Cara Kaiserman

Cara Kaiserman, LCSW brings almost 20 years of experience working with children, adolescents, and families across community mental health, educational, and nonprofit settings. As Vice President of Clinical Programs and Integration at Plena Mind Center, she focuses on helping clinical teams deliver high-quality, compassionate care while building systems that support both staff and families.

Throughout her career, Cara has held leadership and direct-service roles, giving her a deep appreciation for the challenges and rewards of clinical work. She is passionate about creating environments where clinicians can grow, collaborate, and do their best work on behalf of the young people they serve. Her areas of interest include staff development, program innovation, family engagement, and translating evidence-based practices into meaningful, everyday clinical care.

Before joining Plena, Cara led one of the largest child and adolescent day treatment programs in Eastern Ontario, overseeing multidisciplinary teams and helping to advance clinical quality, operational excellence, and organizational growth. She has also worked extensively as a therapist, providing evidence-based treatment to children, adolescents, and their families.

Cara earned her Master of Social Work from the University of Illinois at Chicago and is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker. She is a certified trainer in Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS) and former trainer in Nonviolent Crisis Intervention (NVCI), and has received extensive training in trauma-informed approaches such as the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics (NMT) and the ARC (Attachment, Regulation, and Competency) framework. Colleagues know her for her thoughtful leadership, practical problem-solving, and genuine commitment to supporting both patients and clinicians.