Faculty and Clinical Staff

Eli Coleman, PhD, Director
Bean Robinson, PhD, Associate Director
Dianne Berg, PhD
Walter Bockting, PhD
Jamie Feldman, MD, PhD
Cesar A. Gonzalez, PhD
Rae Hoesing, PhD
Alessandra (Alex) Iantaffi, PhD
Scott Jacoby, MA
Karin Larsen, PhD
Anne McBean, MA
Michael Miner, PhD
Sara Mize, PhD
Rose Munns, PsyD
Sandra Nohre, PhD
Sara J. Prescher, PsyD
Nancy Raymond, MD
Rowan, Fran, RN, MS
Katherine (Katie) Spencer, PhD
Karin Weiss, PhD
Michelle van Ryn, PhD, MPH
G Zachariah (Zach) White, MFA, PsyD
Brian Zamboni, PhD

Eli Coleman, PhD, Director Dr. Coleman is professor and director of the Program in Human Sexuality, Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, University of Minnesota Medical School in Minneapolis. He is the author of numerous articles and books on compulsive sexual behavior, sexual offenders, sexual orientation, gender dysphoria, chemical dependency, family intimacy, and the psychological and pharmacological treatment of a variety of sexual dysfunctions and disorders. Professor Coleman is the founding editor of the International Journal of Transgenderism and is the founding and current editor of the International Journal of Sexual Health. He is a past president of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality, the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (formerly the Harry Benjamin International Gender Dysphoria Association), and the World Association for Sexual Health. He is the current president of the International Academy for Sex Research. He has been a frequent technical consultant on sexual health issues to the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Pan American Health Organization (the regional office of WHO). He has been the recipient of numerous awards including the US Surgeon General's Exemplary Service Award for his role as senior scientist on Surgeon General's Call to Action to Promote Sexual Health and Responsible Sexual Behavior, released in 2001. He was given the Distinguished Scientific Achievement Award from the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality and the Alfred E. Kinsey Award by the Midcontinent Region of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality in 2001. In 2007 he was awarded the Gold Medal for his lifetime contributions to the field of sexual health by the World Association for Sexual Health and was appointed the first endowed Chair in Sexual Health at the University of Minnesota Medical School.

Bean Robinson, PhD, associate director Dr. Robinson received her BA in sociology from the State University of New York at Binghamton. She received her MA in counseling psychology and her PhD in family social science from the University of Minnesota. She received NIMH funding to complete a postdoctoral training in Asian-American mental health and research methods at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. She is currently a Minnesota licensed psychologist, licensed marriage and family therapist, and an associate professor at the Program in Human Sexuality. Prior to coming to PHS in September, 1991, she was the senior researcher at the Wilder Research Center (1984-1991) and, concurrently, was the consulting psychologist for the White Bear Lake Area Community Counseling Center (1980-1991). She has served as the executive director of the Harry Benjamin International Gender Dysphoria Association since 1996. The focus of her professional activities has been in the psychology of human sexuality and sexual health, treatment outcome research/effectiveness, and obesity and body image. Her current area of emphasis within human sexuality is exploring and developing sexual health via HIV prevention in minority communities, most notably the African American, African-born, Hmong, MSM, bisexual and transgender communities. She is a researcher-clinician who investigates healthy behavioral and psychological change and tries to develop new methods, techniques and programs to promote sexual and psychological health. Dr. Robinson has published numerous articles in peer-reviewed and other journals and books, has been the principal or co-investigator on research grants, and is on the editorial boards of 11 scientific journals. She has been a practicing clinician for her entire career. She is an active teacher, providing for the clinical training of psychologists, marriage and family therapists, and medical students and residents, has developed HIV/STD prevention curricula, and has given numerous presentations at professional meetings.

Dianne Berg, PhD Dr. Berg is an assistant professor involved in providing clinical services to adults, adolescents and children with sexuality concerns. Her areas of interest are compulsive sexual behavior, transgender issues (including gender identity disorder and intersex issues in children), women's sexual dysfunction including relationship and sex therapy, abuse recovery, and the treatment of sex offenders (including children with sexual behavior problems). She recently developed a time-limited psychoeducational/support group for partners of people with compulsive sexual behavior and has been instrumental in the development and implementation of a new community health seminar for the GLBT community called Our Sexual Health. Dr. Berg's present research focuses on the application of attachment theory to the identification of risk factors specific for sex-related delinquent behavior in adolescents. She earned her doctorate in counseling psychology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1999 and completed a postdoctoral clinical/research fellow at PHS in October, 2001. While at the University of Illinois, she helped to develop, implement, and research the impact of a campus-wide acquaintance rape education program. She also was active in the establishment of lesbian support groups. For several years prior to coming to PHS, Dr. Berg focused on the psychological assessment and treatment of children, adolescents, and families in a variety of settings including residential treatment and a community mental health outpatient clinic. She continues to be a community faculty member of Metropolitan State University, where she teaches a course on the prevention, assessment, and treatment of child abuse and neglect.

