| Valerie Sive-Ramirez, Psy.D. | Licensed Psychologist
Clinical Neuropsychologist
Child, Adolescent, Adult, Geriatric |
Dr. Valerie Sive-Ramirez earned her doctoral degree from the APA-accredited
counseling psychology graduate program at the University of San Francisco, which
included a two-year graduate practicum at the Children’s Health Council in Palo Alto, California. She received additional training in the diagnosis and treatment of children
and adolescents at the APA-approved Southern Arizona Psychology Internship
Consortium in Tucson, Arizona. She earned her master’s degree from the University of
San Diego and has been licensed as a marriage and family therapist in California. She is currently a licensed psychologist in Texas.
Dr. Sive-Ramirez completed her post-doctoral training in Clinical Neuropsychology
from Fielding Graduate University. As part of this specialized training, she completed
a post-doctoral fellowship at St. Mary’s Medical Center, where she worked on the
inpatient rehabilitation unit and conducted inpatient and outpatient neuropsychological evaluations for children and adolescents. She further refined her specialization by
completing a second post-doctoral fellowship on the brain injury unit at Kaiser
Foundation Rehabilitation Center.
She has worked for the Memory Center at Baylor Neuroscience Center in Dallas as well as for the Pain Management Center at Baylor University Medical Center. In both settings, she conducted comprehensive neuropsychological evaluations and pain evaluations, provided individual and group therapy, and assisted in coordination of treatment services to gather outcome data. She provides in-home neuropsychological assessment and psychotherapy rehabilitation patients through Rehab Without Walls. She has worked with children with many different types of conditions, including ADHD, learning difficulties, developmental delay, and neurological problems.
In addition to her clinical experience, she has worked in different research settings, including a study on anger management and substance abuse for the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs Medical Center in San Francisco. She served as adjunct faculty for Wright Institute in Berkeley, California teaching graduate-level neuropsychological assessment. She is a member of the American Psychological Association.
Dr. Sive-Ramirez is committed to providing high quality evaluations and treatment. An important objective in her clinical work is to provide each individual with an opportunity to obtain optimal functioning in daily life. We are very happy to have Dr. Sive-Ramirez working with us. |
Licensed Psychologist Mary Linda Chlipala, Ph.D, M.S., M.A., CCC/SLP Clinical Neuropsychologist Speech/Language Pathologist Child, Adolescent, Adult, Geriatric
Dr. Chlipala specializes in neuropsychological assessment of cognitive, emotional, and behavioral difficulties in individuals across the lifespan. For adults, this includes concerns of possible dementia or other cognitive difficulties affecting quality of life. For children and adolescents, this includes developmental conditions such as Autism Spectrum Disorders, ADHD, learning disabilities, intellectual disability, and other difficulties affecting a child's ability to learn and function as expected in important domains of their lives. She also conducts presurgical assessments (bariatric, deep brain stimulator, spinal cord stimulator).
Dr. Chlipala has experience in a variety of settings including private practice, hospital inpatient/outpatient, skilled nursing facility (SNF), medical specialty unit (MSU), juvenile detention center, Intermediate Care Facility for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (ICF/IID) Level V, rehabilitation hospital, and an outpatient rehabilitation center serving children and adults, in addition to providing didactic clinical training seminars and supervision of post-doctoral neuropsychology fellows, pre-doctoral neuropsychology interns, and psychometrists, as well as experience as an ASHA certified Speech-Language Pathologist. She was formerly the Director of Clinical Training for an APPIC pre-doctoral internship site. She earned her doctorate and master's degree in Clinical Psychology from the University of North Texas. Her dissertation is entitled "Organized Semantic Fluency and Executive Functioning in an Adult Clinical Sample and a Community Sample." Her master's thesis is entitled "Longitudinal Study of Loneliness and Depression as Predictors of Health in Mid-To-Later Life." Her predoctoral internship involved work at Terrell State Hospital, where she saw children, adolescents and adults,; she also saw children for therapy at the Children's Advocacy Center. Prior to this, she earned a master's degree in Communication Disorders from Texas Woman's University and her bachelor's degree in Education from the University of North Texas. She worked as a Speech/Language Pathologist and eventual Department Head at The Rehabilitation Center for Children and Adults in Sherman, Texas. She also worked as a Speech-Language Therapist for the Grayson County Special Education Coop. Dr. Chlipala has numerous scientific presentations and publications. She holds memberships in the National Academy of Neuropsychology, the International Neuropsychological Society, and the American Speech-Language Hearing Association. We are very happy to have Dr. Chlipala working with us.
