Virginia J. Zecchini, MSc, LCSW, is a bilingual, bicultural specialist in pediatric developmental and behavioral child and adolescent psychiatry who focuses on supporting children and families experiencing emotional or behavioral challenges. She works with young people facing psychiatric symptoms, trauma, or challenges in family and community relationships, offering care that aims to strengthen family bonds and improve daily functioning at home and in the community.

Zecchini’s approach is family-focused, trauma-informed, attachment and mentalization-based to child, parent, and family psychotherapy. Zecchini works closely with both children and their parents to address issues that affect the entire family system, including supporting parents to better understand and support their children’s needs. As well as supporting the youth and their relationship with their family members and peers in the home, school, and community.

As assistant clinical professor of social work at Yale School of Medicine, she provides supervision, training, model guidance, and direct support through programs focused on intensive, in-home care. Her interests include understanding how family dynamics and trauma impact the mental health of children and adolescents and using these insights to guide family-centered care.

Zecchini says her passion for youth work began in her formative years as a Latina facing discrimination in school. “Early encounters with bias led me to explore my own emotions and develop a deep empathy for others. I recognized that everyone carries a unique story,” she says. “I came to see how personal history shapes our identities and relationships.”

She says her commitment to youth work is not just a career choice, but a "heartfelt mission driven by the belief that understanding our experiences is key to nurturing meaningful connections for the future.”

Zecchini is dedicated to empowering youth, believing that understanding our past is key to building resilience and fostering meaningful connections.