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Our Team
PARC Leadership
Jennifer Freeman, Ph.D.
Director
Jennifer Freeman, Ph.D., is the director of the Pediatric Anxiety Research Center at Bradley Hospital. Dr. Freeman is also professor (research) of psychiatry and human behavior at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, associate director of the Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Program in the Clinical Psychology Training Program at Brown Medical School, and associate director of research at Bradley Hospital. Dr. Freeman received her B.A. from Wesleyan University. She completed her doctoral training at the State University of New York at Buffalo, completed a predoctoral internship at the Brown University Clinical Psychology Training Program, and was a NIMH T-32 postdoctoral fellow in child and pediatric psychology at The Warren Alpert Medical School at Brown University. Dr. Freeman is deeply committed to the mission of combining research, clinical service, and multidisciplinary training at PARC. She has a long history of mentoring and teaching within Brown’s Clinical Psychology Internship and Fellowship programs. She has received extensive funding from NIH and PCORI for her research in the assessment and treatment of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and anxiety disorders in children and adolescents. Recent studies aim to reduce barriers to effective care for youth and families and to develop new service models that provide high-quality, evidence-based care outside the office. Along with a talented, collaborative, and ever-growing team, she has led PARC to become a national model for the true integration of active research and training within a busy clinical service line. In her free time, Dr. Freeman enjoys spending time with her family, taking too many photos of her Golden Retriever, and running outdoors in all seasons.
Jennifer Herren, Ph.D.
Associate Director
Jenny Herren, Ph.D., is a staff psychologist at the Pediatric Anxiety Research Center and associate professor (clinician educator) in the Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. She is a part of PARC’s leadership team and coordinates outpatient services at PARC. Dr. Herren’s clinical expertise and research interests broadly focus on the dissemination and implementation of evidence-based practices for youth, with an emphasis on exposure-based treatment for OCD and anxiety. Dr. Herren received her B.A. from Maryville College and Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin. She completed her pre-doctoral internship at Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School and post-doctoral fellowship specializing in child and adolescent psychology at Judge Baker Children’s Center and Harvard University. She is an active member of the American Psychological Association (APA) and the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT). Dr. Herren’s research interests focus on improving therapist training and service delivery models of exposure therapy in order to optimize clinical outcomes and increase access to care. She has served as a Co-Investigator on multiple grants at PARC. Dr. Herren was born and raised in Tennessee and now lives in Rhode Island. Some of her most favorite things include traveling to new places, going to the beach, trying new foods, spending time with her family, and reading a good book!
Kristen Benito, Ph.D.
Research and Quality Improvement Lead
Kristen Benito, Ph.D., is an assistant professor (research) at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University and a staff psychologist at Rhode Island Hospital and Bradley Hospital. She received her B.A. from St. Mary’s College of Maryland in 2003 and her Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Florida in 2010. Dr. Benito completed post-doctoral training in Pediatric OCD/Anxiety that was supported by a T32 award from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). Dr. Benito is also the PI on an NIMH-funded R01 testing the Exposure Guide as a practical measure of quality in exposure therapy, and the MPI on an NIHM-funded and the R21/R33 testing training methods for community therapists learning to deliver exposure therapy. Dr. Benito’s research interests are related to understanding treatment quality and mechanism of change in exposure-based treatments and using this knowledge to 1) disseminate efficacious treatments into community settings, 2) augment existing treatments, and 3) develop new treatments. Dr. Benito also has research interests related to developing behavioral treatments for families of youth with medical problems, such as Congenital Heart Disease and Orthostatic Intolerance. Dr. Benito provides clinical psychology services in the Bradley Hospital OCD Intensive Program and in the Hasbro Children’s Hospital Pediatric Heart Center and Pediatric Cystic Fibrosis Clinic. Dr. Benito enjoys spending time with her family and her grumpy French bulldog named Walter.
Elizabeth Brannan, M.D.
