NUTS & BOLTS

 Dr. Lisa Kilanowski is an associate professor of school psychology at Niagara University and school psychology program director.  Along with being program director at Niagara University, Dr. Kilanowski is a New York Association of School Psychologists Board Member and President for the Trainers of School Psychologists-NY, which represents all 27 graduate programs of School Psychology in NYS.  Dr. Kilanowski’s primary research interests include response to intervention, reading disabilities, assessment and intervention in reading, math, and written expression, school reform and systems change, leadership in the profession of school psychology, and advanced integration of neuropsychological principles and RtI data in the assessment of learning disabilities in K-12 environments.  Since 2008, Dr. Kilanowski has trained over 2,700 school district and building leaders, school psychologists, and teachers via the provision of 97 workshops dedicated to various aspects of RtI implementation.

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Dr. Andrew Shanock has been teaching at The College of Saint Rose since 2005 and is the past president of the New York Association of School Psychologists. He specializes in cognitive and academic assessment. He brings to the classroom his years of experience as a school psychologist in public, parochial, and charter schools within urban, suburban, and rural districts.  Dr. Shanock's primary interest is the continued development and understanding of contemporary assessment techniques including the Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) Cross-Battery and Response to Intervention. He promotes an awareness of what cognitive abilities tests actually measure and how cultural and linguistic loadings can impact performance and interpretation. He is currently consulting with several districts in the Capital Region on the creation and implementation of Response to Intervention policies and procedures as well as the development of Instructional Support Teams. 

Dr. John Kelly is a school psychologist in the Commack School District and an Adjunct Professor at St. John’s University in the School Psychology program. He earned his Ph.D. in Clinical and School Psychology from Hofstra University.  Dr. Kelly has studied, published, and presented at numerous national and international conferences on topics that include mental and behavioral health services for children, advocacy training for school psychologists, leadership development, violence and bullying prevention, and suicide awareness.  Dr. Kelly is on the Executive Board of the New York Association of School Psychologists (NYASP) and serves on the Board of Directors of the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP). He is the President-elect (2016-17) of NASP and assumes the role of President of NASP in July 2017. Dr. Kelly has received numerous state and national awards, including the NYS School Practitioner of the Year in 2001 and the NASP School Psychologist of the Year in 2003.

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Dr. James McDougal has over two decades of experience as a practicing school psychologist in an urban context and has conducted over 300 training seminars in the areas of academic and behavioral assessment/intervention. He is highly familiar with Response-to-Intervention (RTI) models and the NYSED Diagnostic Tool for School and District Effectiveness. Dr. McDougal is the Director of the School Psychology Program at the State University of New York at Oswego. A state-approved PBIS trainer, he is also co-author of the Behavior Intervention Monitoring and Assessment System, used to screen and monitor progress of students with social-emotional and behavioral difficulties. He is the former Mental Health Coordinator for the Syracuse City School District. Dr. McDougal also published 2 books and over 30 peer-reviewed articles. He holds a Ph.D degree from SUNY Albany.   

Stacy A. S. Williams, Ph.D., NCSP is an Assistant Professor at Marist College, Licensed Psychologist and Certified School Psychologist in New York State.  In the past, she directed the field-training program at University at Albany. Her years of working with groups of K-12 at-risk learners in both urban and rural communities have provided her with clear insights into the frustrations, challenges and joys of working as a school psychologist with limited resources.  She has consulted with Instructional Support Teams (IST) (NY & CT), Behavior Specialists at the state level (NY), and rural educators in Jamaica. Her research focuses on effective consultation practices with teachers. 

Dr. John Garruto has worked as a school psychologist in Central New York for nearly 20 years.  Additionally, he has taught college courses in cognitive assessment, ethics, and educationally disabling conditions.  He is currently the President-Elect of the New York Association of School Psychologists, after having served as Research Chair for five years.  Dr. Garruto also serves as an at-large member of the Ethics and Professional Practices Committee of the National Association of School Psychologists.  He has authored or co-authored various chapters and books.  His most recent publication, along with Dr. Fredrick Schrank and Dr. Scott Decker is the Essentials of WJ-IV Cognitive Abilities Assessment.  Dr. Garruto’s primary interests relate to the assessment for learning disabilities, neuropsychology, and professional practice.

Dr. Laura Spencely is an assistance professor of counseling and psychological services at SUNY Oswego.  Dr. Spencely currently serves on the NYASP Board in the capacity of student liaison.  In addition to her duties at SUNY Oswego, Dr. Spencely works as a per diem school psychologist for the Fulton School District. Dr. Spencely obtained her Ph.D. in School Psychology from Syracuse University and has a master’s in Clinical Psychology from Ball State University.    She has presented internationally on selecting assessment tools to inform psycho-educational decision-making and improving the accuracy of psycho-educational evaluations.

Dawn Catucci is currently a school psychologist at Ardsley High School and has been a school psychologist for 20 years.  Mrs. Catucci is also a part-time Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) School Consultant Trainer for Cognitive Behavioral Consultants and maintains a private practice in Pleasantville, NY.  Mrs. Catucci is a NYS Certified School Psychologist and a NYS Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC).  She is extensively trained in dialectical behavior therapy and in cognitive behavior therapy (CBT). In 2008, Mrs. Catucci and her colleagues at Ardsley High School were one of the first schools to implement comprehensive DBT in a school setting and are now implementing CBT in a school setting as well. She is highly interested in dissemination of evidenced based practice for counseling practices in schools.    Mrs. Catucci has also facilitated CBT and DBT trainings for several other school districts and school psychologists across Westchester County. Ms. Catucci has co-presented at a state conference and a local NASP chapter workshop on Utilizing Comprehensive CBT in a School Setting. Mrs. Catucci is a New York Association School Psychologist Board Member, serving on multiple conference committees’ and as the Chapter L Alt Representative since 2009.  ​

Dr. Don Merriman, has been a practicing school psychologist since 2003 and is currently employed by the North Salem School District. He also maintains a private practice with offices in Mahopac and Pleasantville, New York. Additionally, Dr. Merriman is a NYASP Board Member, serving as the 2017 Conference Co-Chair. Dr. Merriman has completed extensive training in Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) at the Beck Institute.  He obtained his Ph.d in the Educational Psychology, School Psychology Specialization from the Graduate Center of the City of New York and additionally holds his Master’s of Science in Education.  Dr. Marriman and his colleague, Katia Castelli, have been instrumental in bringing CBT to the North Salem School District, with the goal of establishing a continuum of support in grades K-12. 

Kelly Caci is a NYS school psychologist employed by the Newburgh Enlarged City School District in in New Windsor, NY.  She is also a past president of the New York Association of School Psychologists and current legislative chair.  While president of NYASP, Kelly initiated a campaign to highlight effective elements of school safety planning and the provision of mental health services in the schools.  She remains a strong proponent of the NYS School Psychologist Licensure Bill and has conducted interviews with the ChildMind Institute regarding the practice of school psychology.