yCLINICAL & SCHOOLSUMMER 2012

New Tack on ADHDResearch program adopts alternative approach to common disorder

Most often, a childhood diagnosis of ADHD is treated only as a problem to be fixed, often with medication. An important new research program at the Curry School takes an alternative perspective. It focuses on unlocking the

capacity and potential of children with ADHD. “Approaching ADHD from a strengths-based perspective is novel,” says Michael J. Kofler,

who recently joined the faculty to establish this line of research. “Nonetheless, it is a perspec-tive that is intrinsically appealing to me, and one that I believe will lead to new discoveries and interventions that will improve long-term functioning for these children.”

Formerly the associate director of the Children’s Learning Clinic at the University of Central Florida, Kofler has some significant ADHD research already under his belt. His most intriguing work with the UCF team challenged the prevailing view that hyperactivity is a purposeless deficit in ADHD. They found that inatten-tion, hyperactivity, and impulsivity, instead of being core behavioral symptoms, may actually be secondary features of the disorder. The underlying mechanism appeared to be an underdeveloped working memory.

“We found that all children—not only children with ADHD—tripled their motor activity when working memory demands increased.” Kofler says.

Kofler, who recently received the Young Scientist Research Award from the organization Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (CHADD), will conduct his work in conjunction with

“We found that all children—not only children with ADHD—tripled their motor activity when working memory demands increased.”

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Reeve Honored

Editor: Ron Reeve, DirectorClinical and School Psychology Program

Clinical & School Psychology is published by the Curry School of Education and is sponsored by the Curry School of Education Foundation, P.O. Box 400276, Charlottesville, VA 22904

http://curry.virginia.edu/clinpsychnewsletter

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Your gateway to Curry connections:

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Ron Reeve, a profes-sor in clinical and school psychology at Curry since 1975, has been named a charter member of the Virginia Psychological Foundation Hall of Fame. Reeve was honored for his contributions to the field of psychology and to the work of the Virginia Psychological Association, for his lifetime achievements as a psychologist, for his service to his community, and for being an inspira-tion to others.

psychology

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Youth-Nex, the Curry School’s Center to Promote Effective Youth Development.

“The goal of positive youth development is not only to decrease adverse outcomes, but also to develop strengths and help children thrive,” Kofler says.

His work here will begin with a system-atic exploration of resiliency in individuals with ADHD. He hopes to identify key characteris-tics of individuals with ADHD who not only avoid the adverse outcomes associated with the disorder but thrive in spite of, or because of, their ADHD symptoms.

He believes his prior work fits well within a strengths-based framework and that simul-taneous consideration of both their strengths and weaknesses will lead to the most robust interventions for children with ADHD.

The impetus for this research program was the visionary foresight of a family directly impacted by ADHD. Mark Galant is a 1980 Commerce grad who calls himself a serial entrepreneur. His wife Cindy is a 1980 College grad who majored in biology. She serves on the Curry School Foundation board of directors.

Their son Tyler, now 26, was diagnosed with ADHD in sixth grade. Soon afterward, Mark was also diagnosed. After years of watching Tyler struggle with tedious school tasks, the Galants were excited to see a huge impact on his academic success when he gained access to portable technologies that had calendars, reminder alarms, and easy note-taking capa-bilities.

Mark spent several years as a commodity floor trader after U.Va. and loved the constant

noise and motion of the trading pit. He credits his ADHD for his ability to change gears quickly and juggle multiple tasks, traits he con-siders largely responsible for his entrepreneurial successes.

After being introduced to the Curry School when their daughter Kendall was consider-ing a teaching degree, the Galants discussed their experiences with Dean Bob Pianta. They devised a plan to catalyze research on the capabilities of children with ADHD and the potential of technology to support children’s success. The couple then backed the plan with a $340,000 gift.

“We know that Curry is on the forefront of effecting meaningful change in education,” Cindy says. “And as alumni, we find support-ing the University by funding projects we care deeply about incredibly fulfilling.”

