Joseph R. McAllister, Jr., Ph.D.

Dr. McAllister is the Director of Psychological Services for The Watson Institute.  He oversees diagnostic evaluation services, home-based therapy services, outpatient therapeutic services, the Watson Inclusive Summer Program (WISP) and the Summer Therapeutic Activities for Teens (STAT) program.  He was previously Director of the Autism Center at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh and was a co-founder of the ABOARD (Advisory Board on Autism and Related Disorders) organization.  He developed the first inclusive, systematic summer program for children with autism in the country.  Dr. McAllister was the winner of the 2005 Grandin Award for services to children with autism and their families.  He has been working with children who have autism for more than 25 years.  He conducts workshops and in-service training on autism for parents and professional groups.  Presentation topics include assessment, fostering social skill development, inclusive summer programming, and therapeutic and educational interventions.

Kristine Gorby, M.Ed.

Kristine is the Service Coordinator for the Psychological Services Department of The Watson Institute.  She coordinates and manages the Wraparound and WISP Summer Camp programs.  Kristine provides initial and ongoing autism specific supervision and training for all wraparound staff.  She completed an undergraduate internship at The Children's Institute of Pittsburgh where she worked on the behavioral unit.  She has also worked in the group home setting as a direct care worker assisting adults with severe mental retardation.  Kristine has worked as a Therapeutic Staff Support and Behavioral Specialist Consultant for children with autism and in the public school setting as a learning support teacher.  Kristine has been working in some capacity with children and adults with disabilities for the past ten years.

Lori A. Zychowski, PsyD

Dr. Zychowski is a post doctoral fellow at The Watson Institute, completing a one-year appointment specializing in autism spectrum disorders.  She has previous experience diagnosing autism spectrum disorders at Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic in Pittsburgh, PA.  Dr. Zychowski is responsible for providing diagnostic and intervention services to children on the autism spectrum by conducting diagnostic, neuropsychological, and best practice evaluations.  She also provides supervision and consultation services to wraparound service providers.  She leads didactic trainings for predoctoral students in The Watson Institute's internship program as well as to home-based therapy and wraparound service providers.  Dr. Zychowski completed her predoctoral internship at Applewood Centers, Inc. in Cleveland, OH and received her doctoral degree from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Nicole Jarock, M.A.T.

Nicole is the Outpatient Coordinator for the Psychological Services Department of The Watson Institute.  She coordinates Watson's SCAFFOLD program which includes social skills groups and individual therapy.  Nicole is also responsible for the coordination of the Watson Workshops, the Summer Programs STAT and ACCLAIM, and is helping to develop Watson's college support program, CAMPUS.  Nicole completed her Masters in the Art of Teaching (M.A.T.) at Chatham University where she participated in an internship to create an inclusive classroom for middle school children diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder.  Upon completing her M.A.T. at Chatham, Nicole joined The Watson Institute for the summer program WISP.  She has worked for The Watson Institute as a Therapeutic Staff Support (TSS) and a Behavioral Specialist Consultant (BSC) for children with autism for five years.

Gail Mangan, PhD

Dr. Mangan holds a part-time position at The Watson Institute, completing outpatient evaluations to determine appropriate diagnosis, clinical recommendations, and determinations of the most appropriate level of service needed, including medical necessity for wraparound services.  She provides behavior consultation to parents, masters level behavior specialists, therapeutic support staff and school staff of children and adolescents receiving wraparound services.  Dr. Mangan also provides weekly clinical supervision to psychology interns and postdoctoral trainees.  Dr. Mangan received a PhD in Clinical Psychology from Ohio University and completed an internship at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine.

