rotation to incoming students in order to preview the practicum sites that they will later choose from for Advanced Practicum, and to begin establishing a basis for future interprofessional col-laboration in service delivery and research.

In November 2009 the American Psychological Association (APA) accredited the UH Ph.D. in School Psychology Program through 2014. We are now ap-plying for NASP approval. Our scientist-practitioner Program is based on the assumption that sciece informs practice and that practice informs science. In ad-dition to competency in research, the Program ensures high quality applied training by capitalizing on the wealth of supervised prac-ticum sites devoted to training in the linguistically and culturally diverse Houston area. Practicum placements for our students are now available in more than a dozen school districts, special-ized pediatric assessment and intervention clinics at the Baylor College of Medicine/Texas Chil-dren’s Hospital, the Behavioral Pediatrics Neuro-oncology Clinic at the M.D. Anderson Children's

Cancer, the University of Texas Harris County Children’s Psychi-atric Center, the Harris County Juvenile Probation Department, and the Mental Health and Men-tal Retardation Authority of Har-ris County-Mental Retardation/Autism Unit. The Program also offers a unique Pre-Practicum

Dr. Schanding and Dr. McPher-son held the annual “Pre-doc Internship Seminar” on October 16th in conjunction with Counsel-ing Psychology program. This annual seminar is required for all students preparing to apply for their APA Accredited/APPIC pre-doctoral internship.

Dr. Ellis, the new Practicum and Internship Committee Chair, conducted the “Tips for Success-ful Pre-Doc Internship Inter-views” on Friday December 4th, 2009.

UH School Psychology Obtains APA Accreditation

I N S I D E

T H I S

I S S U E :

Current Pubs

and

Presentations

2

Current

Research 3

Committee

News 4

Scholarship

Information 4

Internship

Spotlight 5

Student

Milestones &

Other Info

6

Graduates of

2009 7

Calendar of

Events 8

Internship News

UH School Psychology Newsletter V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1 , F A L L 0 9 E D I T E D B Y :

T . S C H A N D I N G , N A T A S H I A C O M E A U X , R O N D A R E Y N A , & C H A N A A D E L M A N

Above: UH School Psychology Students and Faculty Fall ‘09

Publications P A G E 2 V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1 ,

Dempsey, A. G., Sulkowski, M., Nichols, R., & Storch, E. A. (in press). Peer victimi-zation in cyberspace: Prevalence and relationship to psychosocial adjustment. Psychology in the Schools.

Dempsey, A. G., & Storch, E. A. (in press).

Psychopathology and health problems affecting involvement in bullying. In E. M. Vernberg and B. K. Biggs (Eds.), Preventing and treating bullying and victimization. New York: Oxford Uni-versity Press. 37 pages.

Duncan, C. L., & Dempsey, A. G. (in press).

Commentary: Using basic behavioral research on children’s emotions to in-

form prevention research: A commen-tary on Pooley and Fiddick Social Ref-erencing "Mr. Yuk". Journal of Pediat-ric Psychology.

Kubiszyn, T., & Borch, G. (2010). Educa-

tional testing and measurement: Class-room application and practice, (9th Ed.). New York: John Wiley & Sons.

Kubiszyn, T. (In press). Pediatric Psy-

chopharmacology. In Bray, M., & Kehle, T. (Eds.). Oxford Handbook of School Psychology. Oxford University Press: New York.

Schanding, G.T. (In press). Lesbian, gay, bisexual, an questioning youth: An empowerment guide for parents and families. In A. Canter, L. Paige, & S. Shaw (Eds), Helping Children at Home and School (3rd ed.).

Schanding, G.T., & Sterling-Turner

H.E. (In press). Use of the mystery motivator for a high school class. Journal of Applied School Psychol-ogy.

Papathopoulos, K. (2009, Nov). Self-esteem and hemoglobin a1c: Balancing diabetic control and weight manage-ment. Poster presented.

Reyna, R. (2009, Nov). Transporting effica-cious psychotherapies to the texas pub-lic school system. Poster presented.

Schanding, G.T., & Baker, M.A. (2009, Nov). GLBTQ youth: Ethical and legal updates. Paper presented.

Texas Council of Administra-tors of Special Education Great Ideas Convention

Booth, C. & Keller-Margulis, M. (2010, Jan). Practical suggestions for intern-vention fidelity in the school setting. Paper to be presented.

American Psychological Asso-ciation (APA) 2010

This just in ! A symposium was accepted for Dr. Kubiszyn, Sarah Mire, Sonia Dutt, Katina Papathopoulos, and Tiffany Gerondale. Posters were accepted for Dr. Schanding and Katina Papathopoulos regarding psycho-educational assessment, and Dr. Margit Weisner (EPSY Dept. fac-ulty) and Ronda Reyna. A poster also was accepted for Ruth Hoffman.