Intensive Services Lead
Elizabeth (Beth) Brannan, M.D. is a child & adolescent psychiatrist and pediatrician in the Intensive Program for OCD and Related Disorders at Bradley Hospital. Dr. Brannan grew up in California but has called Rhode Island home since 2010. After completing her BA in human biology at Stanford University and her M.D. at University of California Davis School of Medicine, she moved to RI for a combined residency in pediatrics, general psychiatry, and child & adolescent psychiatry (the Triple Board Program). Upon completion of residency, she joined the PARC intensive program as a staff psychiatrist in 2015 and held leadership roles in training and community engagement prior to assuming the role of intensive services lead in December 2024. In addition to finding deep joy and meaning in her work helping kids and families do hard things and build big, beautiful lives while having anxiety and/or OCD, her second professional love is education. She is an associate professor (clinician educator) of psychiatry and human behavior at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University and served as the associate program director of the Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Fellowship and Triple Board Residency Programs from 2020-23. As a medical educator, she has created and facilitated seminars for all levels of medical learners on topics including professional identity formation, anti-racism and cultural responsiveness in child psychiatry, and evidence-based treatment of pediatric anxiety and OCD in specialty and primary care settings. She is also active in medical school and hospital-level anti-racism and health equity initiatives. When she’s not at work, Dr. Brannan loves spending time with her daughter and family, being outdoors walking or bike riding, taking weekend trips all over New England, and visiting her friends and family on the West Coast. In service of living an exposure lifestyle as a recovering perfectionist, she’s also learning to play the guitar, is not very good at it, and is doing it anyway (or trying at least)!
Amy Egolf, M.D.
Psychiatry Lead
Amy Egolf, M.D., is a child, adolescent, and adult psychiatrist working in the Intensive Program for OCD and Related Disorders at Bradley Hospital, as well as in the outpatient setting. Dr. Egolf is an assistant professor and the associate director of medical education for the Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Dr. Egolf earned her B.A. from Wesleyan University in classics and her medical degree from The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. She completed her adult psychiatry residency training at Mount Sinai and her child and adolescent psychiatry fellowship at Brown. Dr. Egolf joined the OCD Program following the completion of her training at Brown. In her free time, Dr. Egolf enjoys spending time with her daughter and husband in the great outdoors, traveling, and trying all the wonderful food the world has to offer both close to home in Providence and farther afield. She has a particular fondness for cappuccinos and always appreciates giving and receiving food and drink recommendations.
psychologists & psychiatrists
Joseph Berryhill, Ph.D.
Staff Psychologist
Joseph Berryhill, PhD, is a clinical psychologist at the Pediatric Anxiety Research Center at Bradley Hospital. He specializes in the use of cognitive-behavioral therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy to treat pediatric anxiety disorders. Dr. Berryhill received his bachelor of arts from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his doctorate in clinical and community psychology from the University of South Carolina. He completed his education with a clinical internship and a postdoctoral fellowship at the Yale University School of Medicine.
Jennifer Cueto, M.D.
Staff Psychiatrist
Jennifer Cueto, M.D., is a child & adolescent psychiatrist in the Intensive Program for OCD and Related Disorders at Bradley Hospital. Dr. Cueto received her medical degree at the University of Illinois in Chicago. She subsequently completed a Triple Board residency training program at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University and pursued training in pediatrics, adult psychiatry, and child and adolescent psychiatry. Dr. Cueto currently splits her time between PARC's Intensive Program for OCD and Related Disorders as a Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist and in Hasbro's Eating Disorder Clinic as a Pediatrician. She is overjoyed to have joined the PARC family and to have the opportunity to work with such amazing colleagues, patients, and families. In her free time, Dr. Cueto enjoys spending time with her husband and her adorable dog, Dunkin.
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Andrea Gold, Ph.D.
