Peter Buirski

Professor
Ph.D. Adelphi University, 1969

Area of Specialization
Psychoanalytic theories of personality, with a special interest in Intersubjectivity Theory and Self Psychology; psychoanalysis and psychotherapy; couples therapy; primate personality and behavior

Publication Areas
Intersubjectivity Theory and Self Psychology; psychoanalytic theory and therapy; primate behavior and personality

More information about Dr. Buirski

Mark Aoyagi

Assistant Professor
Director of Sport and Performance Psychology Program
Ph.D., University of Missouri-Columbia, 2006

Areas of Interest
Sport and performance psychology; multicultural and diversity issues; team effectiveness; training and ethics in sport psychology; individual growth, development, and fulfillment through sport; sport as a mechanism for social change.

Professional activities include
American Psychological Association, Association for Applied Sport Psychology, International Society of Sport Psychology, American College of Sports Medicine.

Publication areas
Models of sport psychology practice, Team effectiveness, leadership, satisfaction, motivation, burnout, best practices in sport psychology, ethics.

Tom Barrett

Clinical Professor
Ph.D. West Virgnia University, 1973

Dr. Tom Barrett received his M.A. and Ph.D. in psychology from West Virginia University.   Dr. Barrett taught international disaster psychology at the University of Zagreb in Croatia as a Fulbright professor in the spring of 2011. He also received a scholarship to complete Senior Government Executive Training at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in June of 2002.

Dr. Barrett is a full clinical professor in the International Disaster Psychology Program in the Graduate School of Professional Psychology (GSPP) at the University of Denver. He has taught program evaluation in the doctoral program in GSPP since 1980. Previously, he was senior medical officer and consultant for the Mental Health and Substance Abuse Department in the World Health Organization.   Between 1994 and 2004 he was the mental health director for the state of Colorado. He is also past president of the National Association of State Mental Health Directors.

Dr. Barrett has authored or co-authored many journal articles and made keynote addresses at many national and international professional conferences. He is currently on the Board of Directors for Mental Health America in Colorado. Dr. Barrett has a strong mental health evaluation background and his current work focuses on evaluating and improving mental health systems in the United States and in low and middle income countries around the world.

Jenny Cornish

Associate Professor
Director of Clinical Training and Internship Consortium
Ph.D. California School of Professional Psychology, Los Angeles , 1982
ABPP Counseling Psychology, 2007
APA Fellow, 2008

Interest Areas
Jenny Cornish, Ph.D., ABPP has been at the University of Denver since 1990 and is currently Assistant Professor and Director of Clinical Training and Internship Consortium at the Graduate School of Professional Psychology. She also has a small private practice specializing in psychotherapy and supervision. Her interest areas include supervision and training, ethics, multiculturalism, and group modalities. Dr. Cornish is a licensed psychologist in Colorado, listed with the National Register of Health Service Providers in Psychology, board certified in Counseling Psychology by the American Board of Professional Psychology, and a Fellow of the American Psychological Association. She is currently a member of the APA Ethics committee.

Publication areas

Supervision and training, ethics; issues in university counseling centers, multiculturalism; editor for Psychotherapy Bulletin; consulting editor for Professional Psychology: Research and Practice and also for Training and Education in Professional Psychology

More information about Dr. Cornish

Judith E. Fox

Associate Professor
Director, International Disaster Psychology Program
Ph.D. University of Kansas, 1981

Dr. Judith Fox has been involved in University teaching and practice of psychotherapy with children, adolescents and families throughout her career. She has practiced and supervised mental health professionals in training in community, hospital inpatient and emergency room, and private practice settings. Taking an integrative theoretical approach, Dr. Fox has significant expertise working with many clinical populations including those affected by trauma.

Dr. Fox has presented globally on many subject areas including the discipline of international disaster psychology, attachment theory, trauma and peace building, therapist vicarious-trauma and post-traumatic growth, and postpartum depression. Her publications include articles, chapters & books related to mental health stigma and psychotherapy, attachment theory & trauma, psychotherapeutic technique, international disaster psychology training, developing international internship partnerships, stress and coping in childhood, and health psychology.

Dr. Fox works internationally in such contexts as Bosnia, Croatia, Serbia, Belize, Ghana and India determining ways in which our graduate students may facilitate agency goals through their involvement as international summer interns. Prior to directing the MAIDP Program, she was Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center where she directed the Adult Outpatient Psychological Services at National Jewish Hospital, worked with veterans affected by HIV and AIDS, and taught residents and interns as an attending on the psychiatric inpatient service at Denver V. A. Medical Center. She has consulted with Head Start and supervises ongoing parent-child groups providing psychosocial services to Denver refugee communities.

