nmasp header
pictures of New Mexico

Taking Care of Business
Assessment and Intervention

October 20 and 21, 2011

Sessions and Speakers

Continuing Professional Development units are noted for each session.

John L. Morse, EdD, Certified School Psychologist/Licensed Psychologist in Private Practice from Pembroke, New Hampshire. He will be presenting our keynote address on Managing Stress and Avoiding Burnout (1.5 CPDs). The number of children we serve is rapidly increasing. The complexities of their needs are extensive. No wonder we feel uncertain and wonder if our training and skills are sufficient to meet their needs and ensure their progress and maturity. It seems unbearable at times as we struggle to provide the quality care these children require and deserve. Moreover, the requests for more service, meetings and consultations with other involved professionals and increased contacts with parents never end. It is no wonder we feel anxious, we become more stressed, and time for ourselves seems to shrink and is harder to find. How do we keep disappointments and fatigue from interfering with our work and our relationship with others? Stress and burnout are very real phenomena. Although we recognize we can not prevent them, we can learn how to successively manage their expression.

Learning Objectives are:

  1. We will examine and identify one of the major causes of stress and anxiety; namely, when the expectations we and those we serve (valid and invalid) may be unrecognized yet create conflict in our relationship with others.
  2. We will identify the attributes that are possessed in those providers of care who are resilient and are able to successfully manage stress and remain feeling good about their work.
  3. We will learn those methods that have been identified to refuel our lives, relax us, and reduce our anxiety. Most importantly, we will learn how best to cope on a day-to day basis.

Dr. Morse will also present The Art of Evaluating Children with Multiple Impairments (Part I and Part II = 3.5 CPDs). As the complexities of children to be assessed are identified, it is not surprising to witness a corresponding drop in the comfort level in those assigned to provide this service. Concurrently, the needs of teachers for this population are very legitimate and demand increasing support and specific recommendations relative to classroom modifications and teaching strategies. Compounding the problem, serious questions are raised about the appropriateness of existing instruments as well as merits and pitfalls when attempting to break standardized administration procedures. Lastly, how can we be sure that the results we obtained measure what we think we assessed? It is not just what we know or do; it is more a question of how it is done.

Learning Objectives are:

  1. Recognize and learn how to utilize student generated information that describes their cognitive operations, learning style issues, and necessary interfacing teaching strategies.
  2. Identify tests/subtests that are appropriate for children with multiple impairments.
  3. Acquire an understanding of when modifications to administration procedures are necessary and when they are not.
  4. Recognize the contributions that are made to the transactions that occur between you and the child being served. These will influence the results that are obtained.

John L. Morse, EdD received his B.A. degree in Psychology from the University of Massachusetts, Ed.M. degree in Counseling Psychology from Boston University, and Ed.D. in Counseling and School Psychology from Boston University. He was employed at Perkins School for the Blind as Supervisor of Counselors, and worked as a School Psychologist in Watertown, MA before becoming Director of Psychological Services at Easter Seals in Manchester, NH. He developed and utilized an itinerant model to deliver psychological services to visually impaired children and their families. He directed a statewide diagnostic unit in Manchester, NH serving sensory impaired (hearing and vision) children and their families living throughout NH. He was employed for 20 years by the Strafford Learning Center, Somersworth, NH as a psychologist working with preschool and school age children with minor and major developmental variations and disabilities. He was employed for 4 years by Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, NH and held an appointment as Clinical Associate in both Psychiatry and Pediatrics at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center. He currently provides psychological and diagnostic services to varied health and medical programs, local school districts, and other educational facilities in NH, New England and nationwide serving persons with significant disabilities from early childhood to adulthood.