Staff Psychologist
Andrea Gold, Ph.D., is a staff psychologist at the Pediatric Anxiety Research Center, and clinical assistant professor of psychiatry and human behavior at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Prior to joining PARC, she completed a postdoctoral Intramural Research Training Award fellowship at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). She received her bachelor’s degree from Cornell University and her doctorate in clinical psychology at Yale University. She completed (and loved!) her clinical internship in the dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) specialization track at the Yale School of Medicine. In her doctoral and postdoctoral training, Andrea used functional neuroimaging, psychophysiology, and behavioral methods to study the neural mechanisms of pediatric and adult anxiety disorders. In addition to her clinical research on anxiety, she simultaneously gained learned DBT, an evidence-based treatment for severe, pervasive emotion dysregulation, suicidal and non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), and borderline personality disorder (BPD). As a member of the PARC team, Andrea is passionate about her goal to integrate clinical research, exposure and response prevention (E/RP), and DBT. She is currently developing an adaptation of DBT targeting exposure (DBT-X) for the subpopulation of adolescents with OCD and other fear disorders co-occurring with emotion dysregulation, self-injurious behaviors, and BPD. For this subpopulation and along with the PARC team, Andrea is developing a DBT-X track within the Intensive Program for OCD and Related Disorders. Her research also examines the development of BPD in adolescent girls and boys.
Joshua Kemp, Ph.D.
Staff Psychologist
Joshua Kemp, Ph.D., is a staff psychologist at the Pediatric Anxiety Research Center at Bradley Hospital. He received his bachelor’s degree from University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and his doctorate in clinical psychology at the University of Wyoming. ​Josh has extensive experience researching and delivering exposure therapy for anxiety disorders. His graduate training focused on the study of methods for optimally delivering and disseminating exposure therapy across a variety of service settings, including outpatient, partial hospital, and residential levels of care with both children and adults. Dr. Kemp has also co-authored publications on strategies for training exposure therapists as well as procedural strategies for increasing the effectiveness of exposure therapy.
Bryana Killion, Ph.D.
Staff Psychologist
Bryana Killion, Ph.D., is a staff psychologist at the Pediatric Anxiety Research Center at Bradley Hospital. Dr. Killion received her B.A. from Stonehill College and her Ph.D. from the University of Rhode Island. She completed her predoctoral internship at Central Regional Hospital in North Carolina, where she gained experience working with children and adolescents with severe mental illness. Dr. Killion's clinical interests include the assessment and treatment of pediatric anxiety and obsessive compulsive spectrum disorders. Her research interests include the risk and protective factors contributing to outcomes associated with childhood anxiety disorders, as well as the effectiveness of exposure-based treatments in community mental health settings. In her free time, Dr. Killion enjoys spending time with her husband and young daughter, going to the beach (no matter the season!), and snuggling up on the couch with a good book.
Ingrid Lauer-Arnold, M.D.
Staff Psychiatrist
Ingrid Lauer-Arnold, M.D., is a child & adolescent psychiatrist in the Intensive Program for OCD and Related Disorders at Bradley Hospital. Dr. Lauer-Arnold completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Michigan. She completed her post-baccalaureate premedical program at Columbia University and earned her medical degree from SUNY Downstate College of Medicine. Dr. Lauer-Arnold completed her General Psychiatry Residency & Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Fellowship at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Dr. Lauer-Arnold co-leads the psychopharmacology course for 1st year Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Fellows at Brown. Â She is also a faculty mentor for psychiatry residents and fellows through the Resident as Teacher program (RAT) through The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. In her free time, Dr. Lauer-Arnold enjoys spending time with her dogs Lulu & Rosie.
Dave McConville, Ph.D.
Staff Psychologist
David McConville, Ph.D., is a clinical psychologist who specializes in therapy with children, adolescents, and their families. He directs the family therapy clinic at Bradley Hospital and is the co-director for family therapy training for the child psychiatry fellowship and triple board residency at Brown University. Dr. McConville is also a clinical assistant professor in the department of psychiatry and human behavior at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University.
Sarah McHugh, Ph.D.
Post-Doctoral Fellow
Sarah McHugh, Ph.D., is a psychology postdoctoral fellow at the Pediatric Anxiety Research Center at Bradley Hospital. Dr. McHugh received her B.A. from the University of Notre Dame and her Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She completed her predoctoral internship at Brown University, specializing in child and adolescent psychology.  Dr. McHugh's clinical interests include the treatment of anxiety and obsessive compulsive spectrum disorders with exposure and response prevention and the treatment of co-occurring emotion dysregulation from a dialectical behavior therapy approach. Dr. McHugh's research interests include examining menstrual cycle effects on psychopathology, including cyclical worsening in anxiety, mood symptoms, and suicidal ideation, and exploring dialectical behavior therapy as a potential treatment for those with menstrual cycle-linked symptom changes.  In her free time, Dr. McHugh enjoys hiking with her husband, reading on the beach, making pottery, and doing all kinds of arts and crafts. Dr. McHugh also enjoys living the exposure lifestyle by performing and coaching improv comedy.
