Tory Ash is a doctoral student in the School Psychology area within the Department of Educational Psychology. Tory received her BA in Psychology and Philosophy from UW–Madison and her MS in Psychology from Syracuse University. Prior to graduate school, Tory worked as a lab manager studying prejudice reduction interventions for adults, parents, children, and teachers. Tory is advised by Dr. Andy Garbacz. Broadly, her research interests include developing, implementing, and evaluating school-wide interventions and supports aimed at promoting greater equity in educational outcomes
Alumni
Bednar, Jenna
Jenna Bednar is an Educational Specialist student in the School Psychology area within the Department of Educational Psychology. She received her BS in Psychology and minors in neuroscience and Spanish from Wisconsin Lutheran College. Jenna discovered her passion for creating acceptance and advocacy for children throughout her experience as an Advanced Registered Behavior Technician and in leading initiatives serving children with autism. She is part of Project CASTLE that provides specific training on supporting individuals with autism spectrum disorder. Her interests include ABA, early identification and intervention for students with autism, cultural responsiveness, and development of inclusive school environments.
Bednarek, Gina
Gina Bednarek is a doctoral student in the School Psychology area within the Department of Educational Psychology and is advised by Dr. Andy Garbacz. She earned her BS in Psychology from UW-Madison and after graduation worked as a Research Specialist at the HealthEmotions Research Institute investigating childhood anxiety disorders. Gina currently collaborates with Dr. Garbacz to assist different state and community organizations with their goals surrounding family-school-community partnerships. Her research interests include learning how we can improve child and adolescent social-emotional assessment practices to better support families, schools, and clinicians.
Botting, SJ
SJ Botting is an Educational Specialist student in the School Psychology area within the Department of Educational Psychology. SJ graduated from UW-Madison with a BA in Psychology and Spanish and worked in the Madison community in not-for-profit finance before returning to pursue a degree in school psychology. They are a scholar of Project SPACE which provides specialized training for culturally responsive mental health services. SJ’s interests in the field also include social emotional learning, inclusive school climate, and family-school partnerships.
Chernicoff, Leandro
Leandro Chernicoff is a doctoral student in the Human Development area within the Department of Educational Psychology. He is interested in the development of cognitive, affective, and behavioral skills to foster well-being and alleviate suffering. This started as a personal quest, and since 2013 he has collaborated as Academic Director of AtentaMente, a Mexican nonprofit focused on teaching these very skills to adults, children, and teens. He is also a physicist and a full-time professor at UACM, one of three public universities in Mexico City, teaching college level math and physics since 2003.
Costello, Kathryn
Kathryn Costello is an Educational Specialist student in the School Psychology area within the Department of Educational Psychology. She graduated from NYU with a degree in psychology and a minor in disability studies. Before returning to school, she worked at a day program for adults with autism providing continuing education and job training. She is part of the Project CASTLE grant, which provides specific training on supporting children with autism spectrum disorder. Her interest in the field involves ensuring children with disabilities receive an equitable and positive education experience.
Gregus, Kelly
Kelly Gregus is currently working as a psychometrist in the Denver area and completing her dissertation titled “A Meta-Analysis Exploring the Effects of Cognitive Behavioral-Based Therapy Treatments on Symptoms of Depression in Autistic Individuals.” She earned her Bachelor of Science in Neurobiology and her Master of Science in Educational Psychology from the University of Wisconsin Madison. She also completed the Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND) program at the Waisman Center during her second year of graduate school. Kelly completed her clinical internship at Brain and Body Integration in Denver, Colorado. Before internship, Kelly completed practicum in several settings, including schools, community mental health, and assessment clinics.
Grekov, Paulina
Paulina Grekov is a doctoral student in the Quantitative Methods area within the Department of Educational Psychology working with Dr. James Pustejovsky. Prior to joining the Educational Psychology department, she taught upper-elementary special education.
Harra, Kjorte
Kjorte Harra is a doctoral student in the Quantitative Methods area within the Department of Educational Psychology working with Dr. David Kaplan. Her research focuses on Bayesian methods and their applications in large-scale educational assessments, with current work on plausible value estimation. She has also served as a lead instructor and teaching assistant for graduate-level educational statistics courses.
Jeglum, Sara
She received a BA in Psychology from the University of Iowa, and an MS in Educational Psychology from University of Wisconsin-Madison. In 2020, she will graduate from University of Wisconsin-Madison with a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology (School Psychology Area). Her clinical and research interests include the assessment and treatment of challenging behavior using Applied Behavior Analysis, preference assessment methodologies, and the continuum of care for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Her dissertation evaluated stimuli inclusion methods in systematic preference assessments.