Their seed funding will support Kofler’s work as he addresses a full start-up agenda this year. His initial steps will include building a research team, establishing a clinical research lab, and initiating development of a comput-erized, adaptive training program to improve working memory.

“Through a process of basic and translational research we will identify key factors associated with ADHD-related successes and challenges and then develop interventions to foster these strengths,” he says. “I am highly optimistic that we can foster improvements in basic cognitive processes that underlie all children’s capacity to thrive academically and interpersonally.”

Read more about Youth-Nex at curry.virginia.edu/youth-nex

Thank You!

The Curry School Foundation recognizes the generosity of the following alumni from the Clinical and School Psychology programs who have made donations so far in 2012:

Leila AzarbadJohn David BallJoseph P. BushConstance B. CaldwellJohn F. CallahanJoanna CastaldiMargaret M. DawsonParthenia R. RandolphJeffrey SeltzerTheodore Siedlecki, Jr.Phillip Jeffrey TietbohlSaritha Mathew Vermeer

These gifts directly benefit Curry students and the quality of their educational experiences.

2012 Award Recipients

The following students in Curry’s Clinical & School Psychology pro-grams received financial assistance from funds established by donors.

Richard Abidin Award for Clinical ExcellenceCaitlin N. Clarke

Richard Abidin Award for Excellence in ResearchMichael W. Baly

Richard Abidin ScholarshipJordan L. Wade

Current Faculty

Julia BlodgettMichael KoflerEdith “Winx” Lawrence Lisa Locke-DownerAnn Loper Ron Reeve Peter Sheras Antoinette Thomas Duane ThomasPatrick Tolan

ADHD Study continued from page 1

Another New FaceThis fall the Clinical and School

Psychology program also welcomes Duane E. Thomas to the faculty.

Since 2005 Thomas has been on the fac-ulty of the Applied Psychology and Human Development Division at the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education.

At Penn, Thomas developed specialization in three key areas: youth violence prevention research, partnership-based methodologies, and the identification of risk and protective fac-tors for urban African-American children and youth. His interest in these areas was engen-dered, in part, through his doctoral training at

Penn State University, where he worked as a research assistant for the Children, Youth and Families Consortium and the Fast Track Program, a multi-site prevention program for the pre-vention of conduct disorders.

Thomas also did postdoctoral work at Johns Hopkins Center for Early Intervention and Prevention and the Hopkins-Morgan Center for Health Disparities Solutions.

How did you choose clinical & school psychology as a profession?

I knew I wanted to work with children from a very young age on. Initially, I had thought of becoming an elementary school teacher, preferably kindergarten or first grade, because I thought it would be so cool to teach kids to read. As I entered high school, my interest in child psychology was piqued by reading Dibs in Search of Self by Virginia Axline. After my first developmental psychology course in college [Colgate University in New York], I knew that child psychology would be my career choice.What brought you to the Curry School?

In 1976, the University of Virginia was one of only a very few schools offering a doctorate in clinical child psychology. If I had any doubts about attending Curry, they were dispelled after my first visit to Charlottesville and my interview with Ron Reeve.What did you do after Curry?

I spent the first 17 years after graduating from Curry working in a variety of private nonprofit agencies in Connecticut and Florida. While I enjoyed each of these expe-riences and learned much from the children, families and colleagues I worked with, I felt increasingly frustrated with the limitations inherent to traditional treatment models when dealing with children who rely on the publicly funded mental health system.

As a result of this concern, I have spent the last 14 years working for the Connecticut Department of Children and Families as the director of Children’s Mental Health and, most recently, as the DCF director of the Connecticut Behavioral Health Partnership. It is a consortium of state agencies mandated to develop a seamless mental health system for all populations who rely on publicly funded behavioral health services.What are your primary responsibilities in your current position?

