About
Community Connections Psychological Associates Inc. was founded in 2021 by Drs. Joyce Chu and Chris Weaver, both of whom have extensive backgrounds in academia and in translational research and work. CCPA was born out of the identified need to bridge gaps between practice and research. Our mission is providing cutting-edge, culturally-infused, evidence-based training, consultation, program evaluation, and expert witness services to agencies seeking to address mental health, psychological trauma, suicide prevention, and violence risk among their diverse communities. Meet the individuals driving these efforts below.
Joyce Chu, Ph.D.
Joyce Chu, Ph.D., is a licensed Clinical Psychologist whose expertise lie in the areas of suicide prevention, diversity and culture, and community mental health. Dr. Chu completed her training at Stanford University, University of Michigan, and the University of California, San Francisco, and is currently a Director at Community Connections Psychological Associates and a Professor of Psychology at Palo Alto University. Her work is focused around advancing the assessment and prevention of suicide for ethnic minority and LGBTQ+ populations, particularly in Asian Americans. Dr. Chu has published numerous works including a cultural theory and model of suicide and a tool that assists in accounting for cultural influences on suicide risk. Her work is community-collaborative and aims to address the need for culturally congruent outreach and service options for underserved communities. She also does work in program evaluation, suicide prevention organizational consultation, and training.
Chris Weaver, Ph.D.
Christopher Weaver, Ph.D., is a licensed Clinical Psychologist whose expertise lie in the areas of forensics, assessment, substance use, suicide, violence, and trauma. Dr. Weaver completed his training at the University of Louisville, University of California - San Francisco and Stanford University, and is currently a Professor at Palo Alto University (PAU*) where he directs the Forensic Psychology Program. He has published in the areas of psychopathy and violence and suicide risk assessment, and more recently in the areas of police crisis deescalation. He has co-authored a number of law enforcement mental health crisis curricula. His publications also include co-authored books in mental health law and psychopathology. Dr. Weaver’s current research focuses on police crisis and suicide intervention, the role that trauma and substance use play in criminal offending, the assessment of dissimulation in PTSD assessment. He and Dr. Chu are collaborating on a funded training and research program designed to increase police officer effectiveness in determining and documenting suicide risk.
Lorna Chiu, Ph.D.
Lorna Chiu, Ph.D., is a licensed Clinical Psychologist with specialties in cultural identity and diversity, health psychology, perinatal mental health, suicidology, and trauma. Dr. Chiu completed her training at the University of Southern California and Palo Alto University and is currently an embedded psychologist at an Obstetrics and Gynecology (OB/GYN) clinic at Kaiser where she provides therapeutic treatment for peripartum mood disorders and support for patients throughout their perinatal journey. She has managed multiple community-based participatory research studies and teams, including within Stanford University's School of Medicine, and has published research focused on strengthening emotional resilience and preventing suicide within ethnic minority populations. Dr. Chiu has also supported the Santa Clara Suicide Prevention Oversight Committee (SPOC) with Dr. Chu in multiple projects in the evaluation and expansion of their culturally infused and culturally responsive programming. Her ongoing work in clinical practice, research, program evaluation, and community training is driven by a passion for a societal movement towards equity and social justice through advocacy of individuals and communities to live in more resourced, empowered, and value-oriented ways.
Gabe Corpus, Ph.D.
Gabe Corpus, Ph.D., is a Clinical Psychologist who has specialties in suicide prevention, Asian American Pacific Islander mental health (primarily Filipino communities), and university based counseling. He completed his doctoral training at Palo Alto University (PAU) and completed his postdoctoral fellowship in suicide prevention and innovative programming at the University of California, Irvine (UCI). He currently works in private practice as a therapist providing clinical services to a diverse AAPI population and a workshop presenter for communities/organizations. He worked alongside Dr. Joyce Chu within the Multicultural Suicide Research Center where he aided in a program evaluation to infuse cultural competency in their suicide prevention programming. He is a second-generation Filipino American and his parents come from Zambales and Illocos. As a Filipino Psychologist, he has been active in the field of Asian American psychology, chairing the Asian American Psychological Association Education Committee, and served as a student representative for the Division of Filipino American psychologists. He has published numerous works on suicide prevention, Filipino mental health, and AAPI issues. He is currently the CCPA Be Sensitive, Be Brave (BSBB) Program Manager overseeing the current and incoming cohorts of BSBB trainees.
Alexandra Lugo, Ph.D.
Alexandra Lugo, Ph.D., is a Clinical Psychologist who has specialties in forensics, trauma, substance abuse, assessment, and suicide and violence risk. She graduated from Palo Alto University (PAU). She has worked in various clinical settings, including community mental health centers and correctional and forensic inpatient institutions. She completed her doctoral training with the California Department of State Hospitals Metropolitan in Los Angeles, California, where she also worked as a staff psychologist. Dr. Lugo recently served as a member on the American Psychological Association Division 41 (AP-LS) Telepsychology Taskforce, and she has published articles and given conference presentations, invited talks, and guest lectures on issues related to cultural and ethical issues in the criminal justice system as well as on the application of technology to improve existing psychology-law practices. Dr. Lugo also consults on issues related to suicide risk assessment and leveraging technology for uses in the criminal justice system. Alongside Drs. Weaver and Chu, Dr. Lugo co-developed a suicide risk assessment smartphone application for use by police officers in guiding their risk determinations and decision-making.
Brandon Hoeflein, Ph.D.
Brandon Hoeflein, Ph.D., is a licensed Clinical Psychologist with a passion for culturally-appropriate suicide prevention, LGBTQ+-affirming psychology, trauma-focused approaches to healing, and religion/spirituality. He completed his clinical training in community mental health and multiple VA systems (San Francisco VA, Tampa VA, and Houston VA). Dr. Hoeflein’s work as a community psychologist is represented by consultation on Santa Clara County’s efforts to improve mental health access for ethnic minority individuals and to consistently evaluate the consumer and cultural aspects of their behavioral health services. He recently completed a 3-year term as a member of the APA’s Committee on Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity (CSOGD). Dr. Hoeflein led the design and pilot phase of the “Be Sensitive, Be Brave” culturally-infused suicide prevention gatekeeper training, and served as the initial trainer of new BSBB trainers. He has published multiple articles on culturally-attuned suicidology. Dr. Hoeflein is currently a staff psychologist at the Houston VA, where he engages in culturally-appropriate approaches to PTSD psychotherapy and culturally-sensitive supervision of trainees.