Project Personnel

Listed by university affiliation

UNC

Sam Odom, Ph.D., Principal Investigator
Dr. Samuel L. Odom, Principal Investigator, is Director of Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute at the University of North Carolina and Professor in the School of Education. He is the author or co-author of many refereed journal articles and editor or co-editor of five published and two in press books on early childhood intervention and developmental disabilities. He was previously a member of the National Academy of Science Committee on Educating Children with Autism, which published a report on effective educational programs for young children with ASD (NRC, 2001). He also was a member of the committee that developed the 10 Year Roadmap for Autism Research coordinated by the National Institute on Mental Health and the Interagency Autism Research Committee. Currently his is working with the National Standards Project, which will identify evidence-based practices for children and youth with autism spectrum disorder, and the state of California, which will use this information to identify practices that can be used by teachers and service providers. His recent articles with his doctoral students have addressed the efficacy of a variety of focused intervention approaches (e.g., peer-mediated interventions, sibling-mediated interventions, parent-child intervention to promote joint attention, independent work systems approach to promote learning) for children with ASD. He is currently also the Principal Investigator of a multi-site randomized control study of an intervention to promote preschool readiness. In 2007, Dr. Odom received the Outstanding Research Award from the Council for Exceptional Children.

Brian Boyd, Ph.D., Principal Investigator
Dr. Brian Boyd is an investigator at the FPG Child Development Institute at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is co-principal investigator on two grants funded by the Institute of Education Sciences, Department of Education to investigate the efficacy of behavioral interventions for preschool-aged children with autism spectrum disorders. Prior to this position at FPG, Dr. Boyd was an assistant preschool teacher at the TEACCH demonstration preschool and worked as a special education consultant to facilitate the development and inclusion of children with varying disabilities, including autism, into classroom settings. He also conducted numerous trainings on useful classroom-based approaches for children with autism while at Division TEACCH. Following Dr. Boyd‹s work with Division TEACCH, he was trained in discrete trial training methods for autism and implementation of positive behavior support strategies. Dr. Boyd has published a number of articles in the fields of applied behavior analysis and autism.

Kara Hume, Ph.D., Project Coordinator
Dr. Kara Hume is an Investigator at the FPG Child Development Institute at UNC-Chapel Hill. She is the Project Coordinator this treatment comparison study.  Dr. Hume has worked with children and young adults on the autism spectrum for 17 years in a variety of capacities, including a home program therapist, teacher, trainer, and consultant. She was a classroom teacher for seven years working primarily with students on the autism spectrum, and has worked with Division TEACCH as a trainer for professionals in the field. Dr. Hume completed her doctorate at Indiana University where she worked at the Indiana Resource Center for Autism and served as an Adjunct Professor in the School of Education. She has published several journal articles, presented at a number of national conferences, and is interested in supporting classroom teachers in the implementation of evidence-based practices.

Evelyn Shaw, M.Ed., Site Coordinator
Evelyn F. Shaw is an educational planning and development consultant at the FPG Child Development Institute at UNC-Chapel Hill. Ms. Shaw received her Master's in Education, Special Education from UNC-Chapel Hill. She is a technical assistance specialist with the National Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center funded by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs. Ms. Shaw has provided state technical assistance to early intervention and preschool state programs, has topical responsibilities and expertise in the area of autism spectrum disorders, including developing and maintaining the NECTAC ASD web page. Her work at NECTAC has included coordinating two national state team meetings on autism and developing publications describing the agreement among model programs on quality practices for serving young children with ASD and their families. In 2002, she was an invited presenter and participant for the National Institutes of Health sponsored meeting on "Challenges in Evaluating Psychosocial Intervention for Autistic Spectrum Disorders," an invited participant in "Overcoming Methodological Challenges" work group (National Institute of Mental Health) in 2004, and has been a member of the ASD Measurement Workgroup, Family Stress and Coping subgroup, sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health since 2003.

Miami

Website
http://www.umcard.org/

Michael Alessandri, Ph.D., Principal Investigator
In addition to his role as Executive Director of UM-NSU CARD, Dr. Alessandri is also Clinical Professor of Psychology and Director of the Marino Autism Research Institute (MARI) at the University of Miami. Dr. Alessandri has worked with individuals with autism and their families for over 25 years. He is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Rochester, where he earned his Bachelors degree in Psychology. He attended graduate school at Rutgers University, where he obtained both his M.S. (1989) and Ph.D. (1992) in Clinical Psychology. Dr. Alessandri completed his clinical internship at UNC-Chapel Hill's Center for Development and Learning (CDL). Prior to arriving in South Florida in 1996, Dr. Alessandri was an Assistant Professor of Psychology at San Jose State University (SJSU) and Associate Director of the Stanford University Pervasive Developmental Disorders Clinic