Kim Gorgens

Clinical Associate Professor
Ph.D. Southern Illinois University, 1998
ABPP Rehabilitation Psychology, 2011

Email or call: 303-871-4160

Dr. Gorgens at TedxDU

Kim Gorgens is a Clinical Associate Professor in the Graduate School of Professional Psychology at the University of Denver and teaches the Psychophysiology and Clinical Neuropsychology sequence at the doctoral level and several courses in the Forensic Psychology and International Disaster Psychology Master's Degree programs.  She has been a member of the faculty at the University of Denver since 2001.   She also has a faculty appointment to the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. Dr. Gorgens earned her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at Southern Illinois University, completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Rehabilitation Psychology and Clinical Neuropsychology and is board-certified in Rehabilitation Psychology.

Dr. Gorgens' professional interests include community outreach, education and legislative advocacy. She is the current Chair of the American Psychological Association's Committee on Disability Issues in Psychology (CDIP), the former Chair of the State of Colorado Traumatic Brain Injury Trust Fund Board, and the Past-President of the Colorado Neuropsychological Society.  

Dr. Gorgens has most recently published on the development of culturally competent clinical practice with persons with disabilities and she received the University of Denver Disability Student Services Excellence in Education award in 2007 and the American Psychological Association Committee on Disability Issues in Psychology (CDIP) Mentor Award in 2008.  

W. Neil Gowensmith

Clinical Assistant Professor
Ph.D. Colorado State University, 1999

Areas of Interest:research interests focus on the reliability and validity of forensic examinations, factors impacting post-acquittal conditional release, and attitudes about forensic populations.

Professional activities include: Member of American Psychological Association, Division 41 (Forensic Division); Member of American Psychology-Law Society Dissertation Review Committee; Member of National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors, Forensic Division

Lynett Henderson-Metzger

Clinical Assistant Professor
PsyD, University of Denver, 2003
J.D., University of Denver, 1997

Email or call: 303-871-4684

Area of Specialization
Forensic psychology, social justice, domestic violence, attachment, systems theory, student training issues and self care; developmental differences; integration between law and psychology.

Publication Areas
Intimate violence and gender; race and congressional redistricting

Why do I love my career? In a typical week, I might teach one class of students about Bipolar I Disorder and another about assessing psychotic symptoms in a first interview . . . I might work for several hours with clients in my private practice, which is geared toward serving adults with developmental differences, on building social skills and learning emotional regulation techniques . . . I might edit a textbook chapter or talk with an advisee about research options in correctional settings . . . discuss the impact of acculturation on self‐perception with peers . . . or share a laugh with a group of staff members at a GSPP potluck.

Throughout all of these experiences, I would be building on my 10+ years’ experience studying the interactions between law, psychology, and human diversity; my professional interests, which include social justice, intimate violence, and self‐care in clinical training programs; and my genuine affection and respect for the wonderful team of professionals at GSPP.

Why do I love my career? Because—given the people I work with, the terrific students who come to this program, and the great opportunities at this institution—there is nothing “typical” about it.

Leah James, Clinical Assistant Professor & Field Placement Director, International Disaster Psychology: MSW, Ph.D., University of Michigan, 2012

Areas of Interest: Culturally-adapted assessment and intervention development, implementation, and evaluation for trauma and disaster survivors; traditional healing practices; trauma among military veterans; recovery, empowerment, and social action models of mental healthcare.

Conference Presentation/Publication areas: International trauma and disaster psychology (post-earthquake mental health intervention in Haiti; women’s mental health in Ghana); meaning-making and intervention development for veterans with PTSD; behavioral effects of uncertainty; possible selves; motivation.

Leah James

Clinical Assistant Professor & Field Placement Director, International Disaster Psychology
MSW, PhD, University of Michigan, 2012

Dr. Leah James received her MSW in 2007 and her Ph.D. in Social Work and Social Psychology in 2012, both from the University of Michigan. She is a Clinical Assistant Professor & the Field Placement Director for the International Disaster Psychology M.A. program. She also works with the Natural Hazards Institute at the University of Colorado, Boulder.

Dr. James’ interests are in clinical practice and applied research focused on culturally-adapted services for trauma and disaster survivors. She has particular interest in trauma among military veterans, women’s mental health, and the use of traditional healing practices and recovery, peer-leadership, and social action approaches in intervention development. Leah teaches the Loss and Grief course for the IDP program.

Dr. James has engaged in international mental health research and humanitarian work in Haiti, Ghana, South Africa, and the DR Congo. She is a co-founder of alay mental health worker training program for earthquake survivors in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and has conducted multiple evaluations of this project. She also has considerable domestic clinical experience, including as a staff social worker with the PTSD Clinical Team at the Ann Arbor VA hospital, and as co-leader of a therapy group for incarcerated female survivors of sexual assault.