Dr. Morse has published extensively and offered workshops throughout the United States, Canada, and internationally. He trains psychologists, school psychologists, and other service providers to enable them to more effectively work with persons with disabilities. He is licensed as a Clinical Psychologist and certified as a School Psychologist in New Hampshire as well as Massachusetts. He has served as President of the NH Society of Psychologists and the Association of Educators of the Visually Impaired, Northeast Region. He has twice been elected President of the New Hampshire Association of School Psychologists. He is a recipient of the Robert Lambert Award from the Association for the Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired, Division 4, the Thomas Caulfield Award from the American Association of Workers for the Blind (AAWB), the Thomas Carroll Award from the Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired (AERBVI), and the first recipient of the Margaret A. Riggs Award for outstanding contributions to psychology (NH Psychological Association). He became the NH School Psychologist of the Year (1996 and 1998), New Hampshire Association of School Psychologists, and was a finalist for the 1999 School Psychologist of the Year, National Association of School Psychologists.

Dr. Morse is appointed as the Consulting Psychologist, Scientific Advisory Council and Clinical Advisory Board, International Cornelia de Lange Syndrome (CdLS) Foundation. He is a Peer Reviewer for the Journal of Visual Impairment and Blindness (JVIB).

Elsa Arroyos, PhD and Ivelisse Fernandez, PhD will present DSM-IV in the Schools: A Primer (2.0 CPDs). The session will provide participants a user-friendly overview of the DSM-IV-TR. The session will begin with an overview of the structure/layout of the manual including its history, multiaxial system, and overview of childhood clinical disorders. Further presentation and discussion will center on understanding the difference between clinical diagnosis versus special education classification in schools. Throughout the presentation, cultural and multicultural issues will be considered and discussed. Participants will be given an opportunity to engage with the DSM-IV-TR and review sample cases.

Learning Objectives are:

  1. Participants will be able to understand how the DSM-IV-TR is used to diagnose.
  2. Participants will be able to understand the multiaxial system and criteria for the most common childhood disorders.
  3. Participants will be able to understand the difference between clinical diagnoses and special education classification.
  4. Participants will be aware of multicultural considerations when understanding childhood and adolescent disorders.

Elsa Arroyos, PhD, is an associate professor and Director of Training for the School Psychology Program at New Mexico State University. She earned her Bachelors of Arts degree in Psychology from NMSU in 1997. While a student at NMSU, Dr. Arroyos was also a McNair Scholar. She attended the University of Iowa for graduate school and received her Ed. S. and doctorate degrees in School Psychology from The University of Iowa. Her research interests include multicultural competencies related to practice and training, traumatic brain injury in children and adolescents, and mentoring of students and early career faculty. She teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in educational psychology, human relations and development, assessment, and field experience in school psychology.

Ivelisse Torres Fernandez, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the Counseling and Educational Psychology Department at New Mexico State University. She received her doctoral degree in School Psychology from The University of Iowa. She served as the Chief Psychologist for Research and Training and co-director of the Pre-Doctoral Internship Program at the Sarah A. Reed Children's Center in Erie, PA. Dr. Torres Fernandez also has extensive experience working as a psychologist in PR, PA, and NM. Dr. Torres Fernandez's research interests include socio emotional learning, resiliency, child and adolescent mental health, multiculturalism, and social justice issues in psychology and education. Her teaching interests include counseling, child and adolescent psychopathology, psychological and educational assessment, multicultural psychology, and professional issues in psychology and education.

Martin G. Greer, Ph.D., Psychologist and School Psychologist will present the Assessment and Treatment of Trauma in Children and Adolescents (2.25 CPDs). The first part of this workshop will introduce the participants to three instruments used to assess the effects of trauma in children and adolescents: The Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children (TSCC), the Trauma Symptom Checklist for Young Children (TSCYC) and the UCLA Posttraumatic Stress Disorder - Reaction Index (UCLA PTSD-RI). During the second part of this workshop, participants will learn about two interventions that have been found to be effective with traumatized children: Trauma-Focused Cognitive-Behavior Therapy (TF-CBT) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy (EMDR). The basic components of each approach will be discussed. Workshop participants will be guided to sources for further training.

Learning Objectives are:
  1. Gain knowledge of three assessment tools which are used to assess the effects of trauma.
  2. Gain knowledge of two different interventions that are effective with traumatized children.