Dr. Alessandri has presented, consulted and published internationally on developing appropriate and effective educational programs for students with autistic spectrum disorders. His work has taken him to Italy, Switzerland, Brazil, Dominican Republic, Panama, Jamaica, Barbados, Bahamas, Taiwan, Australia, and throughout the United States. In addition, he has received several awards within the field of autism and disabilities. In 1993, he received the Autism Society of America Special Recognition Award for Publications, and in 1995 was given the Outstanding Faculty award by the SJSU Disability Resource Center for instruction of university students with disabilities. Under his direction, the University of Miami Center for Autism & Related Disabilities was named the National Autism Program of the Year in 1999 by the Autism Society of America. In 2003, Dr. Alessandri was the recipient of the Wendy F. Miller ASA National Recognition Award for Autism Professional of the Year. Dr. Alessandri has also received numerous other community service awards, including the March of Dimes Community Excellence in Health Care Award (2007). He was also named one of the Ronald McDonald House's 12 Good Men (2008) and the Dewar's 12 Man of Distinction (2007).

Dr. Alessandri proudly serves several community and professional organizations as a member of the Board of Trustees (Parent to Parent of Miami) or the Scientific (Organization for Autism Research) or Professional Advisory Boards (The Victory School for Children with Autism; Friends for Youth; Casablanca Academy). Previously, he served as a member of the Board of Trustees and Chair of the Scientific Affairs Committee of the National Alliance for Autism Research (NAAR), and actively supports Autism Speaks, which merged with NAAR in 2006. Dr. Alessandri is also a proud Founding Member of the Autism Society of Miami-Dade County.

Anibal Gutierrez, Ph.D., Principal Investigator
Dr. Gutierrez earned his Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Florida in 2004 and is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. Dr. Gutierrez has over 10 years of experience working with individuals diagnosed with autism and other developmental disabilities as well as individuals with dual diagnoses. He has conducted assessment and treatment of severe problem behavior, conducted and supervised discrete trial and verbal behavior programs, and designed and implemented behavior acquisition programs. He has presented nationally on the assessment and treatment of problem behavior and on the acquisition of communicative behavior and co-authored the Handbook of the Standard Celeration Chart (2003 with Pennypacker and Lindsley).

Previously Dr. Gutierrez served as the clinical and practicum coordinator for Applied Behavior Analysis, Program Coordinator for the Autism Consortium at Nova Southeastern University providing consultation to school-based programs for children diagnosed with autism around the country. He is also an Adjunct Professor for the Center for Psychological Studies at Nova Southeastern University.

Peter Schoultz, Project coordinator
Peter Schoultz is currently a Research Coordinator at the University of Miami Department of Psychology and the Center for Autism and Related Disorders (CARD). Throughout his undergraduate career at the University of Miami he worked as a research assistant in the Joint Attention Intervention Laboratory under Drs. Jennifer Durocher, Anibal Gutierrez and Melissa Hale. After receiving his Bachelor of Arts in psychology from UM, he accepted a position as a Research Coordinator, under Dr. Michael Alessandri and Dr. Anibal Gutierrez, for the ASD Treatment Comparison Study funded by the Institute for Educational Sciences investigating the efficacy of LEAP and TEACCH, two comprehensive treatment models for children with autism. The purpose of this study is to examine the immediate and long term effects of these two treatment models, as a comparison with a more eclectic preschool program. Peter also volunteers his time coordinating a social skills group for teens with high functioning autism and Asperger's Syndrome.

Colorado

Laurie Sperry, Ph.D. , Principal Investigator
Dr. Laurie Sperry was a classroom teacher for children with autism and related disabilities for 8 years. After leaving the classroom, she served as a state consultant for the autism division in South Carolina. She received her Ph.D. in Child Development and Family Studies and did postdoctoral work at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She worked with Division TEACCH for a number of years as a lead trainer, co-developed a play and social skills group for parents with very young children who were newly diagnosed with autism and worked with the adult social skills group. She is a consulting editor for the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders and has published numerous articles related to autism spectrum disorders.

Dr. Sperry served as the State Director of Autism Services in Hawaii and has maintained a private practice. Dr. Sperry was a co-principal investigator on a federal grant to support the professional development of people working with children with autism aimed at improving services and education and building regional capacity in school districts across the United States. She is currently coordinating a treatment outcome study to compare LEAP and TEACCH strategies. Dr. Sperry has appointments in both the school of Education and Human Development and Psychiatry. She has participated in global outreach and provided services to families and agencies in Saudi Arabia, Africa and Saipan. In 2006 she received an appointment as a Senior Specialist in Autism from the Fulbright Scholarship Foundation.