Sarah Morris, Ph.D.
Staff Psychologist
Sarah Morris, Ph.D., is a staff psychologist at the Pediatric Anxiety Research Center at Bradley Hospital and a Clinical Instructor in the Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Dr. Morris received her B.A. from Haverford College and her Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. She completed her pre-doctoral internship and post-doctoral fellowship through the Clinical Psychology Training Program at Brown University. Dr. Morris specializes in the use of exposure and response prevention therapy for pediatric OCD and related disorders. Her research interests include better understanding the underlying mechanisms of pediatric OC-spectrum disorders, including OCD, trichotillomania, and tic disorders. Â In her free time, Dr. Morris enjoys spending time with her wife and son, being active outdoors, cooking new recipes, and traveling to see family and friends in different parts of the country.
Erin O'Connor, Ph.D.
Staff Psychologist
Erin O’Connor, Ph.D., is a staff psychologist at the Pediatric Anxiety Research Center at Bradley Hospital and a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Dr. O’Connor received her B.A. from Boston College and Ph.D. from Boston University. She completed her pre-doctoral internship and post-doctoral fellowship through the Clinical Psychology Training Program at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Dr. O’Connor’s research interests include the etiology and treatment of pediatric anxiety and obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders. She has a particular interest in increasing the effectiveness of exposure-based treatment, specifically in the context of family interventions. In her free time, Dr. O’Connor enjoys baking and finding the best pizza spot in town!
Rachel Olfson, M.D.
Staff Psychiatrist
Rachel Olfson, M.D., is a child and adolescent psychiatrist and pediatrician working in the Intensive Program for OCD and Related Disorders at Bradley Hospital. She graduated from Wesleyan University in 2014, with a B.A. with high honors in neuroscience and behavior. She received her medical degree in 2018 from Albany Medical College and then completed combined residency training through the Triple Board Program (pediatrics, general psychiatry and child and adolescent psychiatry) at Tufts Medical Center, in Boston, MA. Dr. Olfson was involved with education and research projects during residency and in her final year of training she served as chief resident. Dr. Olfson is a clinical instructor of psychiatry and human behavior at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. In addition to her clinical work with the Intensive Program for OCD and Related Disorders, she also works at Bradley Hospital in outpatient services, as well as with PediPRN (Pediatric Psychiatry Resource Network). She has a keen interest in medical education and mentoring trainees and medical students.
Giulia Righi, Ph.D.
Staff Psychologist
Giulia Ricciarelli Righi, Ph.D., is a staff psychologist at the Pediatric Anxiety Research Center at Bradley Hospital and an assistant professor (research) in the department of psychiatry and human behavior at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Dr. Ricciarelli Righi completed her Sc.B. and Ph.D. at Brown University, a research fellowship at Boston Children’s Hospital and later completed her clinical training at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Dr. Ricciarelli Righi returned to Brown for her clinical internship and clinical fellowship. Dr. Ricciarelli Righi has experience in the treatment of children and adolescents with OCD and anxiety disorders and also working with neurodiverse individuals. Her research interests have focused on better understanding the presentation of severe psychopathology, including anxiety and OCD, in neurodiverse individuals. More recently Dr. Ricciarelli Righi has been working to develop a line of research that integrates understanding the role of sleep in the context of treatment for anxiety and OCD. In her free time Dr. Ricciarelli Righi enjoys outdoor activities with family and friends.
Michael Walther, Ph.D.