Walter Bockting, PhD Dr. Bockting received his doctoral degree in psychology from the Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands (drs. in 1988 and PhD in 1998). Currently, he is a licensed psychologist, associate professor, and coordinator of transgender health services at the Program in Human Sexuality. He is also on the graduate faculty of Feminist Studies and a co-founder of the University’s Center for CAH and Disorders of Sex Development. His research interests include gender identity development, transgender health, sexuality and the Internet, and HIV prevention, and his work has been supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health, the American Foundation for AIDS Research, and the Minnesota Department of Health. Dr. Bockting is the author of many scientific articles and editor of five books: Gender Dysphoria: Interdisciplinary Approaches in Clinical Management (Haworth Press, 1992), Transgender and HIV: Risks, Prevention, and Care (Haworth Press, 2001), Masturbation as a Means of Achieving Sexual Health (Haworth Press, 2002), Transgender Health and HIV Prevention (Haworth Press, 2005), and Guidelines for Transgender Care (The Haworth Press, 2006). He is also editor of the International Journal of Transgenderism, and serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Homosexuality. He is past president and fellow of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality, vice-president of the North American Federation of Sexuality Organizations, and a member of the board of directors of the World Professional Organization for Transgender Health.

Karin Larsen, PhD Dr. Larsen received her MA and PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Iowa. She completed an internship at the Health Sciences Center at Shands Hospital, University of Florida, and a postdoctoral fellowship in health psychology at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota. Her clinical and research interests are in health psychology, working with patients with acute or chronic medical conditions. She has presented research on women's health issues at regional and national conferences. Areas of specialization during her post-doctoral fellowship include the treatment of relationship difficulties, sexual dysfunction, compulsive sexual behavior, and sex offenders.

Anne McBean, MA Anne McBean is a graduate of Carleton College and received her MA in counseling psychology from the University of Minnesota in 1985. She is a licensed psychologist, a licensed marriage and family therapist, an instructor, and the coordinator of the Compulsive Sexual Behavior Treatment Program at PHS. Although she has had involvement in all of the clinical programs at the Center for Sexual Health, her particular areas of expertise are the treatment of compulsive sexual behavior, sexual dysfunction, sexual abuse trauma, sexual orientation confusion/dysphoria, adolescent sexual concerns, parenting concerns around child sexuality issues, and couples concerns. She assists in training medical students in addressing sexual concerns, and recently provided emergency mental health care for hurricane evacuees as part of the University of Minnesota Medical Reserve Corps. She is a certified Level II Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing practitioner. She has been involved in a variety of sexual health endeavors since her undergraduate years, and has had experience over the years in early childhood education, a variety of therapeutic services for adolescents, emergency and short term services for all ages, inpatient and outpatient therapy for compulsive sexual behavior, abuse recovery, the treatment of eating disorders, and various concerns regarding identity, dependency, and relationships. Ms. McBean has been instrumental in developing the compulsive sexual behavior treatment approach at the Center for Sexual Health and in training staff and post-doctorate fellows in this approach. She has presented trainings and workshops for both local and national audiences on the assessment and treatment of compulsive sexual behavior, compulsive sexual behavior in women, sexual issues for adolescents, and general sexuality counseling skills. More recently, she has developed a sexual health workshop for those recovering from compulsive sexual behavior called “Seven Things I Hate About Sex.”