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| Maria C. Boix Braga, Ph.D. |
| Licensed Psychologist
Clinical Neuropsychologist
Adolescent, Adult, Geriatric |
Dr. Maria Boix Braga earned her doctorate in
Clinical Psychology with a concentration in Neuropsychology from the
APA-accredited graduate program at Nova Southeastern University in Fort
Lauderdale, Florida. Her dissertation was entitled Head-Impact-Related
Outcomes by Position in Retired NFL Football Players.
As part of her
graduate training, she completed an Inpatient Neuropsychology rotation at Memorial
Rehabilitation Institute at Memorial Regional Hospital South in Hollywood, Florida
where she worked as part of a multidisciplinary rehabilitation team of
physiatrists, nurses, physical, occupational, speech, and music therapists. She was group co-facilitator of the Stroke Wellness and Education to Enhance
Treatment (SWEET) Program and the Behavioral Pain Management Program. She also worked at the Sports Medicine
Clinic at Nova Southeastern University and Miami Jewish Mental Health. At Nova
Southeastern University, she served as a graduate teaching assistant for
Objective Personality Assessment.
She completed her
internship in Rehabilitation Psychology at the Jackson Health System in
association with the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. There, she
provided psychotherapy and neuropsychological assessment services to a wide
variety of patient populations, including those with spinal cord injury, brain
injury, strokes, amputations, multiple orthopedic traumas, cancer, and a variety
of other medical conditions. She worked with them through multiple levels of
care, including intensive care, acute care, inpatient rehabilitation and
outpatient services.
Prior to her
doctorate, she earned two master’s degrees from Nova Southeastern University,
in Clinical Psychology and General Psychology. Her major paper for the former
was entitled Exploration of the Perseverative Errors score of the Wisconsin
Card Sorting Test Performance on Measurements of Intelligence, Cognitive
functioning, Memory, Executive Functioning, and Personality. She earned her
bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Florida International University in Miami,
graduating Magna Cum Laude.
Dr. Boix Braga completed a 2-year postdoctoral
fellowship in Rehabilitation and Neuropsychology at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas where she provided
neuropsychological evaluations and psychotherapy services in the neurology and
rehabilitation outpatient clinics and on the inpatient unit. She also provided consultation services for
members of the interdisciplinary team regarding patient/family emotional
status, behavioral functioning, capacity assessments and treatment-related
issues.
Most recently, she worked as a Rehabilitation Neuropsychologist/Assistant
Professor for the Department of Psychiatry at Parkland Hospital and Health Systems with the University of Texas
Southwestern Medical Center. While there, in addition to providing neuropsychological
evaluations, psychotherapy, and consultation services, she completed Traumatic
Brain Injury (TBI) - Model Systems research responsibilities, including
providing interventions nationally to care partners of individuals with
neurological conditions.
In addition to
fluency in English, Dr. Boix Braga has native proficiency in Spanish and
Portuguese. She has authored and co-authored multiple research publications and
presentations. The breadth and quality of her training has
provided her with a strong foundation in the assessment of individuals with a
wide variety of neurological, complex medical, and psychiatric conditions. As a
result of her extensive training, she has come to appreciate the positive
impact of that neuropsychologists can have on their clients’ mental and
physical health. We are happy to have her collaborating with us and helping
others as they seek to enhance their quality of life. |
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John Engle, M.A.
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Graduate Clinical Extern
Clinical Neuropsychology
Child, Adolescent, Adult
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John is working on his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at
the University of North Texas. He earned his Master of Arts degree in Forensic
Psychology from John Jay College of Criminal Justice and his Bachelor of
Science degree in Psychology from Ohio State University. In addition to his
clinical work at UNT’s Psychology Clinic, he conducts neuropsychological
evaluations at Neurocognitive Specialty Group for clients experiencing
cognitive concerns. John also serves as co-facilitator for a clinical trial of
a group therapy using a method involving Novel Mindfulness Treatment.
While in New York, John participated
in an internship at The Odyssey House Outpatient Center, a substance abuse
clinic in the Bronx. While there, he conducted intake and assessment interviews,
completed admission and discharge procedures, facilitated group therapy, conducted
individual therapy sessions and developed treatment plans. He also served as a
suicide hotline volunteer at the Samaritans of New York. He used nonjudgmental
active listening techniques to help people in distress. When the Covid-19
pandemic began, he also made wellness calls to improve the morale of
individuals in crisis or distress. While at Community Counseling Centers in
Columbus, Ohio, he helped to connect clients with community resources and
provided counseling and crisis intervention services.