Martin G. Greer, Ph.D. is a Licensed Psychologist and a Licensed School Psychologist in New Mexico. He is the Lead Psychologist for the Las Cruces Public Schools. He has also had an independent practice since 1987. He has been a Clinical Consultant and Adjunct Professor/Instructor. At one time he was the Clinical Director for River's Bend, a children's' residential treatment facility. He has written articles for the Journal of Creative Behavior and Adolescence.

David Longo will present Services and Best Practices for Evaluations of Students who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing (2.0 CPDs). This session is appropriate for school psychologists, diagnosticians, school counselors, social workers, and any parent or professional involved in the programming and support of school age Deaf children/ children who are hard of hearing. In this session David the School Psychologist and Evaluation Coordinator from the New Mexico School for the Deaf in Santa Fe will discuss best practices for evaluating this population of students, the impact on eligibility for special education services, and programming. He will also discuss the transitional resources available and the many challenges these students face when transitioning. Information about both on campus and Outreach support services for deaf students in New Mexico will also be provided.

Learning Objectives are:

  1. Participants will learn about state resources and programs that are available for students who are deaf and hard of hearing.
  2. Participants will gain an understanding of best practices for evaluations of students who are deaf and hard of hearing.
  3. Participants will gain an understanding of transitional resources and challenges.

David Longo is the School Psychologist and Evaluation Coordinator at the New Mexico School for the Deaf in Santa Fe. While having only lived in New Mexico for less than a year, he brings over 15 years experience in the field at both residential and day programs, as well as county and district programs for Deaf and Hard of Hearing students. He received his graduate training at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C., and specialized in the assessment of students with various types of hearing loss. In addition to his work as a psychologist, he was also the Clinical Service Coordinator at a residential treatment program for Deaf kids with serious emotional and behavioral disorders, where he was responsible for developing behavior intervention and treatment plans, as well as coordinating related services and IEPs. Lastly, and most importantly, he is the older brother to a now Deaf adult, he brings a unique perspective on the struggles of parents and other family members in raising a child with a hearing loss, as well as navigating the maze that can be Special Education.

Kristine Noel, M.S., CCC-SLP and Joanna Cosbey, Ph.D., OTR/L will present the NM TEAM Manual 2011 Revisions (1.5 CPDs). They were two members of the core group of stakeholders who completed the in-depth review and revision of the New Mexico Public Education Department's document: New Mexico Technical Evaluation and Assessment Manual (NM TEAM). They will describe the year-long process. The presenters will discuss the objectives of the project, including a description of the practitioner-feedback that guided the revisions. They will present the final document and discuss how the information was disseminated to practitioners across the state, highlighting some of the more unique and/or meaningful revisions and their relevance to evaluation specialists.

Learning Objectives are:

  1. Participants will understand the fundamental importance of the use of professional judgment during evaluations and the utility of the NMTEAM as a guidance document that provides broad recommendations to support teams through the eligibility determination
  2. Participants will demonstrate a deeper understanding of the eligibility determination process for special education services under IDEA (2004) and NMAC.

Kristine Noel, M.S., CCC-SLP, is a speech-language pathologist and educational consultant who has worked as a Coordinator of Special Education and as a clinician in public schools, hospitals, Head Start programs and juvenile justice settings. She was part of the core team that completed the most recent revision of the New Mexico Technical Evaluation and Assessment Manual (2011). She is the Professional Development Coordinator for Region IX Education Cooperative in New Mexico. She works collaboratively with teachers, learning communities, administrators and related service staff to increase students' academic achievement and behavioral competence. Kristine is currently completing her Ph.D. in Special Education at the University of New Mexico. Her professional and research interests include language, literacy, and behavior intervention with high-risk adolescents. The focus of her work is collaborating with other professionals to increase student success.