Texas Psychological

Association (TPA) 2009

Hofer, S. (2009, Nov). Self-perceived and actual knowledge of ADHD: Future teachers. Poster presented.

Kubiszyn, T., Mire, S., & Gerondale, T., Dutt, S. (2009, Nov). Pediatric psy-chopharmacology: Impact on educator, parental, and peer decision-making. Symposium presented.

National Association of School Psychologists

(NASP) 2010 Reyna, R. (2010, Mar). CBM and pro-

gress monitoring of an evidence-based writing intervention. Poster to be presented.

Dempsey, A. G., Dutt, S., Llorens, A., & Middleman, K. (2010, Mar). Survivors of childhood cancer: Cognitive and academic interven-tions. Paper to be presented.

Keller-Margulis, M. & Booth, C. (2010, Mar). Implementation of Response-to-Intervention: Out-comes and obstacles persist. Paper to be presented.

Recent & Upcoming Presentations and Papers

Make sure to let us know if you have an upcoming paper or poster presentation at a local, state, regional, national, or international con-

Current School Psychology Research Projects P A G E 3 V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1 ,

Since her successful candidacy defense, Ruth Hoffman is currently working on her dissertation. She will continue examining the psychometric properties of progress monitoring probes for algebra skills (created by researchers at the University of Iowa through Project AAIMS). Dr. Kubiszyn and his team are continuing to work on the Comparative Safety of Psy-chotropic Drugs for Pediatric Use.based on safety information available from the FDA website. Dr. Schanding recently received a grant to fund a project that will conduct universal behavioral and emotional screening for all 1st through 5th graders at a local school district.

demic, behavioral, and social outcomes among children born pre-term. Led by Dr. Allison Dempsey and Dr. Milena Keller-Margulis and in collaboration with research-ers and clinicians at the University of Texas, Medical School. HARDY:NESS (High-functioning Autism and Related Disorders in Youth: Negative Experiences in Social Situations). The goal of the HARDY:NESS project is to understand the social experiences of adolescents with autism spectrum disorders and their relation-ship with quality of life and psychosocial adjustment. Led by Dr. Allison Dempsey and researchers at the University of South Flor-

ida, and in collaboration with autism experts in the Houston area. Dr. Dempsey and Dr. Schanding will be working with Texas Children’s Hospital and Baylor College of Medicine on the Simons Simplex Collection—a national multisite project to explore the origins of Autism Spectrum Disorders. The project involves genetic sequencing and behavioral pheno-typing of children and families.

Ronda Reyna is currently doing field test-ing for two projects developed by Drs. Margit Wiesner and Consuelo Arbona titled “Understanding Health Risk Behaviors in Adolescents” and “Learning More About Intellectual Functioning and Health Risk Behaviors in Adolescents”. She is also working on “CALP as a Predictor for Basic Reading and Reading Comprehension Skills” with Dr. Schanding. Dr. Dempsey is currently working on two research projects: Project PEDS (Promoting Early Developmental Skills). The goal of Project PEDS is to promote cognitive, aca-

The following stories

highlight a few of the

research projects or

collaborations by the UH

School Psychology

students and faculty!

Dr. Schanding is currently conducting two research projects. The first is a national study titled GLBTQ Youth: Effects of gender, sex-ual orientation, and gender expression on social and school functioning. Additionally, he and his team are completing a project in Deer Park ISD - Trajectories and Reading Growth of 1st and 2nd Grade Readers: An Investigation of Earobics. . Evelyn Perez will be examining the inclu-sion of a student in behavioral consultation for her candidacy research. Sarah Mire is examining factors poten-tially impacting intervention decisions made by school-based student assistance teams for students with disruptive

behavior difficulties. The goal of the paper is to investigate whether a stu-dents' grade level (e.g., elementary or high school) combined with administra-tors' and teachers' knowledge that the child is taking a psychiatric medication increase their perception of problem severity and intensity of recommended intervention. Dr. Keller-Margulis is currently focused on an evaluation of the RTI process at a local school district including examination of growth rates using universal screening data and the relationship between curricu-lum-based measurement and the Texas As-sessment of Knowledge and Skills.