John is currently on a
forensics-focused research team at UNT where he writes and helps prepare
manuscripts for publication. He worked
as a research assistant at John Jay College in New York on a project using
archival data to investigate the presence of psychopathic treats in
members of the Emergency Service Unit department of the NYPD. He also worked on
a project examining DSM-5 Antisocial Personality Disorder and psychopathy in a
female correctional sample. He co-authored a scientific article on this
research which was published in the journal Personality and Mental Health.
John has given several scientific
presentations. At the meeting of the American Psychology – Law Association in
Philadelphia, he and several collaborators presented Parenting Styles and
Psychopathic Traits Demonstrate Differential Relationships and Measurement
Invariance across Latinx and non-Latinx Male Offenders. At the Eastern
Psychological Association, he gave a remote presentation on Adaptive
psychopathic traits in members of the Emergency Service Unit. At the Association
for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies in Philadelphia, he participated in a
poster presentation entitled The effects of Mindfulness and Modification
Therapy on general psychopathology. As an undergraduate, he participated in
a poster presentation entitled The role of construal level in attentional
bias toward temptation at Ohio State University.
In addition to his involvement
in research and assessment, John serves as a graduate teaching assistant at UNT
for the courses Experimental Methods
Lab, General Psychology, Biological Psychology, Psychology of Addictive
Behaviors, Death and Dying, Health Psychology, and Abnormal Psychology. He is working in our office as a psychometrist
to expand the breadth and depth of his neuropsychological assessment experience.
We are happy to have John working with us!
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Hana Jwaied, M.A.
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Graduate Clinical Extern
Clinical Neuropsychology
Child, Adolescent, Adult |
Hana
is a Clinical Psychology doctoral student at The Chicago School of Professional
Psychology, Dallas Campus, where she also earned her master’s degree in Clinical
Psychology. Her dissertation is entitled Healing Through Reading: The
Quality of Bibliotherapy as a Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Intervention. She earned her bachelor’s degree with
distinction from The University of Iowa with a major in Psychology and a minor
in Human Relations.
Hana’s clinical experience includes
working at several clinical agencies conducting psychological and neuropsychological
evaluations. She has worked with survivors
of human trafficking, childhood sexual abuse, and children and teens involved
with Child Protective Services. She has co-led Dialectical Behavior Group (DBT)
group therapies which are very helpful in helping others improve their
emotional regulation. She has also completed a practicum with Texas Woman’s
University where she provided individual and group therapy to clients from
diverse cultural backgrounds.
Hana
has specialized clinical training and holds several certifications. These
include Cognitive Processing Therapy and Prolonged Exposure Therapy for PTSD. Both
of these interventions have been shown to be effective in helping individuals who
have experienced different forms of trauma. She also holds certification in Resilience
and Trauma-Informed Perspective which identifies how untreated Adverse Childhood Experiences
(ACEs) can lead to mental illness, substance abuse, and suicide in childhood
and adulthood. This approach focuses on ways of helping others to increase
their resiliency.
Hana
has worked as a teaching assistant for Advanced Assessment and Intellectual
Assessment and as a Psychometrics tutor at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology.
She tutored students at The University of Iowa for various
undergraduate courses and planned lessons and study strategies.
In addition to her dissertation and her work with
Adverse Childhood Experiences, her research experience includes work in the Child
Lab and Cognitive Lab at The Chicago School of Professional
Psychology. At The University of Iowa, she worked as a research assistant in the LaLumiere Lab. Her work in the ADHD Lab focused on assessment of students on measures
related to social media use and psychopathology. Her work in the
Quantitative Methodology and Measurement Lab involved development of a questionnaire assessing
alexithymia.
Hana’s
professional activities include work with the Preparing Future Professional Faculty (PFPF) program
which focuses on history and development of higher education and faculty roles
within diverse institutions, teaching/research/service, academic job search,
curriculum development and lecture planning, and faculty roles in governance.
The latter addresses issues of diversity, including race, ethnicity, and gender
equity in teaching, learning, research, and curriculum. She has also
worked with the Texas Woman’s University Counseling and Psychological
Services where she was Co-facilitator
of Ally Training for TWU faculty, staff, and students with discussion about
LGBTQ+ issues. These issues include the complexities of identities,
expression, and orientation, language, the coming out process, microaggressions/-isms, intersectionality of
identities, and psychological effects of stigma.