Click here for more information about Leah James 

Michael Karson

Professor
Ph.D. University of Michigan, 1978
J.D. Western New England College, 2000

Email

I received my Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Michigan in 1978 and practiced psychology for 25 years before entering academia. While I was in full-time practice, I tried to do as many different things as possible. I conducted psychotherapies privately and also in a community clinic, doing short-term cognitive and systems work with individuals and couples, and open-ended psychoanalytic therapy with adults. Since I am at bottom a behaviorist, I have tried to integrate different theoretical approaches into a cohesive, if idiosyncratic, blend. I also have an industrial practice, largely through a computer program I wrote that interprets the 16PF to help organizations decide whom to hire or promote. (I have also co-authored a program that interprets the 16PF for clinicians.) My efforts at theory integration are represented by various chapters in my books. My work with the 16PF led to my writing, with 2 co-authors, 16PF Interpretation in Clinical Practice, which has also been published in Spanish, German, and Croatian.

I worked in the child welfare system for two decades, consulting on 10,000 cases and individually evaluating 800 children and 1000 parents. This work led to my writing Patterns of Child Abuse: How Dysfunctional Transactions are Replicated in Individuals, Families, and the Child Welfare System. Currently, I consult with Colorado's child welfare agency and with various counties from time to time. While in practice, I would testify in termination and custody trials fairly regularly. I thought the courtroom was so interesting that I went to law school in midlife. I was admitted to the bar in Massachusetts, but I have never practiced law except to consult with attorneys about examining and cross-examining mental health witnesses.

Teaching graduate students my approach to early memories led to my writing Using Early Memories in Psychotherapy: Roadmaps to Presenting Problems and Treatment Impasses. I describe a step by step method for interpreting memories, which I see as indicating a pattern or schema for understanding the world, a pattern that is often outmoded in some manner that can produce idiosyncratic expectations and psychological symptoms. I advocate using the patient's vocabulary and imagery in therapy, rather than those of some theorist.

I am interested in the way privilege, power and gender dynamics, and categorical approaches to people constrain the vitality of the therapeutic relationship and hinder the discovery of the client and the client's world. I think that for a long time theater professionals have struggled with the same problems therapists encounter in the effort to create a lively space, to facilitate meaningful human narratives, and to engage and change people, so I wondered what we can learn from them. This question led to my book, Deadly Therapy: Lessons in Liveliness from Theater and Performance Theory.

My integrative approach to theory has found a happy home at DU. My colleagues are genuinely interested in psychology and I find that our approach to multiculturalism and individual differences is itself multicultural, so that we don't all have to agree. I think it's exciting for students to hear so many different points of view, and I have tried to present mine in the form of sketch comedy, joined good-naturedly by my colleagues, Lavita Nadkarni and Fernand Lubuguin.

Lately, I’ve been working with Lavita on a book, Principles of Forensic Report Writing, for APA books. I’m not sure what the next project will be.

Fernand Lubuguin

Clinical Assistant Professor
Ph.D. University of Colorado at Boulder, 1993

I received my Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1993. For the subsequent seven years, I was a full-time staff psychologist at Kaiser Permanente (which is a national health maintenance organization) where I practiced psychology in a variety of roles and settings with a broad range of clients. In the outpatient clinic, I provided primarily short-term psychotherapy to children, adolescents, adults, and elderly clients in individual, couples, and family therapy modalities. I also taught classes in anger management and couples communication skills, and provided clinical supervision to practicum students and pre-doctoral interns. In the inpatient psychiatric hospital, I treated adults as a member of an interdisciplinary treatment team. Lastly, in the medical hospital, I provided psychiatric consultative services to physicians.  Working in this wide range of roles and settings provided me with the invaluable opportunity to become a well-rounded psychologist.
In 2000, I became an adjunct faculty member at the Graduate School of Professional Psychology where I co-led the Multicultural Psychology professional seminar.  The following year, I became a half-time core faculty member with the role of Director of Diversity and Multicultural Training for the Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.) training program. In this role, I contribute to the training of culturally competent psychologists by teaching two of the four-course year-long required classes in multicultural psychology – namely, Racial/Ethnic Identity Development and Culturally Competent Psychotherapy. The other two courses in this sequence are the Social Psychology of Racism and Oppression, and Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues. 
As an immigrant from the Philippines, multiculturalism and diversity have great personal meaning and implications. My commitment to studying and advancing diversity began during my undergraduate training at the University of California at Berkeley, where I wrote my senior-year honors thesis about a multicultural topic. During my graduate training, my research remained focused on multicultural issues and culminated with my dissertation on acculturation. I was mentored by the late Peter G. Ossorio, Ph.D., who trained me in the intellectual discipline of Descriptive Psychology, which is a systematic, existential, and reality oriented conceptual system that guides all of my clinical and academic endeavors.
In 2005, I became a full-time faculty member when I was given the additional role of Director of the Professional Psychology Center, which is the on-site training clinic for the Psy.D. program. I am very privileged and fortunate to have the opportunity to contribute to two distinctive characteristics of our Psy.D. program – specifically, the four-course year-long multicultural psychology training, and the on-site training clinic.  I am very grateful to have found my professional niche; as I work in an innovative and creative academic setting, as I have exceptionally competent colleagues, as I train outstanding students who are quite eager to learn, and as I have roles that promote my passions of teaching and training in ways that incorporate advancing diversity and inclusiveness, and promoting clinical competence.

