Koke Saavedra, Psy.D.
Clinical Psychology Faculty
Education
-
Psy.D., Clinical Psychology, 2008, The Wright Institute
-
M.A., Clinical Psychology, 2006, The Wright Institute
-
M.A. Government/Political Science, 2001, Georgetown University
-
B.A., Business and Economics, 1990, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile – Santiago, Chile
Biography
Koke Saavedra, Psy.D., is Clinical Psychology Faculty at CIHS, as well as a practicing bilingual clinical psychologist, educator, trainer, consultant, and immigrant. A builder of bridges with selves and across cultures, Dr. Saavedra grew up speaking Spanish “chileno” under the Pinochet dictatorship in Santiago, Chile. Humbled and helped forward by stories, relationships, Zen practice, literature, art, and contact with other cultures, he has come to deeply appreciate and respect the complexity, fragility, and mystery of life, as well as the diversity of human psychologies and ways of being.
Dr. Saavedra has served as a psychotherapist, teacher, and trainer in many settings, both nationally and internationally, including as Staff Psychologist at Children’s Hospital Oakland, Kaiser Permanente Child and Family Services, and the National Child and Adolescent Service in New Zealand, among others. He currently maintains a small private practice, where he provides psychotherapy and supervision, and works as a Crisis Psychologist consultant for the California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation.
In his teaching, Dr. Saavedra hopes to inspire passion and creativity in students’ own work and ways of being. He encourages students to trust their unique voices and perspectives, to respect and appreciate the richness of culture and the many ways of being human, and to cultivate the capacity to heal and inspire others to be who they truly are.