I have been given the opportunity to work with various universities, state agencies and the federal government (SAMHSA) to identify and implement best practices and evidence-based programs for youth in the child welfare, juvenile justice and children’s mental health systems. Currently, I am working in partnership with Connnecticut’s Medicaid

agency to expand or redirect the services covered within the Medicaid benefit to better meet the needs of our target populations and their caregivers.

My top responsibilities currently involve keeping youth out of residential care when clinically indicated by developing a robust and comprehensive community- and home-based services network, working with the existing nonprofit provider network to adapt to changes within Connecticut’s priorities for the system, and focusing clinical attention to the impact of trauma on child development.What have you found most fulfilling about your work?

I have taken great pleasure in helping to bring focus to children’s mental health issues in Connecticut on a statewide level and in devel-oping programs and funding opportunities that infuse mental health interventions within the child welfare and juvenile justice systems.

Within this broader system reform, I have also derived satisfaction in identifying best practices that consider the developmental and psycho-social needs of youth with complex trauma.What advice do you have for recent graduates?

It’s not easy being a kid and the long-lasting impact of poverty, domestic violence, substance abuse and broken attachments cannot be underestimated. The need for competent, well-trained mental health professionals in the public sector is enormous. Do not be afraid to stretch and at least experiment with practice outside of a traditional office setting.

While the many challenges within the public mental health system may make the work seem daunting, frustrating and ultimately unrewarding, this is the faction of our society that needs the most help and where the opportunities to make a large-scale difference exist.

Karen AnderssonAlumni BriefsLeila Azarbad (M.Ed. ‘02, Ph.D. ‘06) is an assis-tant professor in the Department of Psychology at North Central College in Naperville, Ill. “I absolutely love sharing my enthusiasm for psychol-ogy with undergraduates both inside and outside of the classroom and mentoring them as they decide on their career paths!” she says. Leila and her husband Amir keep busy with their two adorable boys, Darian (4) and Mason (1).

Elena Tuerk (M.Ed. ’03, Ph.D. ’07) con-ducts clinical work part-time at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston and is the executive director of a nonprofit that provides consulta-tion on the treatment of trauma for those affected by the Great East Earthquake in Japan. “I am excited by the many opportunities I’ve had to engage in challenging projects that require me to learn new skills,” she says. Elena says she spends most of her personal time delighting in the company of her two-year-old daughter, Vivian.

Michele Cooley (B.A. ’83, M.Ed. ’87, Ph.D. ’92) is a research psycholo-gist at UCLA and an adjunct associate professor at Johns Hopkins University. “Being a clinician, researcher, and prevention scientist all-in-one is most reward-ing and exciting,” she says, “because I am able to design school-based preventive interventions, obtain funding, treat children, evaluate the program’s effectiveness, and dis-seminate the results with the goal of improving urban youth’s behavioral and emotional health.” Cooley is PI on a large grant funded the by National Institute on Drug Abuse.

/// Karen Andersson (M.Ed. ‘77, Ph.D. ‘81)

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Read more about each of these alumni at curry.virginia.edu/clinpsychnewsletter

Director of Mental Health, Connecticut Department of Children and Families

Submit your class note at curry.virginia.edu/classnotes

Julie Amato (M.Ed. ‘01, Ph.D. ‘05) is chief psychologist for the Department of Justice in Salem, Mass.Lauren Ashbaugh (M.Ed. ‘05, Ph.D. ‘09) was promoted to site director of predoctoral intern-ship training in child and adolescent psychiatry at Boston Medical Center and the Boston Consortium in Clinical Psychology. Angie Breidenstine (M.Ed. ‘00, Ph.D. ‘04) is assistant professor of clinical psychiatry at Tulane University School of Medicine in New Orleans. Karen Brockenbrough (M.Ed ‘97, Ph.D. ‘01) is a clinical psychologist at St. Catherine’s School in Richmond, Va.William Burke (Ph.D. ‘78) is a clinical psy-chologist with Family Behavioral Health Associates in Midlothian, Va.

