UW READi Lab Early Autism Detection Intervention

Dr. Wendy Stone is a Professor of Psychology and Director of the READi Lab at UW. She joined the UW Department of Psychology in May 2010, having spent the previous 20+ years at Vanderbilt University. While at Vanderbilt, she founded and directed the Treatment and Research Institute for Autism Spectrum Disorders (TRIAD), which has a threefold mission of research, clinical services, and community outreach. Read more

Dr. Lisa Ibañez is a Research Scientist and Assistant Director of the READi Lab where she originally began working as a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Summer of 2010. Her journey to the READi Lab began as an undergraduate at the University of Miami where her curiosity about the early building blocks of development was piqued after working with infants at the university’s preschool. To learn more, she joined a lab at UM that was studying social-emotional functioning in infants and later transitioned to examining early behavioral and neurophysiological markers of ASD. She went on to be a National Research Service Award (NRSA) Pre-doctoral Trainee in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities as a graduate student at UM, where she received her Ph.D. in Applied Developmental Psychology in 2010. Over the last several years, she has developed a line of research that revolves around identifying deficits in infants at risk for ASD and improving screening and intervention practices in the community. From 2013-2015, she was the Project Manager for the ASAP! Project, which aimed to improve the early identification of ASD and ASD-specialized interventions by providing trainings to interested birth-to-three providers throughout Washington (WA) State. As part of this program, 31 free workshops were provided to nearly 700 birth-to-three providers and educators. She is currently Co-Investigator and Project Manager for the Screen-Refer-Treat (SRT) Project, which implements and evaluates an innovative service delivery system for toddlers at risk for ASD by engaging both primary care providers and early intervention providers. Lisa’s work has led to: (1) scientific articles in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, Autism, and Infancy;(2) a chapter in the Handbook of Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disorders; and (3) numerous presentations at national conferences. She is also Co-Chair of the Improving Practice and Policy Action Team for the WA Help Me Grow Partnership that aims to increase universal screening using validated tools and ensure subsequent referrals and optimal care coordination. During her time in Seattle, she has enjoyed the company of her funny, dedicated lab mates, the great Pacific Northwest cuisine, and the long Summer days.

Dr. Karen Bearss is Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Washington (UW). She earned her B.S. in Psychology as well as her M.S. and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at the University of Florida. Prior to joining the UW community, she served as an Associate Research Scientist at the School of Nursing and Child Study Center at Yale University and Assistant Professor at Emory University where her work focused on parenting interventions for children with disruptive behaviors, as well as the dissemination and implementation of evidence-based treatments into community mental health centers. At UW, she works at the Seattle Children’s Autism Center where she oversees the RUBI Parent Training Clinic while continuing to focus on developing, evaluating and implementing evidence-based parenting interventions for children with autism spectrum disorder.

Jill Locke, PhD, is a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences at the University of Washington (UW) and core faculty at the UW School Mental Health Assessment Research and Training Center and research affiliate at the Seattle Children’s Autism Center. Dr. Locke received her doctorate in Education from UCLA in 2010 and completed her postdoctoral fellowship in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania in 2013. Her research focuses on the: 1) social functioning of children with autism; 2) identification and implementation of evidence-based practices for individuals with autism in real-world settings; and 3) factors that predict successful implementation of evidence-based practices in schools. She is currently the principal investigator of an NIMH K01 Career Development Award that uses mixed methods to examine the individual and organizational factors that predict successful implementation and sustainment of evidence-based practices for children with autism in public schools. Most recently, Dr. Locke was the PI of a pilot grant to study the feasibility and acceptability of a peer-mentoring program, MOSSAIC, for college students with ASD and the co-PI of a pilot grant that launched the PREP for IT program focused on career development and employment for college students with ASD interested in IT. Her research has highlighted the importance of collaborating with community stakeholders such as public schools and the reality of working within the constraints of large, publicly funded systems, their timeline (e.g. school calendar year), and with their personnel.

Catherine is a child clinical psychology graduate student at UW. She is originally from Upstate NY, and attended McGill University in Montreal for her undergraduate degree. During her undergraduate years, she was involved in research at McGill and at the University of Rochester that helped to cultivate her research interests. Subsequently, she worked at the Center for Autism and the Developing Brain with Dr. Cathy Lord on a multi-site language intervention study for minimally-verbal children with ASD. Catherine is interested in researching social communication development and intervention in ASD.

