Ginna Oates, LMFT (she/her). Director of School‑Based Services and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT #133974). In her director role, Ginna partners with schools and youth‑serving organizations to design and deliver tailored programs—including parent talks, teacher professional development, student workshops, and clinical consultations—that deepen understanding of child and adolescent development while cultivating connection, mindfulness, and resilience. Practice San Francisco’s school‑based programming is comprehensive and evidence‑based, adaptable to the unique culture and needs of every school community.

Clinically, Ginna specializes in supporting tweens, teens, and their parents through the emotional, social, and developmental challenges of adolescence. She is trained in multiple evidence‑based modalities, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), family systems therapy, the Yale University SPACE (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions) approach, strength‑based therapy, and motivational interviewing. Whatever the modality, Ginna centers the therapist‑client relationship as the engine of meaningful growth.

With her warm, collaborative style, Ginna helps young people and families address anxiety, depression, identity, self‑esteem, and complex family dynamics. Her integrative approach blends practical skills with emotional insight to build resilience and confidence in every member of the family. She also offers parent coaching—especially for parents of younger children—equipping caregivers with concrete strategies that strengthen relationships and foster healthy development.

Ginna earned her Master’s in Counseling Psychology from The Wright Institute in Berkeley, CA. Before becoming a therapist, she taught kindergarten and second grade at Stuart Hall for Boys in San Francisco and Graland Country Day School in Denver, and coached middle‑school lacrosse. She later served as an individual and group therapist at McAuley, the adolescent outpatient program at St. Mary’s Medical Center in San Francisco.

Ginna lives in Marin with her husband, daughter, and dog. Outside of work, she enjoys exploring the Bay Area outdoors, fostering shelter dogs and advocating for underserved animals, and staying active—having played college lacrosse, she still brings that same team spirit and energy to her work with families today.