Michael Miner, PhD Dr. Miner received his MA in counseling psychology from Loyola Marymount University in 1977 and his PhD from St. Louis University in 1984. He has been with PHS since 1992, after working with the Sex Offender Treatment and Evaluation Project in California. His areas of research include treatment of sex offenders, etiology of sexual abuse, and compulsive sexual behavior. In addition, he serves as co-investigator on many federal grants due to his expertise in research design and statistics. He is vice president of the International Association for the Treatment of Sexual Offenders and past editor of the Forum, the newsletter for the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers. He has edited, along with Eli Coleman, PhD, two books: Sexual Offender Treatment: Biopsychosocial Perspectives (Haworth, 2000) and Sex Offender Treatment: Accomplishments, Challenges and Future Directions (Haworth, 2002). He was also guest editor for a special issue of Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment entitled "Treatment Outcome Research" and has published numerous articles and book chapters on sex offender treatment, forensic assessment, instrument development, and evaluation methodology. Dr. Miner is currently the principal investigator on a U.S. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention grant investigating the unique needs of juvenile sex offenders and a University of Minnesota Grant-In-Aid using MRI and fMRI to investigate pedophilia and compulsive sexual behavior. His clinical involvement at PHS includes sex offender treatment, relationship and sexual dysfunction, and HIV counseling. In addition, he is coordinator of sex offender treatment. Dr. Miner is a licensed psychologist in both Minnesota and California, is listed in the National Register of Health Service Providers in Psychology, and is a diplomate of the American Board of Psychological Specialties, American College of Forensic Examiners.

Sara Mize, PhD Dr. Mize is a licensed psychologist and an assistant professor at PHS. She received her MA (1991) and PhD in clinical psychology (1996) from the University of Cincinnati. Her master's degree research involved assessing psychopathology and relationship satisfaction in women with low sexual desire. She completed a postdoctoral clinical/research fellowship at PHS in May of 1998. She has been actively involved in conducting individual, couples, and group psychotherapy with persons with sexual issues. Her areas of interest are relationship health, sexual abuse recovery, women's sexual health, transgender issues, sexuality and disability, and compulsive sexual behavior. She also supervises postdoctoral fellows, medical students, and medical residents and lectures on numerous sexuality topics both inside and outside the University. These speaking engagements have included: couples communication and sexual health lectures to local churches, transgender sensitivity trainings for local businesses, educating health care workers how to promote healthy sexuality in persons with physical disabilities, and lectures to medical students and residents on the diagnosis and treatment of female sexual dysfunctions. She is an eye movement desensitization and reprocessing trained clinician and uses this modality frequently with the populations she serves.

Rosemary (Rose) Munns, PsyD Dr. Munns began her work at PHS as a postdoctoral clinical/research fellow in 1998. She received her MA in clinical psychology in 1995 and her PsyD in 1998 from the Minnesota School of Professional Psychology. She had 12 years of experience in the mental health field prior to graduate school. She has extensive clinical experience in assessment and treatment of substance abuse, working in correctional settings with juvenile delinquents and adults, as well as inpatient and outpatient psychiatry. Her primary interest is in providing clinical services to adults with sexuality issues. Her areas of interest are sexual dysfunctions, relationship and sex therapy, transgender issues, assessment and treatment of sex offenders, abuse recovery, compulsive sexual behavior, sexual orientation, and HIV counseling.

Sandra Nohre, PhD Dr. Nohre received her bachelor's degree at the University of Minnesota in education and music, her master's degree from St. Mary's College in Winona in human development, and her PhD in sexology from the Institute for the Advanced Study of Sexuality. She is a licensed psychologist and marriage and family therapist and certified in sex therapy and clinical hypnosis. She began working at PHS in 1973. She helped develop many of the treatments for women and couples experiencing sexual dysfunction. Now in private practice, Dr. Nohre continues at PHS teaching medical students and working with patients with compulsive sexual behavior.

Nancy Raymond, MD Dr. Raymond did her medical school training and psychiatry residency at the University of Minnesota. She is an associate professor with a joint appointment in the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health and the Department of Psychiatry. Her research interests are the underlying pathophysiology of impulsivity in sexual disorders (compulsive sexual behavior) and eating disorders (bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder). She serves as the psychiatric consultant to the Program in Human Sexuality and the Center for Sexual Health. She is also responsible for the coordination of medical services. She is an expert in the treatment of sexual disorders and mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety. Dr. Raymond is also the director of the Deborah E. Powell Center for Women's Health, a nationally designated Center of Excellence. The Center is a multidisciplinary program committed to improving the health and wellness of women across the state of Minnesota and runs clinical, research, outreach, leadership, and educational programs that support this goal.