Trent is a child clinical psychology graduate student at the UW. Prior to entering graduate school, he was involved in research at the UW investigating typical and atypical social cognitive development, which led to a specific interest in ASD. Trent primarily uses psychophysiological and behavioral methods to explore mechanisms underlying core ASD symptoms. He is also particularly interested in investigating individual differences in ASD etiology and presentation to help inform the development of tailored treatment approaches for different people on the autism spectrum.

Hannah is a child clinical psychology graduate student at UW. She completed her undergraduate degree at UCLA. During that time, she was involved in various research labs and clinical fieldwork focused on developmental psychopathology, which sparked her interest in ASD. Following graduation, she became a research fellow at the Yale Child Study Center in Dr. Katarzyna Chawarska’s lab. There she worked on multiple studies including the Autism Center of Excellence grant focused on early indicators of ASD as well as a multimedia ASD screener study within the community. Her research interests include early intervention for children with ASD and accessibility to diagnostic and intervention services for families in the community.

Shana is a child clinical psychology graduate student at UW. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Connecticut and her Master’s degree from Harvard University. She became interested in ASD research while working as a phenotyper in an autism lab at Boston Children’s Hospital. She subsequently worked on an early detection study at Total Child Health in Baltimore and on an early intervention study at Drexel University in Philadelphia with Dr. Diana Robins and Dr. Giacomo Vivanti. Shana is interested in researching strategies that improve early detection rates and early intervention utilization in community settings.

John is a research study assistant in the READiLab. Born and raised in New York City, John has grown to love the Pacific Northwest. He is pursuing a second career in child developmental research after working in children's media as Brand Manager at the Pokémon Company International. His time working with children at Pokémon sparked his interest in learning more about how children's minds grow over time. He is excited to be involved in scientific research firsthand at READi Lab. In his spare time, John enjoys hiking, video games, and occasionally acting on stage.

Pascale is a Research Study Assistant at the READi Lab, working primarily on the Pathways Study. Born in Santiago, Chile, she immigrated to the Pacific Northwest with her family when she was 7 years old. Pascale graduated from Whitman College with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a minor in Chemistry in May 2017. During her undergraduate career, she spent several years volunteering as a mentor for elementary school children at local schools in Walla Walla, WA. Before joining the READi Lab, Pascale worked as a Research Assistant in Dr. Sommerville's lab where her research focused on cognitive development in infants. Her ultimate career goals are to continue working in research and hopefully pursue a PhD in child clinical psychology.

Kisna is a Research Study Assistant in the READi Lab, working on the Screen-Refer-Treat (SRT) and Pathways studies. A Southern California native, she graduated from UC Davis with a B.S. in Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior and a minor in Chicano/a Studies in June 2017. During her undergraduate career, Kisna assisted in research examining the pathophysiology of Fragile X-associated Tremor Ataxia Syndrome (FXTAS). She also conducted community-based research and assisted in providing free primary care, dental, and mental health services to the Hispanic, rural, farm-working community of Knights Landing, CA. Kisna has a passion for community engagement work and research that focuses on utilizing preventative or early intervention measures to improve mental health and overall health outcomes.

Sabine is a Research Study Assistant in the READi Lab, working on the Sprout and Pathways studies. Born and raised in southern California, she graduated from Pomona College with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology in May 2019. During her time at Pomona College, she worked with Dr. Charlop in the Claremont Autism Center on studies involving language acquisition and problem-behavior reduction. She spent summers conducting research, working as a behavioral interventionist, and working at a day camp for children and young adults with disabilities. In her spare time, Sabine enjoys rock climbing and hiking. She hopes to continue working with children with ASD and their families, and to eventually pursue a PhD in clinical psychology.

Alice is a special education doctoral student at the University of Washington, focusing her studies on applied behavior analysis and autism spectrum disorder. Prior to coming to UW, Alice worked with children with developmental disabilities (primarily ASD) in school, clinic, home, and community settings. Her research interests include caregiver training in behavioral intervention strategies, the teaching of imitation and communication skills, and remote services provision.