Joanna Cosbey, Ph.D., OTR/L, is on the faculty of the University of New Mexico's Special Education Program. She is the coordinator of the UNM Educational Diagnostician Preparation Program and teaches courses in diagnostic assessment in education, as well as other courses for graduate level students in the field of special education. Joanna was part of the core team that completed the most recent revision of the New Mexico Technical Evaluation and Assessment Manual (2011). She earned her Ph.D. in Special Education from the University of Utah in 2007. She also worked as a licensed occupational therapist for many years (B.S. in OT, UNM, 1999). She has worked in school, hospital, and community-based settings to promote meaningful participation of individuals with disabilities. Joanna's research interests include appropriate evaluation and assessment, meaningful social participation for individuals with disabilities, and the use of augmentative and alternative communication to promote participation.

Josie Woodson, Psy.D. will be presenting Multi-method/Multi-source Approach to Assessing Processing Deficits: Using the Psychological Processing Checklist (PPC) (2.25 CPDs). This presentation is sponsored by MHS. This presentation is intended for school psychologists who assess processing deficits in multiple areas including visual, auditory, attention, motor, organization, and the integration of various modalities (e.g., auditory-motor). The focus of the presentation will be a multi-method/multi-source model for assessing processing deficits in school-aged children. Through lecture, discussion, and the use of case studies, participants will learn about assessment strategies involving thorough review of cumulative records such as permanent products, interviews with teachers and parents, classroom observations, student self-report, and a variety of questionnaires and rating scales including the Psychological Processing Checklist (PPC™).

Learning Objectives are:

  1. Participants will learn a multi-method/multi-source model for assessing processing deficits.
  2. Participants will learn about assessment strategies utilizing records, interviews, observations, self-report, questionnaires and rating scales.

Josie Woodson, Psy.D. will be presenting Executive Function: An Overview for Application in School Systems with Suggestions for Assessment and Intervention (2.0 CPDs). This presentation is sponsored by MHS. Executive function encompasses the individual's ability to exercise the critical cognitive skills necessary for modulating emotion and planning purposeful goal directed activities. The frontal lobe or executor of the brain is directly associated with executive function. Consequently, frontal lobe injury is most typically implicated in executive dysfunction. Traumatic Brain Injury, sub cortical damage, or more diffuse assaults on the brain from anoxia and toxic substances are among the causes that can lead to executive impairment. Formal psycho educational evaluations and psychological assessments may not identify executive function impairment, yet the impact on student performance and achievement can be profound.

Learning Objectives are:

  1. Participants will learn and review basic brain anatomy with emphasis on frontal lobe structure and associated functions.
  2. Participants will learn strategies to help evaluate executive functioning skills through the collective use of interviews, behavioral observations, informal and formally standardized assessments.
  3. Participants will be provided with a framework for designing targeted intervention strategies that address educational challenges observed in students demonstrating deficits in executive function skills.
Josie Woodson, Psy.D., PPS. is the Western States Educational and Clinical consultant for MHS. She completed her Bachelor of Science at California State University, Dominguez Hills in Biology/Microbiology and Medical Technology. She spent over 16 years as a clinical laboratory scientist in Southern California where she also trained post graduate professionals and medical interns for the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services. Dr. Woodson obtained her Masters of Arts in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in Marriage and Family Therapy at Pepperdine University Graduate School of Education and Psychology. She is a credentialed school psychologist who has worked with preschool through young adult populations. As a school psychologist, she focused, developed, and provided professional development training that included an ecological theoretical perspective for understanding student academic and behavioral difficulties. Dr. Woodson studied at the California School of Professional Psychology where she earned a Doctorate in Educational Psychology. She delivers large group presentations and provides professional development training with continuing education credits to school districts in support of their efforts to maximize student performance. She is also Academic Consultant for doctoral students in the Graduate School of Education and School Psychology at Alliant International University.

Kathleen M. Woodward, EdS, NCSP will be presenting Early Onset Bipolar Disorder and the Pediatric Behavior Rating Scale (PBRS) (2.0 CPDs). This presentation is sponsored by PAR. This workshop will cover the history of early onset bipolar disorder (EOBD), the neurobiology of emotional regulation, the difficulties and controversy surrounding identification of EOBD in children, and common medical and behavioral interventions. In addition, the structure, administration, and interpretation of the PBRS - a parent and teacher rating scale that assists in the identification of symptoms associated with severe emotional disturbance, specifically EOBD - will be reviewed.