Brooke Young, PhD Candidate
Brooke Young has been in the field of autism spectrum disorders for over 20 years and was a classroom teacher in Hawaii and in Missouri for children with autism and related disabilities for 7 years. She left the classroom to become a full time graduate student at the University of Kansas, specializing in the area of autism and behavior disorders. While at the University of Kansas she served as a diagnostician on an Autism Assessment Team for the University. Following graduate school she worked as an autism consultant for school districts in Northeast Kansas for 8 years. While working as an autism consultant Ms Young focused on staff development, team and family training, demonstration teaching and systems development. While working for the school districts she also worked on an autism grant for the University of Kansas and wrote online autism training modules. She then went back to the University of Kansas to get her PhD in Special Education, specializing in autism. While working on her degree she served as the project coordinator for a national autism study funded by OSEP and consulted and presented in states throughout the country. She is currently writing her dissertation while serving as the project coordinator on a multi-site longitudinal treatment outcome study funded by the Institute of Education Sciences, consulting for the Professional Development Center in Autism and teaches graduate courses in child development and autism spectrum disorders at the University of Colorado Denver.

Minnesota

Frank Symons, Ph.D., Principal Investigator
Dr. Frank Symons' research emphasis is on understanding the severe behavior problems of children and adults with special needs, primarily those with developmental disabilities and emotional or behavioral disorders. For these two groups, much of hi research has focused on self-injurious behavior and classroom aggression, respectively. The majority of hi research has been observationally based, theoretically grounded in behavioral principles, and driven by a commitment to meaningful, functional outcomes.

Dr. Symons has have two current specific areas of interest. One is the development, assessment, and treatment of problem behavior among children and adults with a range of neurodevelopmental and emotional/behavioral disorders. The other is the problem of pain among children and adults with significant cognitive impairments and associated developmental disabilities. Related areas of interest include observational research methods.

In terms of problem behavior, areas of specific research interest include (a) characterizing self-injurious behavior in more detail descriptively (form, location, intensity) and experimentally (function); (b) examining the intersection of behavioral and biological mechanisms underlying chronic self-injury by incorporating sensory (e.g., pain sensitivity, peripheral innervation) and autonomic (e.g., sympathetic/parasympathetic, HPA axis) nervous system variables, and (c) translating findings from basic research into treatment applications.

In terms of pain, areas of specific research include (a) the reliable and valid assessment of pain in children and adults with significant cognitive, communicative, and motor impairments associated with intellectual disability; (b) the relation between behavioral and biological variables as markers for altered pain; (c) modifying/adapting quantitative sensory testing for individuals with specialized needs; and (d) the relation between pain and problem behavior, specifically self-injury.

To address these interests and issues, Dr. Symons directs an observational methods lab and is highly collaborative across a number of research groups (UNC-Chapel Hill, UBC, Dalhousie University), clinical sites (Gillette Children's Specialty Healthcare), labs (Kennedy Peripheral Nerve Lab), and centers (Center for Neurobehavioral Development, Minnesota Center for Pain Research).

Joe Reichle, Ph.D., Principal Investigator
Dr. Reichle is a Professor in the Departments of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences and Educational Psychology-University of Minnesota. Currently, he is the Director of the CEHD Autism Certificate Program at the University of Minnesota. He is an internationally recognized expert in the area of augmentative communication and communication intervention and positive behavioral support for persons with significant developmental disabilities with over 55 articles in refereed journals. In 2006, Dr. Reichle was honored as a Fellow by the American-Speech-Language-Hearing Association for his accomplishments in scholarship and service to the discipline of speech and language pathology.

During his 27 year career at the University of Minnesota, Dr. Reichle has co-edited 10 books focused on his areas of expertise. He has served as an associate editor of the Journal of Speech-Language-Hearing Research and Augmentative and Alternative Communication. He has served as the co-editor of a book series addressing Language Intervention Series with Dr. Steve Warren (Director, Schiefelbusch Lifespan Institute, U. of Kansas). Currently, he serves as a co-editor for a book series addressing Augmentative and Alternative Communication with Dr. David Beukelman (University of Nebraska).

Dr. Reichle has served as a PI, co-PI and investigator on numerous research and training grants funded by U.S. Department of Education. His current work focuses teaching beginning graphic symbol use and positive behavioral support strategies for young children with Autism Spectrum Disorders.

LeAnne Johnson, Ph.D. Project Coordinator
Dr. LeAnne Johnson is a Research Associate for Special Education Programs in the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Minnesota. She teaches graduate special education licensure courses in the areas of early childhood special education, autism spectrum disorders, and serious behavioral or emotional disorders. Dr. Johnson's research interests include educational program design and intervention for children who engage in behaviors that impede learning as well as systems development to understand and improve the fidelity of intervention implementation. Dr. Johnson has collaborated with Dr. Joe Reichle on a federally funded project designed to establish early childhood technical assistance teams in rural settings. Dr. Johnson has also collaborated with Dr. Frank Symons and Dr. Jennifer McComas in coordinating the Minnesota component of a multi-site Behavior Research Center directed by Dr. Joe Wehby of Vanderbilt University.

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