Pondering Policy P A G E 4 V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1 ,

The goal of the policy committee is to provide current information regarding policy initiatives that may impact the School Psy-chology Program, its students, and faculty. It is the mission of the Policy Committee of the University of Houston School Psychology Program to provide its students and faculty with information concerning policy initia-tives that may affect our program, the educa-tion and school psychology fields and the field of psychology in general. These poli-cies may originate at the program, depart-ment, college or university levels; and will also include policy initiatives originating at the local, state, and federal levels of govern-ment and policies initiated from professional organizations. In addition, the Policy Com-mittee will work with students and faculty in

developing recommendations and re-sponses to those initiatives as appropriate. If you are aware of or become aware of any policy initiatives falling with in the purview of our mission statement, or would like to be a part of the Policy Com-mittee, please contact Dr. Ellis or Katina Papathopoulos. The APA Board of Professional Affairs (BPA) seeks member and public comments on the draft revision of Guidelines for Psychological Evaluations in Child Protec-tion Matters as developed by the Commit-tee on Professional Practice and Standards (COPPS). Go to :http://forms.apa.org/practice/child-protection/

The APA Board of Educational Affairs requests feedback on a draft revision of the National Standards for High School Psychology curricula (Draft, 2009). Go to: http://www.texaspsyc.org/

displaycommon.cfm?

an=1&subarticlenbr=291

The Ethics Committee is requesting comments on proposed changes to the Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct (2002). Go to: http://www.texaspsyc.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=300

building partnerships with various diversity-oriented groups on the UH campus. For more information on meeting dates and times, please contact Dr. Keller-Margulis at mkmar-gulis@coe.uh.edu.

The Diversity Committee is grow-ing! Come and join this dynamic team as we explore diversity issues within our department, college and university related to various multi-cultural and diversity factors that impact the lives of students and faculty. The committee stays abreast of cultural events throughout the Houston area and is planning on

Graduate Only Eugene Chiappetta/Texas Chemical Counsel Pauline Moss Crouch Endowment Marcile Hollingsworth Scholarship Robert and Elizabeth Houston Scholarship Norman I. Kagan Scholarship Kathleen Pascoe Scholarship

Visit http://coe.uh.edu/mycoe/coestu/scholarship.cfm for links and more information on college and de-

partment wide scholarships

Undergraduate and Graduate The Andrews Foundation Scholarship Adminstaff Educational Endowment Scholarship College of Education Alumni Association Scholar-

ship Endowment Judy McCullough Butler Endowment Scholarship Velma Glass Chambers Scholarship Mylie E. & Charles A. Durham Scholarship The Faith Gladstone Marshall Endowment Scholar-

ship Dr. Allen R. Warner Endowed Scholarship Joshua Weinstein Memorial Endowment

College of Education Scholarships

Diversity Committee News

“We are what

we repeatedly

do. Excellence,

therefore, is

not an act, but

a habit.”

-Aristotle

Internship Spotlight: Kennedy Krieger Institute P A G E 5 V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1 ,

As a sit down to write at my desk at KKI and stare out at the plethora of hues in fall foliage, I feel so very far away from Houston and the school I called home for the past few years. Although I miss some of the comforts of the familiarity of Houston, I have found that broadening one’s horizons for the internship year is a once in lifetime opportunity. I feel truly blessed to have placed at one of most prominent training programs for pediatric problems and developmental disabilities. So, let me give you a little glimpse into the training program in general, and my rotation, in particular. The Kennedy Krieger Institute at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine offers a number of predoctoral internship tracks including neuropsychology, pedi-atric consult, various applied behavior analysis tracks, and several behavioral psychology tracks. All interns attend weekly LEND seminars (Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Dis-abilities), to equip trainees to address the

needs of children and families with special healthcare requirements. I am completing my internship at the Be-havior Management Clinic (BMC), which is one of three Outpatient Behavioral Psychol-ogy Clinics at KKI (the other two are the Child and Family Therapy Clinic and the Pediatric Developmental Disorders Clinic). The BMC serves children two to twelve years of age with common behavior prob-lems, disruptive behavior disorders, inter-nalizing disorders, and co-morbid disorders.

Some of the presenting problems are noncom-pliance, tantrum behaviors, aggression, prop-erty destruction, bedtime/ sleep problems, enuresis/encopresis, mild self-injury, poor impulse control, phobias, social skill deficits, and a variety of school behavior problems. A behavioral assessment is conducted with all patients prior to initiating treatment. The assessment consists of a clinical interview, administration of standardized behavior rating scales, and direct observation of parent-child interactions in both naturalistic and analogue settings. Results of the behavioral assessment are used to develop specific, measurable, treatment goals for the identified patient and the caregiver. The BMC utilizes evidence based treatments including parent training in effective behavior management techniques, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and social skills training. During a typical week I serve about 15 pa-tients, 13 of which are follow-up patients and two are new patients who are presenting for an intake evaluation. The remainder of the 40++ hours per week are spent attending seminar, in supervision, writing progress notes and reports, preparing for session, and, of course, just hanging out with my fellow interns.

