About Us
Embrace the healing power of secure relationships
What we do
Secure Child is a team of professional counselors and social workers who collaborate with caregivers and community members to promote healthy and secure relationships for all children.
Seventy years of research in attachment and developmental science supports the basic conclusion that secure attachments contribute to healthy development for children.
We help to alter small interactions to create large changes, leading children to become more and more open and accepting of their parents guidance and wisdom. Caregivers began to feel more confident about what their child needs and how to meet those needs in a way that leaves everyone feeling healthier and more connected. Our focus is less on outward behavior and quick, temporary fixes, and more on making lasting change and improving the quality of life and relationships within the family.
We serve caregivers with children who are displaying behavioral and emotional symptoms resulting from relational, developmental, and/or generational trauma and unhealthy attachment patterns. We provide attachment assessments, education, and therapeutic intervention. All of our therapists are licensed or masters-level working toward licensure and have mature life and professional experiences.
Who we are
William Whelan, Psy. D.
Clinical Psychologist
Dr. Whelan has been a principal investigator with research funding from NIH, and focuses on developing assessment methods and intervention approaches to support health and healing in attachment-caregiving interactions. He provides training courses in the MacArthur Preschool Attachment Coding system, the Attachment Security Intervention, and helped develop and pilot the Virginia-based Circle of Security interventions.
Somer George Ph.D., LPC
Program Coordinator & Clinical Supervisor
Greg Czyszczon, Ph.D., LPC
Clinical Supervisor
Rob Whelan, M.A., Ed.S.
Resident in Counseling & Evaluator
Rob works with children, adolescents, and adults, tailoring treatment to promote Security in relationships, healing, and empathy. He also contributes to the attachment evaluations that inform the Secure Child therapeutic intervention, bringing specialized expertise in assessment and data synthesis. Rob holds certifications in coding the Strange Situation Procedure (i.e., the Ainsworth Infant and the MacArthur Preschool attachment coding systems) and has extensive experience administering clinical interviews such as the Parent Development Interview and the Adult Attachment Interview.
In addition to clinical work, Rob has experience teaching and presenting on attachment theory to diverse audiences, including graduate students, mental health professionals, and foster/adoptive families.
Hannah Jarrett, M.A., Ed.S.
Resident in Counseling & Intake Coordinator
She has experience working with clients across the lifespan and in a variety of settings. She has provided mental health services in schools, rural behavioral health settings, and outpatient clinics. Her clinical interests include early intervention with high-risk children and families, interpersonal neurobiology, and play therapy and developmentally informed interventions. She completed training in the MacAurthur Preschool Coding system, play therapy and expressive arts, and trauma-informed approaches. In her current role at Secure Child & Virginia Attachment Center, she oversees the referral and intake process, facilitates caregiver education, works with children, adolescents, and caregivers and is part of the Attachment-Caregiving Evaluation team.
Jade Richardi
Administrative Services Coordinator