Fran Rowan, RN, MS Fran Rowan graduated from the College of Saint Catherine with a BS in nursing. She received her MS in psychiatric mental health nursing from the University of Minnesota in 1969. She was certified as a Clinical Nurse Specialist by the American Nurses Association in 1981. In 1978, Fran presented a paper at the American Nurses Association Convention on hospital privileges for advanced practical nursing, one of few published by the ANA. She published a book in 1980 for nursing students with a focus on chronic mental illness. She is retired after 35 years of full-time work in mental health which included teaching nursing students, program development at a mental health center, court involvement, adult protection, and direct patient service. In 2003, she joined the staff at PHS and has been providing psychiatric evaluations and medication management on a part-time basis, which includes collaboration with primary staff and being a resource person at staffings.

Michelle van Ryn, PhD, MPH Dr. van Ryn is an associate professor in the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health. She earned a PhD in social psychology and health, and an MPH in health behavior and health education at the University of Michigan, School of Public Health and Institute for Social Research, where she also completed a 2-year fellowship on psychosocial factors and mental health and illness. During this period she won the National Mental Health Association’s award for the Best Preventive Intervention, 1990. She recently completed the academic coursework needed for licensure as a marriage and family therapist and is currently seeing patients at the Center for Sexual Health. Over the last 20 years, her research (and now clinical) work has focused on the factors that create effective and empowering helping relationships across settings, circumstances, and diverse patient characteristics. She has a strong clinical interest in relationship, intimacy, and sexual health issues. In addition, she has two areas of special clinical and research interest: the impact of illness, chronic disease, and/or disability on self, relationships and sexual functioning, and methods and approaches for providing accepting and effective therapy to people involved in alternative relationships, alternative sexual lifestyles, and/or non-traditional family arrangements.

Brian Zamboni, PhD Dr. Zamboni is a certified sex therapist and certified sex educator via the American Association of Sex Educators, Counselors, and Therapists. He obtained his MA and PhD in clinical psychology from Loyola University Chicago. He earned a BA in psychology from Reed College. He has been doing work in human sexuality via research, therapy, or teaching since 1996. He has provided therapy and assessment services to adolescents and adults in several settings. Clinical training sites have included community and county hospitals, a college counseling center, a VA medical center, an adolescent inpatient psychiatric center, and several adult inpatient psychiatric facilities. Prior to working at PHS, Dr. Zamboni provided couples therapy and sex therapy for three years at the Loyola Sexual Dysfunction Clinic. In addition to therapy services, he teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in human sexuality. He helps train medical students and other health or helping professionals via workshops and seminars. He provides a variety of consulting services to individuals and organizations on diverse topics related to human sexuality. Recent topics have included sexuality and aging, sexual science and marketing, and sexual enhancement techniques for men. He also recently developed a seminar that focuses on coping with sexual dysfunction and another that helps the family, friends, partners, and other loved ones of transgender individuals. He is currently developing workshops that focus on sexual health in the workplace. He has been involved in several research and community health projects focused on HIV prevention and other aspects of sexuality, many of which have led to professional publications. In addition to conducting research, Dr. Zamboni reviews sex research for publication. He is a member of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality. His clinical and research interests include couples therapy, sexual dysfunction, sexual health in the business world and workplace, sexual compulsivity, sex offending, transgender issues and sexual minorities.

Postdoctoral Clinical/Research Fellows

Cesar A. Gonzalez, PhD Dr. Gonzalez received his BA in psychology from the University of Arizona and received his MA and PhD in clinical psychology from the California School of Professional Psychology at Alliant International University, Los Angeles. His clinical training has included behavioral medicine, persistent and severe mental illness, child and family therapy, and the assessment of learning differences. His training was with Glendale Adventist Medical Center, Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, Pasadena City College, and the Children’s Collective, Inc. in Los Angeles. Dr. Gonzalez is bicultural and fully bilingual in English and Spanish. His research interests include transgenderism, transphobia, HIV/AIDS, gender roles, depression, resilience, and multicultural community psychology. He has worked at Bienestar Human Services, Inc., a non-profit organization serving HIV infected/affected and GLBT individuals, as director of evaluation and research, where he evaluated HIV prevention programs and conducted community research on HIV/AIDS. He has also worked as staff research associate at the University of California, Los Angeles and the University of Southern California.