Hale Martin

Clinical Assistant Professor
Ph.D. University of Texas at Austin, 1993

Area of Specialization
Personality, cognitive, and neuropsychological assessment particularly in the context of therapeutic assessment, which is an approach to assessment that strives to maximize the therapeutic impact an assessment can have on the client.

Intersubjective/self-psychology, cognitive-behavioral, and systems approaches to treatment. Masculinity-femininity. Personality disorders. Couples therapy. Spanish speaking populations

Publication Areas
Psychological assessment including therapeutic assessment, Rorschach Inkblot Method, MMPI-2, and assessment in the managed care environment. Also masculinity-femininity.

John W. McNeill

Associate Professor
Psy.D. University of Denver, 1983

Area of Specialization
Behavior analytic theory and practice, including the use of mindfulness and acceptance, dialectics, behavioral activation, and exposure-based approaches to intervention; philosophy of science, with special interest in Jamesian process-thinking, and Daoist / Buddhist subfields of Chinese Philosophy; and sport-performance psychology

Professional Activities
Association for Contextual Behavioral Science, Chuang Tai Zen Support Group of Denver; Daoist Studies, Organization for Chinese Americans, part-time private practice, and consultation to sport programs and athletes

Publication Areas
Behavior therapy, behavioral medicine, behavioral assessment

Laura Meyer

Clinical Assistant Professor
Ph.D. University of Denver, 2008

Area of Specialization
Introductory Statistics (MAFP, IDP, SPP, and Psy.D.), Research Methods (MAFP, IDP, and SPP), and Advanced Statistics (Psy.D.). Professional and research interests include research design, health behaviors, nutrition, and exercise adherence.

Publication Areas
Autism, cleft lip and palate, nutrition, occupational therapy, and assistive technologies for intention tremor.

Lavita Nadkarni

Associate Professor
Director of Forensic Studies
Ph.D. Adelphi University, 1995

Dr. Lavita Nadkarni has a Master’s Degree in Forensic Psychology from John Jay College of Criminal Justice and
earned her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Adelphi University. She has been working with forensic populations
and law enforcement personnel for over 20 years, primarily providing clinical services (therapy, forensic assessment, expert testimony) and training. Dr. Nadkarni is the Director of Forensic Studies at the University of Denver’s Graduate School of Professional Psychology, and is responsible for providing supervision and training to graduate students in their clinical work with clients who have involvement with the civil, criminal or family legal systems.

Her research interests lie in the area of interpersonal violence and trauma, adolescent truancy, entitlement, clinical training, and diversity issues within psychology. In addition to publications in these areas, Dr. Nadkarni is a textbook, manuscript, and proposal reviewer and Associate Editor of Psychotherapy Bulletin.

Dr. Nadkarni believes in reaching out to diverse external communities, routinely providing pro bono or low cost
services to individuals and agencies. She has been a Human Rights clinic volunteer for Doctors of the World for
over five years.

Dr. Nadkarni’s forensic experience has included working at NYU‐Bellevue Hospital’s inpatient forensic unit and
the Kirby Forensic Psychiatric Center, and as a court appointed child and family forensic evaluator. She has
continued her work conducting competency evaluations as well as other criminal and civil forensic assessments,
and has also been instrumental in training judicial and social service personnel on the use of psychological
evaluations and the effect interpersonal violence has on family legal disputes. Dr. Nadkarni is an active member
of the American Psychology‐Law Society and the National Council of Schools and Programs in Professional
Psychology and has held leadership positions within these organizations.

