About Anise Health
Anise is the gold standard of mental health for the Asian community. Our culturally sensitive therapy & coaching program helps clients feel seen & heard and drives outcomes.
Our beginning
Anise Health was founded in early 2021 by two women of color who experienced firsthand the ineffectiveness of the current mental health care system for individuals from underserved communities who hold intersectional identities.
We dreamed up a solution for culturally sensitive therapy & coaching that we wished we had access to our whole lives.
The name “Anise” pays homage to the ‘star anise’, a dry fruit originating in Asia known for its unique flavors and healing properties. At Anise, we acknowledge and celebrate the diverse experiences and values that make each of us unique, and help our community members heal so they can shine bright and reach their full potential!
Our Founders
CO-FOUNDER / CEO
Alice Zhang
“As a 1.5-gen immigrant, I’ve experienced firsthand the feeling of not belonging, the pressure of demanding expectations, and the struggle of being caught between polar opposite cultures. But when I finally sought therapy to work through those challenges which were inextricably linked to my Asian values and immigrant upbringing, I ended up cycling through multiple therapists, each time feeling more defeated. I knew that if finding effective care was so hard even for someone like me who has a good understanding of mental health, having studied psychology and being trained as a wellbeing coach, it must be nearly impossible for many others out there who share my background.”
Alice Zhang
Co-Founder & CEO of Anise Health
CO-FOUNDER / COO
Nisha Desai
“Like many children of immigrants, I grew up in a traditional South Asian household where mental health was never talked about. My emotional personality was viewed as ‘weak-hearted’ and it wasn’t until college that I realized it was ok to not always be ok. Unfortunately, my school had a broken mental health system and, like me, many of my classmates weren’t able to get the support they needed. There was a tragic loss of lives - 14 suicides - and I noticed many of them were people of color and Asian Americans, specifically. This rang alarm bells for me and left me asking: if the people of color in this country had better treatment options to help process our emotions, could the outcome be different?”
Nisha Desai
Co-Founder & COO of Anise Health
Meet The Team
CHIEF OF STAFF
Angel is a second-generation Chinese American and Midwesterner who is passionate about empowering the Asian community to live a flourishing, authentic life. Prior to Anise, Angel was a program manager at Meta's Elections Integrity team, where she managed a $90M account classifying political ads for the US elections. She also worked at TikTok's Institute of Monetization Integrity, Twitter's Counsel Org, the UNDP's Chief Digital Office, Gusto's Business Insights and Operations team, and Kearney as a management consultant. Angel has an MBA from Harvard Business School and a B.A. in Political Science from Columbia University.
Angel Wang
DIRECTOR OF CLINICAL STRATEGY & OPS
Israa is a therapist by training, and has extensive experience in clinical strategy and program development. Born in the Pakistan, raised as an expat in the Middle East, then as immigrant in Toronto, Canada, Israa grew up navigating many cultures. Her global upbringing taught her a deep appreciation for the beauty of different cultures (and how to find the best snacks everywhere!). She has held leadership roles at startups focused on bridging gaps in mental health access and innovation. Israa is excited to develop initiatives that redefine mental health care delivery and create lasting impact. She loves hosting at home, is the quintessential Libra (Cancer Rising), and would love to meet David Attenborough one day!
Israa Nasir
LEAD SOFTWARE ENGINEER
Rachel is a born and raised Californian-turned-East-Coaster. She holds a Masters in Computer Science from Boston University with a focus in data computing and is Anise’s Lead Software Engineer. In her free time, she likes to indulge her huge sweet tooth — currently on the hunt for the best croissant in the US! She has a strong passion for providing care that is unique and tailored and is excited to be working with the Anise team to bring a more culturally-responsive care model to the table.
Rachel Peng
CLINICAL OPERATIONS MANAGER
Josephine is a second-generation Chinese-American, who grew up in the Bay Area of California. She holds a Bachelor’s in Psychology from UC Berkeley and has worked in various mental health companies, ranging from academic hospitals to mental health startups. Josephine has always been passionate about mental health and is excited to work at the intersection of mental health and culture. She is dedicated to streamline and scale clinical operations to help deliver personalized, culturally responsive care that meets the unique needs of the BIPOC community. Outside of work, she enjoys exploring new places, dancing, playing video games, and hanging out with her corgi, Nani.
Josephine Tseng
HEAD OF MARKETING
Israa is a therapist by training, and has extensive experience in clinical strategy and program development. Born in the Pakistan, raised as an expat in the Middle East, then as immigrant in Toronto, Canada, Israa grew up navigating many cultures. Her global upbringing taught her a deep appreciation for the beauty of different cultures (and how to find the best snacks everywhere!). She has held leadership roles at startups focused on bridging gaps in mental health access and innovation. Israa is excited to develop initiatives that redefine mental health care delivery and create lasting impact. She loves hosting at home, is the quintessential Libra (Cancer Rising), and would love to meet David Attenborough one day!
Francois du Toit
Anise in the News
Our Commitment to Diversity
100% of Anise Health’s full-time team belongs to a racial minority, and we embrace our intersectional identities in both our professional and personal lives.
We are a mission-driven healthcare organization built on the principal of serving diverse and underserved communities. That’s why we’ve pioneered an evidenced-based, clinical care model that is culturally sensitive and more suitable for people of color than the existing standard of care. Our services aim to eliminate health disparities in mental health outcomes and our results within the Asian community show that our holistic approach is more likely to improve the engagement rates and overall health of BIPOC individuals.
+60 providers
representing diverse needs & trained in our culturally-responsive care programs
+3 million lives
reached through in-network coverage with commercial insurance partners