Two friends and cohort-mates, Celeste Vega and Fedra Calderon, both matched into their psychology internships in the same month.
Alt text for photo: Celeste Vega (left) and Fedra Calderon (right) in front of a background that says “Disability Rights are Human Rights.”
Congratulations to ArizonaLEND alumni (2025-2026) Celeste Vega and Fedra Calderon, for matching into their doctoral psychology program internships! Not every day do friends get to experience major milestones together as Celeste and Fedra get to do. Not only were they cohort-mates throughout the last year within the ArizonaLEND program — they also successfully matched with their doctoral psychology internships within weeks of each other. Matching is the culmination of a rigorous national process through which doctoral psychology students are placed at internship sites based on mutual fit between applicant and program. This milestone marks the final stage of doctoral training before licensure. As Fedra shared, “this milestone represents both a personal and professional achievement.” Celeste added, “matching to the internship feels like a recognition of the years of training, hard work, and growth that have brought me to this point.”
Celeste matched with her first-choice site — The University of Arizona College of Medicine Department of Psychiatry. With an interest in interdisciplinary training, she hoped to match to a site where she could continue working with children with neurodevelopmental disabilities while growing her clinical skills with culturally and linguistically diverse populations. Originally from Paraguay, she brings a multicultural and bilingual (Spanish-English) perspective to her work. “My research focuses on culturally responsive and socially just practices, particularly for emergent bilingual children, and my dissertation examines how school psychologists integrate social justice considerations into assessment practices with these students.” That commitment to justice-oriented, cross-system thinking carried into her time with ArizonaLEND. Celeste reflected, “It reminded me that supporting individuals and their families requires multiple perspectives and a commitment to shared problem-solving across systems.”
After multiple site interviews, Fedra successfully matched with Jordan School District in West Jordan, Utah, just outside of Salt Lake City. Reflecting on her matching experience, Fedra shared, “Matching with Jordan School District was a moment of immense pride and excitement. The journey reinforced my growth as a clinician, highlighted the value of persistence, and reminded me that meaningful opportunities can emerge in unexpected places.” Her own experience navigating multiple intersecting identities, and the added barriers they can create in higher education and professional spaces, shapes how she approaches her work. “I hope to advocate for and empower populations that reflect my lived experiences while contributing to meaningful, lasting change in education and mental health systems,” she said. Looking back on her ArizonaLEND experience, Fedra shared she will carry forward the importance of collaborating with interdisciplinary teams, learning directly from self-advocates and families, and valuing the unique perspectives each team member brings.
Though their paths are taking them in different directions, both Celeste and Fedra credit ArizonaLEND with shaping how they'll show up in their internships. The program's interdisciplinary model of bringing together trainees and family members across fields to learn from one another left a lasting mark on both. For Celeste, that meant a deeper understanding of shared problem-solving across systems; for Fedra, it meant learning to sit alongside self-advocates and families, not just alongside colleagues. That distinction speaks to what ArizonaLEND aims to instill, that the best clinical work happens when lived experience and professional training inform each other. ArizonaLEND is proud to celebrate two trainees who didn't just complete a program together, but who are stepping into the next chapter of their careers as colleagues, advocates, and friends.