Learning Objectives are:
  1. Identify common characteristics and the neurobiology of EOBD.
  2. Learn techniques to more effectively identify symptoms of EOBD using the PBRS.
  3. Increase knowledge of common intervention techniques for children diagnosed with EOBD.

Kathleen M. Woodward, EdS, NCSP will be presenting Age-standardization Assessment and Progress Monitoring of Children on the Autism Spectrum Using the PDD Behavior Inventory (PDDBI) (2.0 CPDs). This presentation is sponsored by PAR. This workshop provides extensive information on pervasive developmental disorders (PDDs) and the PDDBI. The PDDBI was developed to provide an assessment of PDDs that results in age-standardized scores for both problem behaviors and social communication skills relevant to children with PDD. This tool also was developed to be useful for multiple applications (e.g., clinical, medical, education, research). The concept of PDD is examined historically, and a brief introduction to its biological and behavioral characteristics, etiologies, and assessment methods is included. In addition, the history, theoretical orientation, and psychometric characteristics of the PDDBI are reviewed, and its clinical utility for assessing children, for making clinical decisions regarding intervention, and for quantifying and interpreting changes in children's behavior profiles is examined. PDDBI profiles of subtypes of children with PDD also are examined, including those with known genetic syndromes and those showing associated medical problems such as seizures.

Learning Objectives are:

  1. Review the concept of PDD historically, along with its biological and behavioral characteristics, etiologies, and assessment methods.
  2. Review the history, theoretical orientation, and psychometric characteristics of the PDDBI.
  3. Examine PDDBI profiles of subtypes of children with PDD.

Kathleen M. Woodward, EdS, NCSP is the Clinical Assessment Consultant, and West Regional Consultant for PAR. Ms. Woodward travels across the western region of the United States to consult with a variety of school, hospital, and corrections professionals regarding their psychological assessment and continuing education needs. She provides conceptually-based proprietary product workshops for professionals both in their settings and at state and national conventions. Some of the products she covers include:

  • Adolescent and Child Urgent Threat Evaluation™ (ACUTE™)
  • Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function® (BRIEF®)
  • Clinical Assessment of Behavior™ (CAB™)
  • Emotional Disturbance Decision Tree™ (EDDT™)
  • PDD Behavior Inventory™ (PDDBI™)
  • Pediatric Behavior Rating Scale™ (PBRS™)
  • Personality Assessment Inventory™-Adolescent (PAI®-A)
  • Psychosocial Evaluation and Threat Risk Assessment™ (PETRA™)
  • Reynolds Intellectual Assessment Scales™ (RIAS™)
  • Tasks of Executive Control™ (TEC™)
  • Self-Directed Search® (SDS®)
  • Wide Range Achievement Test 4 (WRAT4)
  • Wide Range Achievement Test 4 Progress Monitoring Version (WRAT4-PMV)
  • Wide Range Assessment of Memory and Learning, 2nd Ed. (WRAML2)

Ms. Woodward has regular discussions with PAR test authors, which allows her to stay up-to-date on current assessment trends and products. She maintains an active interest in current research regarding assessment and school psychology issues. Ms. Woodward received both a bachelor's degree in psychology and an Educational Specialist degree in school psychology at the University of Northern Colorado, where she was awarded the Graduate Dean's Citation of Excellence for her outstanding research accomplishments in psychological assessment. Ms. Woodward served as a substance abuse counselor for 5 years, and then practiced as a school psychologist in the Colorado public school system for 3 years, where she provided services to children from birth to 21 years of age. While serving the public school system, she was instrumental in developing and implementing response to intervention (RTI) policies and procedures. Additionally, her work focused on crisis response and threat/risk assessment procedures, early childhood assessment, behavioral assessment and intervention, and program planning for preschool students who were diagnosed with autism. Ms. Woodward is a licensed school psychologist in the state of Colorado, a Nationally Certified School Psychologist, and a member of the National Association of School Psychologists. She resides in Denver, Colorado.