Psychologist
Michael Walther, Ph.D., is a psychologist at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University and Bradley Hospital. He received his bachelor’s degree from the Pennsylvania State University and doctorate from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Dr. Walther is currently completing a fellowship under the T32 National Research Service Award from the National Institute of Mental Health. Dr. Walther joined PARC in 2011 as part of his pre-doctoral internship at Brown University. Dr. Walther is interested in the phenomenology, etiology, and treatment of anxiety and obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders, including obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), hair pulling disorder (trichotillomania), and tic disorders. Even though he dislikes vegetables, he does his best to eat them; they are good fuel for when he runs with his dog Bentley.
Research and OUTPATIENT STAFF
Christian D'Orgeix
Data Coordinator
Christian D'Orgeix serves as the data coordinator for the Pediatric Anxiety Research Center at Bradley Hospital, where he supports the IMPACT 1.0 and IMPACT RI projects. He holds both a bachelor's and a master's degree from the College of William & Mary, where he developed a strong foundation in computational methodologies and data analysis. With a passion for leveraging data to address meaningful challenges, Christian combines technical expertise with a commitment to improving mental health outcomes. His work focuses on optimizing data-driven research processes, ensuring data integrity, and contributing to the advancement of evidence-based interventions for pediatric anxiety.
Chris Georgiadis
Postdoctoral Fellow
Christopher Georgiadis, Ph.D., is an NIMH T32 postdoctoral fellow at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Dr. Georgiadis completed a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Psychology at New York University, with a concentration in Child and Adolescent Mental Studies, and completed his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at Florida International University. Dr. Georgiadis is broadly interested in investigating strategies to enhance family engagement in evidence-based treatments (EBTs) for childhood internalizing disorders. Specifically, he is interested in (1) developing novel strategies to better equip providers in personalizing treatments to the unique preferences, goals, and priorities of families and (2) identifying strategies to make behavioral therapies more acceptable to patients and families. Dr. Georgiadis is also passionate about providing services to youth and families, and has received extensive training in exposure-based cognitive-behavioral therapy for youth anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Emily Han, B.A.
Clinical Research Assistant
Emily started working at PARC in June 2024 after receiving her B.A. in psychology with a minor in statistics from the University of Rochester. While at UofR, Emily worked at an adolescent clinical psychology lab with a focus on adolescent suicidality and a pediatric mental health and behavior lab. During her time at these labs, she developed a poster on treatment disparities among Asian American youth with suicidal ideation, which is where she discovered her interest in data analysis. Now, she hopes to learn more about different statistical methods to further investigate her research interests, which include investigating treatment efficacy for ethnic minority youth mental illness. Some issues she would like to explore are ways research can improve treatment seeking and retention rates for AAPI youth in addition to disaggregating AAPI populations. After her time at PARC, Emily hopes to pursue an M.S in biostatistics or statistics to further her career in healthcare research.
Emma Jenkins, B.A.
Clinical Research Assistant
Emma graduated with a B.A. in psychology from Boston University in 2021 where she studied the influence of early life stress on infant emotional development. Before joining PARC in June 2023, she was working as a research assistant on the nationwide ECHO study at Boston Children's Hospital. Emma's background in stress research inspired her to pursue clinical research as a way to mitigate the gap between research and practice. Her current research interests include increasing access to high quality anxiety treatments and understanding how current evidence-based approaches can be tailored to better meet the needs of diverse populations. In the future, Emma hopes to earn her PhD in clinical psychology and contribute to the development and implementation of effective treatments for childhood psychopathology.
Phoebe Muntz, B.A.
Clinical Research Assistant
Phoebe started working at PARC in June 2024 after receiving her B.A. in psychology from Barnard College. While at Barnard, she worked at NYU's Family Translational Research Group examining a range of clinical topics, including electronic addictions and dental fear. She additionally worked as a research assistant at Barnard's Social Interactions Lab, culminating in a senior thesis that explored the relationship between social status and affiliation between newly acquainted individuals. Phoebe's research interests include improving awareness and access to high-quality, evidence-based mental health care, particularly for children and individuals from marginalized backgrounds. In the future, Phoebe hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in clinical psychology.
Lesley Norris
Research Fellow
Lesley Norris, Ph.D., is an NIMH T32 postdoctoral fellow in child mental health at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Dr. Norris received her B.A. from Boston College and her Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Temple University. She completed her predoctoral internship at Brown University, specializing in child and adolescent psychology. Dr. Norris’ research focuses on optimizing youth treatments to the individual and how best to integrate such personalized approaches into real-world clinical decision-making contexts.
