicated to helping VCS students build stronger relationships, enhance self-esteem, reduce stress, and foster overall healthier ways of relating to themselves and others. Through regularly scheduled one-on-one sessions, the Wellness Center gives students a safe space to process the stressors of being an adolescent in today’s world.

The Wellness Center sees clients on a weekly or biweekly basis and offers ten free sessions per student. It is part of the Wellness Center's practice to touch base with parents regularly to discuss how best to care for their student.

Any questions or concerns can be directed to Clinical Director Karina Culbertson by visiting our contact page.

Frequently Asked Questions

How to Get Started

Here is the process of getting started in the Wellness Center:

  1. You may fill out this form to request a session with one of the Wellness Center therapists.
  2. The counselor fills out a referral form that is sent to the Wellness Center. Staff then assigns the student to their therapist.
  3. The therapist will reach out to the parents to set up a call to discuss paperwork and get any insight on how the Wellness Center can be helpful for their student.
  4. Parents fill out paperwork.
  5. The therapist emails student to set up a regular meeting time.

Additional Helpful Resources

Meet the Clinical Director: Karina Culbertson

Karina Culbertson is a licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT 137574) with a passion for working with both teens and adults in managing anxiety, depression, change of life challenges, and the many complications that life throws our way. After graduating from Village Christian and attending California State University, Northridge, Karina worked for almost a decade as a high school teacher here at VCS. Inspired by her desire to continue to work with and help others, Karina attended the University of Phoenix and earned a Master’s Degree in Counseling with a focus in Marriage and Family Therapy. Being a VCS parent herself, Karina has a heart for the students at Village Christian and strives to make the Wellness Center a place where students have a space to process, speak, and be heard.

Meet the Clinical Supervisor: Amy Di Francia

Amy Di Francia is a licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT 105646) and clinical supervisor who has almost a decade of experience providing therapy to adults and teens struggling with anxiety and panic attacks, insecurity, stress and burnout, and depression. She received her Bachelors in Psychology from Pepperdine University and her Masters in Marital and Family Therapy from Fuller Seminary School of Psychology, and holds additional certifications in Applied Neuroscience for Treating Anxiety, Panic, and Worry and Attachment-Focused Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (AF-EMDR). Amy has a passion for training the next generation of therapists and for teaching Christians how to be the healthiest version of themselves. Amy spends most of her days raising her toddler (while sneaking in a few moments to read a good book!)