Hana has a heart for others and participates
in a number of community service activities. These include the Walk for Freedom
promoting global awareness and local action in the fight against human
trafficking; the Drive for Refugee
Support supporting refugee organizations and families in the DFW area; Big Brothers
Big Sisters where she has served as an adult mentor; and work with the Denver
Rescue Mission Food Bank of the Rockies and Habitat for Humanity to serve
community members in Denver, Colorado. She has bilingual fluency in both Arabic
and English. We are very happy to have Hana working with us!
Jill Palmer, M.S., M.A.
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Graduate Clinical Extern
Clinical Neuropsychology
Child, Adolescent, Adult |
Jill is a Clinical Psychology doctoral student at The
Chicago School of Professional Psychology, Dallas Campus, where she also earned
her second master’s degree in Clinical Psychology. She earned her first
master’s degree in Rehabilitation Counseling from the University of North
Texas. Her doctoral dissertation is entitled Impact of Diet on Perceived
Stress in Relation to the Gut‑Brain Axis Among College Students. She earned
her bachelor’s degree in Applied Behavior Analysis from the University of North
Texas where she also completed pre-med prerequisites. Jill holds credentials as a National
Certified Counselor and a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor. Her clinical
experience includes conducting psychological evaluations at Richland Oaks
Counseling Center, conducting dual diagnosis and substance use assessments at Dallas
County Community Supervision and Adult Probation Services to provide treatment
recommendations for successful completion of probation. She also developed a
skills development course for high‑risk clients working toward gaining full‑time
employment and maximizing independence, and she conducted individual and group
therapy with a diverse clientele including veterans. Jill also worked for Professional True
Mental Health Solutions, Dallas where she provided therapeutic and support services
adults with serious mental illness including Schizophrenia, Schizoaffective,
Major Depressive, and Bipolar disorder. To prepare for this she received
extensive crisis intervention training. She utilized Cognitive Behavioral
Therapy (CBT) to help clients identify and correct cognitive distortions and
develop coping skills to manage symptoms with the goal of reducing the rate of
hospitalizations. She also provided clients with resources to address other
needs including housing, employment, and social security services, and she taught
clients independent living skills. At United Through Hope Childrenʼs
Outpatient Center in Denton, she worked with children and adolescents with
autism spectrum disorder and other developmental disabilities using applied
behavior analysis (ABA) interventions and other techniques to promote learning
and skill development. She also led group and individual therapy sessions. At
Workplace Inclusion and Sustainable Employment (W.I.S.E.) in Denton, she provided
rehabilitation and career counseling to adolescents in transition to adulthood led
group workshops to help clients develop resumes and role‑played mock interviews
to prepare for future job interviews as clients enter the workforce. She also taught
independent living skills and informed clients about their right to receive
accommodations to self‑advocate and address their needs accordingly. At the Counseling Center at the University
of North Texas, she engaged in individual therapy with university students with
a wide range of presenting concerns, including anxiety, depression, eating, and
adjustment disorders. She also administered assessments regarding symptomology
as well as career exploration, including strength‑based and
achievement/aptitude tests to help clients identify strengths and career
interests. She participated in the Social Justice and
Public Policy Advocacy Seminar Series at The Chicago School of Professional
Psychology, Dallas which increased awareness of social justice and public
policy advocacy efforts in the field of clinical psychology. Through
conversations with state and local legislators, community organizations, and
local mental health agencies, she and other seminar participants learned how to
work collaboratively with other health professionals, develop amicus briefs,
and provide expert testimony about the impact of bills offered for passage by
citing evidence‑based research. She served as a teaching assistant for
Statistics I and II and Intellectual Assessment at The Chicago School of
Professional Psychology – Dallas which included leading weekly statistics labs
to guide students learning SPSS statistical analysis software and reviewing
lecture content. She also served as a tutor for psychometrics. Jill’s
professional activities include work with the Preparing Future Professional Faculty program which trains
future professionals in becoming competent educators in academia. She served as
Philanthropy Co‑Chair for the Doctoral Student Organization, Mentoring
Co‑Coordinator for TCSPP Students, Officer for the PsycheD Doctoral Student
Organization, and a member of the Doctoral Student APA Accreditation Committee. Jill has also channeled her care for others through a number of community service activities. These include participation in the Dallas Pride Parade, New Student Orientation for The Chicago School, the Immigration Refugee Donation Drive Winter Wishes Childrenʼs Gift Drive, Thanksgiving Food Drive, Mustard Seed Ministry Food Pantry Methodist Healthcare Ministries, and Angel Tree Salvation Army. Jill has many areas of strength, and we are happy to have her working with us! Emily L. Armstrong, M.S. | Psychometrist
Clinical Neuropsychology |
Child, Adolescent, Adult
Emily is working on
her Ph.D. in School Psychology at Texas Woman’s University. Her work as an
intern has included administration of various
developmental assessments on atypically and typically developing children and adolescents.
