Spiritual Care and Well-Being Staff and CPE Faculty
Rev. Samuel Yenn-Batah, MDiv, ACPE Certified Educator Candidate
Director, Spiritual Care & Well-Being | Executive Director, Religious Ministries, Inc.
Rev. Sam Yenn-Batah was born and raised in Accra, Ghana, before immigrating to Atlanta, Georgia with his family of origin. While helping high school students to develop an entrepreneurial mindset and start their own businesses, Sam studied saxophone with Ryan Kilgore, toured with Sonnie Badu, and shared the gift with music to bring people joy and healing. In 2012, Sam was named a Global Young Entrepreneur of the Year by the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship in partnership with Goldman Sachs, while completing degrees in Economics and French at Georgia State University.
Sam makes a home with his spouse, the Rev. LaThelma Yenn-Batah, their beloved daughter, son, niece, and his mom. While training graduate students in chaplaincy, Sam is involved in shaping the hospital’s workplace violence, well-being, and grief support initiatives for staff. Sam also serves on the board of directors for Good Grief, The Westminster Foundation at Princeton, the Foundation for ACPE, and provides well-being support to first responders in Princeton and Plainsboro. Sam is a graduate of Princeton Theological Seminary, and an ordained Minister of Word & Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church (USA), completed his CPE internship and residency training at Penn Medicine Princeton Health, where he later became the manager of pastoral care and CPE before his current roles. Sam loves comedy, writes poetry, watches drama movies, and fervently prays for a revival of the L.A. Lakers!
Rabbi Dr. Brielle P. Rassler | Lead Chaplain of Integrative Wellness
Rabbi Dr. Brielle Paige Rassler is a licensed psychologist, ordained rabbi and spiritual director, composer, and award-winning author from South Florida.
As a psychologist and spiritual counselor, Dr. Brielle has been working with individuals, families, and groups facing a variety of challenges, since 2011. She has worked at several substance abuse and eating disorder treatment centers, including Into Action Treatment, Pathway to Hope, the Renfrew Center, Penn Medicine Princeton House, and the Penn Medicine Princeton Center for Eating Disorders. Dr. Brielle has also worked with individuals struggling with depression, anxiety, trauma, and losses of all kinds. Most recently, she was the coordinator and lead therapist of the Penn Medicine Princeton Medical Center Grief Counseling Program, implemented as a crisis intervention program at the start of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Rabbi Brielle provides spiritual care and well-being support to staff and patients through PMPH with special emphasis on Princeton House Behavioral Health and the Eating Disorders Unit. Dr. Brielle is also in private practice and provides consultation and training on the topic of Jewish Women and Eating Disorders at mental and medical health practices, educational settings, and religious settings nationwide.
In the spiritual branch of her lifetime’s deployment, Rabbi Brielle has released two albums of original music, with prayer songs that have been shared at holiday and Shabbat services across the country. She has served with the prayer leadership teams at several congregations, including Romemu and Kehillath Shalom Synagogue in New York and Mishkan Shalom and Darkeynu in Philadelphia, PA. Rabbi Brielle has also authored a reference guide to the Talmud and a treatment manual for religiously integrated treatment of Jewish women with eating disorders. She is currently working on the third volume of her emerging book series, “A Millennial’s Poetic Interpretation.”
Rev. Matthew Rhodes, PysD, BCC, ACPE Certified Educator, HEC-C | Contract Educator
Rev. Rhodes is a Minister of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church (USA) and holds a BA from Davidson College, a Master of Divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary. Matt also holds a Doctor of Psychology in Clinical Pastoral Supervision through the Institute for Psychodynamic Pastoral Supervision and Graduate Theological Foundation, and a Masters in Social Work at Rutgers University. He has completed 4 units of CPE with Capital Health, 4 units of CPE with Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, and Supervisory Education with RWJUH and Overlook Hospital through the Eastern Pennsylvania Institute for Clinical Supervision (EPICS). Matt is an ACPE Certified Educator as well as a National Faculty ACPE Educator. Matt is a Psychotherapist, serves as ACPE Curriculum Committee Chair, L'Arche USA Board President, and Chair-Elect of the ACPE Board of Directors.
Matt previously was the Director or Religious Ministries and Executive Director of its 501c3, where he developed a robust CPE program and community support to provide spiritual care to patients, staff, and the community. Matt resides in Hopewell, NJ, with his spouse, Rachel, who is Senior Pastor and Head of Staff at Morrisville Presbyterian Church. Matt and Rachel are proud parents their two children, Madeline Jane and Benjamin, and their beloved dog Pennie.
Rev. Luke Ekstrom, ACPE Certified Educator Candidate | Staff Chaplain
The Rev. Luke Ekstrom is ordained as a Minister of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church (USA). He is a Certified Educator Candidate in the Association of Clinical Pastoral Education and is a Staff Chaplain for Penn Medicine Princeton Health. As a Staff Chaplain, Luke oversees the spiritual care of patients and staff in Penn Medicine Princeton Health's Cancer Center. Luke also provides oversight for Schwartz Rounds and Critical Incident Debriefs in all departments of Princeton Medical Center and Princeton House Behavioral Health. He also serves as a member of Princeton Medical Center's Bio-Medical Ethics Committee. Luke has completed most of his clinical training in the Behavioral Health and Palliative Care settings. Luke has completed a total of 5 units of Clinical Pastoral Education—one unit at St. Vincent Healthcare in Billings, MT and four units, including a residency, at PMPH. He is a graduate of Princeton Theological Seminary, where he received a Master of Divinity with emphases in Pastoral Psychology and Psychoanalysis. While in seminary, Luke was a recipient of the Robert P. Goodlin Award for Excellence in Clinical Chaplaincy. Luke also holds undergraduate degrees in Philosophy and Christian Theology from Whitworth University.
Luke and his wife live locally in Plainsboro, NJ with their two dogs. When Luke is not at work, you can find him on the golf course or at the nearest rock-climbing gym. Luke and his spouse enjoy attending concerts together, trying new breweries, and playing cribbage.
Mariann Wankoff | Office Coordinator
A native of New York, Mariann comes from a religiously diverse family that includes Jews, Catholics, and Protestants. With a particular expertise in digital scholarship and technology, she worked at Princeton Theological Seminary for over 20 years and supported students, staff, and faculty in their academic research. In the Department of Religious Ministries, Mariann coordinates departmental programming, services, and patient care as the primary interface with the healthcare system.
Father Peter Akkanath | Coordinating Diocesan Priest
Peter Akkanath Chakkunny, CMI., is a Carmelite priest belonging to the Bhopal province in India. He was ordained January 8th, 1998. He holds a Master’s Degree in psychology from Calicut University, India and completed two years’ fellowship in Clinical Psychology from Ramachandra Medical College, Chennai, India. Since 2007 he was working as a Clinical Psychologist in Sacred Heart psychiatric hospital, Paynkulam, India. He was chaplain at Carmelite Monastery, Flemington, NJ for three years before his appointment as the Catholic Chaplain to Princeton Health, NJ. He served as a vocation promoter for CMI Bhopal province, India and director of VMK, Madhya Pradesh, India.