As providing enriching training experiences is part of Dr. Nadkarni’s mission at the Graduate School of
Professional Psychology, she has actively sought and received grants which have allowed students to a) conduct
assessments, examining the percentage of mentally ill in corrections and validating a screening tool, b) conduct
assessments on adult offenders using the SCID, c) conduct research on the MAYSI‐2, and d) provide psychoeducational training to probation officers.

Artur Poczwardowski

Associate Professor,
Director of Field Placement
Ph.D. University of Utah, 1997

Areas of Interest

Sport/performance psychology practice; curriculum development and teaching in sport/performance psychology; interpersonal relationships in sport/performance; psychological skills training; knowledge generation and application.  

Publication Areas

Models in sport psychology service delivery; professional philosophy in sport psychology consulting; coach-athlete relationships; coping strategies in elite performers in sports and arts; methodology in sport and exercise psychology

More information about Dr. Poczwardowski

Jamie Shapiro

Assistant Professor
Ph.D. West Virgina University, 2009

E-mail or call 303-871-3583

Interest Areas
Sport and performance psychology; exercise psychology; psychology of sport injury; psychological skills training; counseling athletes; learning life skills through sport; ethics and training in sport and exercise psychology

Professional Activities
Member of the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP) and American Psychological Association (APA); Certified Consultant of AASP (CC-AASP); National Certified Counselor (NCC); Professional member of USA Gymnastics

Ragnar Storaasli

Clinical Associate Professor
Ph.D., University of Denver, 1991

Area of Specialization
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), applied behavior analysis, behavior therapy, philosophy of science, cultivation of compassion and critical thinking.

Publication Areas
Behavior therapy, behavioral medicine, marital and family psychology, diversity and theoretical issues, student interests.

Amber W. Pearson

Field Placement Coordinator for the International Disaster Psychology Program
MA, University of Denver, 2008

Interest Areas
How trauma affects development; mental health treatment for torture survivors, survivors of war trauma, and trauma survivors in general; how acculturation affects trauma treatment; how DSM-IV diagnoses may emerge in distinctive ways for people from other cultures; child abuse and neglect issues; gender based violence issues; short and long-term crisis intervention; community mental health; and holistic treatments.

Professional Activities
Member of: American Counseling Association. She is also a pro bono therapist and administrative volunteer at Center for Immigrants and Immigration Services (CIIS), a center for asylum seekers and torture survivors.

Steve Portenga

Clinical Assistant Professor, PhD, University of Missouri-Columbia, 2004

Publications and Areas of Interest: the psychology of elite performance, neuroscience and performance, the intersection of leadership (coaches and peer) and team development, the psychology of injury, the ethical practice and training of performance psychologists, and the theoretical foundations of human performance.

Courtney Welton-Mitchell

Assistant Professor L.P.C., PhD, University of Denver, 2012 LPC

Dr. Courtney Welton-Mitchell received an M.A. in Counseling in 1997, and an MA and a Ph.D in Affect/Social Psychology with a concentration in Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience from the psychology department at the University of Denver in 2010 and 2012 respectively. She is a licensed mental health therapist in the State of Colorado and Assistant Professor at the Graduate School of Professional Psychology, teaching primarily in the Master’s program in International Disaster Psychology.

Dr. Welton-Mitchell conducts applied research on trauma, memory, and refugees domestically and internationally. She teaches the following courses at GSPP: Gender Based Violence; Crisis Intervention; International Disaster Psychology Foundations and Preparation for International Internship; Cognitive and Affective Models. In addition, she coordinates disaster simulations, and has trained students in conducting psychological evaluations for asylum seekers, T and U Visas and mentored local clinicians in the same through HealthRight international.

Dr. Welton-Mitchell has worked for many years as a trainer, consultant, and program evaluator for humanitarian organizations including UNHCR, UNWFP, and HRRC in various locations including Egypt, Turkey, Tanzania, Nepal, The Gambia, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Most recently she was the lead evaluator for a global evaluation of UNHCR’s mental health and psychosocial support for humanitarian staff. She has presented at conferences domestically and internationally and co-authored various publications in peer reviewed journals and book chapters.

Dr. Welton-Mitchell is a former - Peace Corps volunteer and trainer Nepal; Program Manager UNWFP Nepal, Bhutanese Refugee Operation; Head of Sub-office UNWFP Tanzania, Great Lakes Refugee Operation; Acting Head of Psychosocial Unit, AMERA Egypt; Adjunct Faculty, Refugee Studies and Forced Migration, AUC, Cairo. In the U.S. she has provided crisis intervention, psychological assessments, and group therapy in correctional facilities; outreach to homeless chronically mentally ill youth and adults; and individual and group therapy for adult survivors of childhood abuse.

Click here for more information about Courtney Welton-Mitchell