Rae Hoesing, PhD Dr. Hoesing received her BA in religious studies from Carleton College and her MA and PhD in counseling psychology from the University of Minnesota. She completed her pre-doctoral internship at the University of Wisconsin-Madison student counseling center where she established a lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender support group. Her current clinical areas of specialization include relationship difficulties, sexual dysfunction, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, compulsive sexual behavior, and sexual offending. While previously at PHS, Dr. Hoesing's research focused on attachment style in adolescent sex offenders. Her experience and interests also include anxiety and stress, family of origin issues, spiritual issues, group dynamics, multicultural and diversity issues, and training and professional development.

Alessandra (Alex) Iantaffi, PhD  Dr. Iantaffi is a postdoctoral research fellow and the research coordinator for the All Gender Health Online project. She received her PhD from the University of Reading (UK) and her MSc in systemic psychotherapy from the University of Bedfordshire (UK). Her research interests have focused on gender, sexuality, disability, polyamory, and BDSM. Some of her most recent co-authored publications are included in Moon, L. (2007) Feeling Queer or Queer Feelings? Radical Approaches to Counseling Sex, Sexualities, and Genders and Langridge, D. and Barker, M. (2007) Safe, Sane and Consensual. She is the editor of the Journal of Sexual and Relationship Therapy and is visiting professor for the Institute of Constructivist Psychology in Padua, Italy. She joined the University of Minnesota in August 2008.

Scott Jacoby, MA Scott Jacoby is working as an intern fellow at PHS as he completes his PhD in counseling psychology at the University of Minnesota. He received his MA in counseling and pastoral care in 2000 from the University of San Diego. He began working at PHS in 2002 conducting NIH research in sexual health, STI/HIV prevention, and mental health among high risk populations including ethnic minorities and men who have sex with men. His current clinical areas of specialization and interests include alternative sexual behavior, sexual fetishes, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, relationship and couple counseling, alternative sexual lifestyles, consensual non-monogamy, sexual disorders, paraphilic behavior, multicultural counseling, sex offending, and compulsive sexual behavior.

Sara J. Prescher, PsyD Dr. Prescher received her BA in psychology and women's studies from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota. She received her MA in counseling and psychological services from Saint Mary's University of Minnesota and her PsyD in clinical psychology from the Minnesota School of Professional Psychology at Argosy University. She completed her pre-doctoral internship at the Minnesota Correctional Facility for women in Shakopee, Minnesota. Dr. Prescher has experience working with developmental disabilities, traumatic brain injury, psychological assessments, chemical dependency, eating disorders, self-injurious behavior, personality disorders, abuse/trauma, and sex offenders and in the following settings: community mental health center, private practice, inpatient and partial hospitalization, and a correctional facility. Areas of clinical specialization during her post-doctoral fellowship include: relationship concerns, sexual dysfunctions, women's sexual health, compulsive sexual behaviors, and sex offenders.

Katherine (Katie) Spencer, PhD Dr. Spencer received her MA and PhD in counseling psychology from the University of Missouri-Columbia. She received her BA in women’s studies and psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her internship was completed at the University of Illinois-Chicago Counseling Center. Her clinical and research interests include (but are not limited to) lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender issues, gender identity and expression, women’s health and sexuality, trauma and recovery, multicultural and social justice issues, sexual dysfunction, and relationship concerns. Dr. Spencer has experience in community mental health, women’s centers, private practice, hospital settings, and university counseling centers.

G Zachariah (Zach) White, MFA, PsyD Dr. White received his doctorate in clinical psychology from the Minneapolis School of Professional Psychology at Argosy University Twin Cities. His training has included work with Alpha Human Services, the Indian Health Board of Minneapolis, the University of Minnesota Duluth student counseling center, and the behavioral health unit of Fairview University Medical Center–Mesabi. His doctoral research focused on the integration of conflicting sexual orientation and religious identities. His clinical and research interests include sexual orientation and gender identity development, reconciliation of sexuality with spirituality, effective treatment of sexual offending and compulsive sexual behavior, and the development of healthy and satisfying sexual expression.

Retired Faculty

Karin Weiss, PhD Dr. Weiss is one of the pioneers in the development of many of the educational and clinical treatments at the Program in Human Sexuality. She conducted hundreds of Sexual Attitude Reassessment seminars. In addition, she helped develop treatment programs for women experiencing sexual dysfunction or wanting sexual enrichment. She helped PHS develop its short-term abuse recovery program and a psychoeducational intervention for perpetrators of sexual harrassment. She worked in every clinical aspect of the program, including our sex offender program, and particularly with the wives and partners of sex offenders.