This work involved developing comprehensive reports
summarizing the child’s
developmental functioning,
interpretation of the data gathered, and recommended intervention plans.
She earned her master’s
degree in Human Development and Early Childhood Disorders from the University
of Texas at Dallas - School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences Department. Her
coursework in this program included Typical Development, Assessment Theory, Developing Child, Developing Child, Toddler and
Preschool, Cognitive Development, Intervention with Young Children, Language
Acquisition and Social Development. She was on the Academic Honors List
throughout her master’s program. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Business
Operations from Sonoma State University in California where she was often on
the Academic’s Dean’s List. Relevant courses here included Lifespan
Development, Social Psychology and Applied Statistics.
Emily’s clinical experience also includes work as a
psychometrist for Dr. Daisy Blagg at Caring Heart Evaluation Center. She performed developmental and neuropsychological evaluations for children, adolescents, and adults with learning and cognitive disabilities
as well as emotional, mood, and psychotic disorders.
Her work as a registered behavior technician involved
implementing programs based on Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) which support communication, adaptive skills, and social skills to children and
adolescents diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. This involved performing research-based practices following the client’s Behavior
Intervention Plan including Discrete Trial Training (DTT), Pivotal Response Training
(PRT), Natural Environment Training (NET), and Picture Exchange Communication
System (PECS)
She also served as a teacher’s aide at the School for
Children with Learning Disabilities at Preston Hollow Presbyterian School. She worked with students on an individual and small-group basis
to reinforce learning
concepts, complete assignments, and improve academic
performance. She observed classroom and play activities to identify positive
behaviors and areas
in need of improvement, implementing behavior redirection where
appropriate.
Emily has accrued a very strong background in assessment
and developmental psychology. She joined
us to apply this knowledge and
experience base toward neuropsychological evaluation of individuals across the
lifespan. We are very happy to have her working with us!
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Connor Caya, B.A.
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Clinical Research Administrative Associate
Clinical
Neuropsychology
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Connor earned his Bachelor of Arts degree
in Philosophy/English from Texas Tech University where he earned a 4.0 GPA and
was the highest ranked graduate in the College of Arts and Sciences. He has
received numerous awards and recognitions, including the UTSA Distinguished
Presidential Scholarship and the Edward W. Averill Scholarship. He is currently enrolled in graduate courses at Texas Woman's University. Connor has
specialized training as a Crisis Counselor and a Behavior Technician. He has also
received Risk Intervention and Safety Education training which is designed to
help those having suffered sexual assault, improve drug and alcohol awareness,
and aid in suicide prevention. He currently works as a behavioral therapist with clients on the autism spectrum and as a crisis counselor in addition to his work in our office.
In addition to his commitment to
academic excellence while in college, he served as a volunteer for the Burkhart
Center for Autism Education and Research where he helped young adults on the
autism spectrum become more confident, expressive, and collaborative through
the performing arts. He now works as a Behavior Technician for Centria Autism
Services where he provides in-home behavioral therapy based on the principles
of Applied Behavior Analysis.
Connor currently volunteers as a crisis
counselor to provide support to individuals in crisis while simultaneously
assessing their level of risk and determining appropriate interventions to help
ensure their safety. Past volunteer work includes working with the Texas Girls
and Boys Ranch where he assisted with group home activities, and with the TECHniques
Center at Texas Tech where he tutored young adults with learning disabilities,
ADHD, and Autism Spectrum Disorder.
Connor has joined our practice to
assist with clinical and administrative work as he prepares for graduate school.
He also serves as a liaison between our practice and collaborative research
partners in the community. We are very happy to have him working with us.
WE ARE COMMITTED TO HELPING INDIVIDUALS ACHIEVE THEIR ULTIMATE POTENTIAL AND ENHANCE THEIR QUALITY OF LIFE |
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