Joseph Bush (M.A. ‘80, Ph.D. ‘83) is associ-ate dean at Fielding Graduate University in Santa Barbara, Ca. His specialty is pediatric psychology. Bruce Casey (Ph.D. ‘83) is a clinical psychol-ogist in Boulder, Col. He and his wife, Nancy, celebrated their 22nd wedding anniversary this year.

Bethany Corliss (M.Ed. ‘05, Ph.D. ‘09) is an independent contractor conducting ther-apy and assessment at a group practice called Mindwell Psychology in Chantilly, Va. Charles Curtis (M.Ed. ‘04, Ph.D. ‘08) is a clinical and school psychologist at the John L. Gildner Regional Institute for Children and Adolescents in Rockville, Md.Andrea Elkon (M.Ed. ‘00, Ph.D. ‘05) works with the Atlanta VA Medical Center, assessing veterans as part of their claims for VA disability compensation. Kate Goldhaber (M.Ed. ‘03, Ph.D. ‘07) is an assistant professor at the Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, Ill.Janet Hansen (M.Ed. ‘89, Ph.D. ‘95) is still in private practice in Hilliard, Ohio, special-izing in Autism Spectrum Disorders, ABA.Diane Hoekstra (M.Ed. ‘87, Ph.D. ‘91) is in private practice in northern Virginia. She sees adolescents, adults, and couples in psychother-apy and works from an attachment perspective. Karen Ingersoll (Ph.D. ‘92) is associate pro-fessor in the U.Va. School of Medicine. Elisabeth Jerome (M.Ed. ‘05, Ph.D. ‘09) is a clinical psychologist with Community Health Center of the Rappahannock Region in Fredericksburg, Va. Nancy Kassam-Adams (M.Ed. ‘92, Ph.D. ‘95) was recently appointed research associate professor of clinical psychology in pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia.Lauren Kopans (M.Ed. ‘97, Ph.D. ‘01) is a clinical psychologist in private practice in Cambridge, Mass.

Talisha H. Lee (M.Ed. ’95, Ph.D. ’10) received the 2012 AERA Division E (Counseling and Human Development) Outstanding Dissertation Award. Lacey Levitt (M.Ed. ‘07, Ph.D. ‘11) com-pleted a postdoctoral fellowship in Forensic Psychology at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in August 2012.Peggy Mitchell Norwood, Ph.D. (M.Ed. ’87, Ph.D. ’91) is a clinical psychologist and psy-chology professor at the Community College of Aurora in Colorado. Michael Ripski (M.Ed. ‘06, Ph.D. ‘10) is exec-utive director of The Achievement Network in New Orleans. He was married on April 21, 2012, to Morgan Carter.Sid Smith (Ph.D. ’86) has worked for Monterey County Behavioral Health in California since completing his degree. Recently he was pro-moted to manage all adult and children’s behavioral health services. Amanda Sovik-Johnston (M.Ed. ‘07 Ed Psych, Ph.D. ‘11) is a therapist with Childhelp and lives in Charlottesville. Jared Von Arx (M.Ed. ‘98, Ph.D. ‘03) writes, “I am writing to share the exciting news that after 5 years of working the child and adoles-cent psychologist for a community health cen-ter, I am now in private practice in Philadelphia. Catherine Walsh (M.Ed. ‘84, Ph.D. ‘88) is a clinical psychologist in private practice in Mount Pleasant, So. Carolina.

CLASS NOTES

Programs in Clinical & School PsychologyP.O. Box 400268417 Emmet Street SouthCharlottesville, VA 22904-4268

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Read more. Most submissions were abbreviated due to space limitations. You can read complete class notes online at curry.virginia.edu/clinpsychnewsletter.

NONPROFT ORG.POSTAGE & FEES

PAIDUNIVERSITY OF

VIRGINIA

John David Ball (M.Ed. ’75, Ph.D. ’78) was named one of three charter members of the Virginia Psychological Foundation Hall of Fame in winter 2011. He is professor and vice chair at the Eastern Virginia Medical School.