Lisa Nippoldt-Baca, PsyD

Dr. Nippoldt-Baca is a pediatric neuropsychology postdoctoral fellow at The Watson Institute.  She completes full neuropsychological assessments along with diagnostic and wraparound evaluations.  Dr. Nippoldt-Baca is also involved in supervising and carrying out therapy and consultation in the neurological wraparound program recently founded by The Watson Institute.  She provides didactic training for predoctoral interns and consultation services to the Watson Inclusive Summer Camp (WISP) program.  Dr. Nippoldt-Baca's previous experience includes neuropsychological and assessment training at Gillette Children's Hospital in St. Paul, MN on the pediatric brain injury unit .  She obtained a doctoral degree in clinical psychology with a specialization in neuropsychology from the Minnesota School of Professional Psychology.

Josh Acocella-Stollerman, PsyD

Dr. Acocella-Stollerman is a postdoctoral fellow at The Watson Institute specializing in autism spectrum disorders.  This position includes conducting diagnostic evaluations and providing intervention recommendations for children with autism spectrum disorders, school consultation, and direct intervention through wraparound services.  Dr. Acocella-Stollerman also provides training, supervision and consultation to bachelors and masters level clinicians, practicum students and predoctoral interns across a range of settings.  He leads a parent education group and co-leads a weekly social skills group for adolescents diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders.  Dr. Acocella-Stollerman completed his predoctoral internship at The Watson Institute.  He completed his PsyD at the Illinois School of Professional Psychology in Chicago, IL where he specialized in family therapy.

Cathryn Lehman, M.S.Ed.

Cathryn is a postdoctoral fellow at The Watson Institute specializing in autism spectrum disorders.  Her roles include conducting diagnostic evaluations and providing intervention recommendations for children on the autism spectrum, conducting Best Practice evaluations for wraparound services, providing individual therapy in a variety of settings, co-leading weekly social skills groups, providing instruction to staff in Pivotal response Training and program development work.  Ms. Lehman provides training and consultation to bachelors and masters level clinicians, practicum students and predoctoral interns.  The completed her predoctoral internship at The Watson Institute.  Ms. Lehman previously participated in three years of training at the Early Childhood Partnerships at the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC as one of 15 non-traditional UCLID interdisciplinary trainees in the Leadership in Education and Neurodevelopment Disabilities (LEND) program, where she focused on early chilchood development and education.  Ms. Lehman completed her graduate education at Duquesne University.

Joel Shaul, LCSW

Joel is a licensed clinical social worker at The Watson Institute.  He provides individual and family therapy, and conducts social skills groups for chlidren on the autism spectrum in office settings and in numerous public schools.  Joel supervises interns and other trainees in group work at Watson.  In his work with children on the autism spectrum, he emphasizes cognitive-behavioral methods, a team approach involving parents and other professionals, and particular attention to the child's special strengths and interests.  Joel is the co-creator with Rebecca Klaw of Ryuu World trading cards and CD ROMs, designed to help teach social and emotional skills.  He has practiced psychotherapy in private practice and clinical and school settings as a licensed practitioner for more than 20 years.  Joel received his master's degree from the Kent School of Social Work at the University of Louisville and bachelor's degree from the University of Michigan.

Robert Pulcini, M.S.Ed.

Robert provides clinical mental health services for The Watson Institute's School-based Cyber Academy (WISCA).  He also works as a Behavioral Specialist Consultant (BSC) with Waton's Wraparound Services Program and facilitates Social Skills groups for pre-teens and teens.  Robert received his master's degree from Duquesne University and bachelor's degree from the University of Pittsburgh.  His previous roles at Watson include Therapeutic Support Staff (TSS) through the Wraparound Program and the Summer WISP program.

Carolyn Belich

Carolyn is the Assistant Service Coordinator for the Psychological Services department at Watson.  She assists families with wraparound and summer camp services and scheduling.  Carolyn has been working with children with autism for more than 8 years.  She began as a therapeutic support specialist, working with children with autism in their homes, schools and communities.  She has a strong background in ABA and play therapy.  Carolyn assisted in creating activities, supervising and establishing an autism camp in Beaver County where she was a major contributor for 5 years.  She also worked as a Therapeutic Support Specialist at Watson before joining the Psychological Services Department.