By Chana Adelman Chana is completing her APA accredited pre-

doctoral internship at KKI at Johns Hopkins

in Baltimore, MD. She will graduate in 2010.

Student Milestones P A G E 6 V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1 ,

Ruth Hoffman-Lach

Successfully defended her candidacy project

Sarah Mire

Successfully proposed her candidacy project

Evelyn Perez

Successfully proposed her candidacy project

Chana Adelman

Completing her APA accredited pre-doctoral internship at the Kennedy Krieger Institute

Dr. Kristen Hassett

Successfully defended her dissertation and graduated

Dr. Rose Ann King

Successfully defended her dissertation and graduated

chology program faculty. Any student issues involving the program should be submitted to Natashia for discussion at the monthly program faculty meetings.

Dr. Dempsey was awarded a Small Grant by the University of Houston to initiate Pro-ject Peds.

Dr. Keller-Margulis was awarded a New Faculty Program grant from the University of Houston to begin her research on ____.

Dr. Schanding became Interim Co-Director of Training for the School Psy-chology Program in August and was awarded a Small Grant by the University of Houston to conduct his study of uni-versal emotional and behavioral screening of elementary students.

Dr. Kubiszyn became Chair of the Dept. of Educational Psychology and Co-director of Training for the School Psy-chology program in August.

Katina Papathopoulos was elected as the Vice President of the Graduate Student Or-ganization (GSO) in the Department of Edu-cational Psychology.

Kennetha Frye was elected as the new program coordinator of GSO.

Ronda Reyna was elected as the secretary of the GSO.

Natashia Comeaux was elected as the student representative to the School Psy-

Announcements, Awards, & Honors

Check out http://www.phdcomics.com by Jorge Cham

Congratulations to our 2009 Graduates P A G E 7 V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1 ,

Dr. Mekel Harris

Dr. Harris entered the School Psychology program in 2005 and completed her APA accredited internship at the Childrens Hospital of Los Angeles (CHLA). She

was the first student to be accepted for an APA accred-ited post-doctoral fellowship also at CHLA.

Dr. Kristen Hassett

Kristen completed her internship at Spring Branch ISD and is completing her year of post-doctoral supervision there as well. She is the Administrator for the Psycho-logical Services Practicum/Internship Program and is serving on the District Assessment Review Team, as-sisting in re-writing the district’s Learning Disability

Framework.

Dr. Dyanna Villesca

Dr. Villesca entered the School Psychology Ph.D. pro-gram in 2005 and completed her APA accredited in-

ternship at Cypress-Fairbanks ISD in June 2008. She is now employed by Katy ISD.

Dr. Rose Ann King

Dr. King entered the program in 2004 and completed her APA accredited internship at Cypress-Fairbanks

ISD in July 2009. She is now employed by Alvin ISD and completing her post-doctoral year.

May 2010

International Meeting for Autism Research; Philadelphia, PA (May 20-22)

Association for Behavior Analysis International Confer-ence; San Antonio, TX (May 28 - June 1)

August 2010

American Psychological Association Annual Conference; San Diego, CA (Aug 12-15)

October 2010

Texas Association of School Psychologists Conference; Irving, TX (Oct 7-9)

November 2010

Texas Psychological Association Conference; Dallas, TX(Nov 4-6)

January 2010

TX Council of Administrators of Special Education Great Ideas Convention; Ft Worth,TX (Jan 12-14)

March 2010

NASP Conference; Chicago, IL (March 2-6)

April 2010

EPSY Research Symposium; Houston, TX (TBA)

Council for Exceptional Children Conference; Nashville, TN (Apr 21-24)

American Educational Research Association Conference; Denver, CO (April 30 - May 4)

School Psychology Program

University of Houston

College of Education

Dept of Educational Psychology

491 Farish Hall

Houston, TX 77204-5029

Phone: 713.743.5043

Fax: 713.743.4996

E-mail: tkubiszyn@uh.edu

The School Psychology Program at the University of

Houston is accredited by the American Psychological As-

sociation. The Program adheres to a scientist-practitioner

training model, and is committed to developing profes-

sional school psychologists who are competent to engage

in applied research and ecologically sensitive evidence-

based practice (i.e., students learn to apply critical analysis

and inquiry to identify, select, implement, and evaluate

evidence-based practices with sensitivity to cultural and

linguistic considerations, and in consideration of diverse

client preferences). Sensitivity to diversity issues is ad-

dressed in specific course work and embedded throughout

the training experience. Awareness of diversity issues is

ensured because the UH is one of the most culturally and

linguistically diverse research institutions in the nation.

Calendar of Events

Is there something we missed? Please con-tact Dr. Schanding at tschanding@uh.edu to add any future events into the calendar.