Kadisha Pina
Exposure Coach
Kadisha joined PARC in December 2023 as an Outpatient Exposure Coach for the IMPACT Service Line. She graduated from the University of Rhode Island in 2021 with a B.S. in Health Studies with a focus on health promotion. Over the past 7 years, she has held various positions within the behavioral health field gaining both clinical and administrative skills. Kadisha has a long-standing interest in making healthcare more accessible to underrepresented groups and hopes to help bridge the gap to mental health care. Outside of work Kadisha loves to read, try new restaurants, and is always looking to try new coffee shops.
Jenny Espinoza Ramirez
Clinical Research Assistant
Jenny began working at PARC in November 2024 after earning her B.S. in Psychology with minors in Addiction Treatment and Applied Statistics from the University of Nevada, Reno. While at UNR, she was a McNair Scholar and worked as a research assistant in the Cognition, Affect, and Psychopathology Lab. In this lab, she was awarded an undergraduate research grant and contributed to research focused on trauma, stress reactivity, and mental health barriers affecting Latine students. Jenny’s broad research interests center on improving mental health access for marginalized communities, particularly within the Latine population. She is especially interested in stress-related disorders such as trauma and anxiety, and how the development of these disorders can be impacted by inequities in mental health services and exposure to adverse childhood experiences. After her time at PARC, Jenny plans to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology. In her free time, she enjoys running, watching the NBA, and exploring new food spots.
Kathrin Renschler, M.A.
Clinical Research Assistant
Kathrin Renschler started working at PARC in April 2022 after receiving her M.A. in psychology from New York University. While at NYU, she worked in the Science of Human Connection lab looking at adolescent accommodation and resistance to gender norms as expressed through their language use. For her master’s thesis, she examined the relationship between masculinity ideology and family composition. Kathrin previously completed her B.A. in industrial & organizational psychology in her home country of Germany where she wrote her senior thesis on virtual teamwork. Kathrin’s research interests include applying a gender lens to anxiety research and looking at the relationship between mental and physical health. After her time at PARC, she hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in clinical or pediatric psychology. In her free time, you can find Kathrin trying new restaurants, doing yoga, going to the museum or finishing a book just in time before her book club meets.
Ariella Rosen, B.A.
Clinical Research Assistant
Ariella Rosen graduated from Barnard with a psychology degree in 2022 and is very excited to be joining the team at PARC. Ariella’s long-standing interest in Obsessive Compulsive and Related Disorders (namely OCD, Trichotillomania, and Excoriation) makes this job an excellent fit and she is excited to learn and grow as a researcher and clinician and make headway in the professional world of OCD as she prepares for career as a Cognitive Behavioral Therapist. Outside of PARC, Ariella is a big fan of anime, literature, and Dungeons and Dragons, and she is always on the lookout for new board games to try!
Robin Scheer
Administrative Coordinator
Robin Scheer joined PARC in January 2025, bringing a wealth of diverse professional experience and a deep passion for supporting impactful work. A native of Rhode Island, Robin spent 25 years in California before returning to her home state, drawn by its coastal charm and close-knit community. Robin is thrilled to be part of a dedicated team working to enhance the welfare of children experiencing anxiety and related disorders.
Sarah Varela
Clinical Research Program Coordinator
Sarah Varela currently serves as the Project Coordinator for the PARC and IMPACT projects. Over the past four years, she has held various positions within BrownHealth, gaining both administrative and clinical experience. She holds a Master’s degree in Healthcare Management, which has been instrumental in guiding her work. In her current role, Sarah focuses on the successful implementation of studies at partnering sites, managing timelines, overseeing budgets, and facilitating communication among all stakeholders. Outside of work, Sarah enjoys cooking and taking walks to unwind. A fun fact about her is that she is left-handed!
Alixandra Wilens, M.A.
Clinical Research Assistant
Alixandra graduated with an M.A. in cognitive science in education from Columbia University in 2022 where she studied the relationship between executive functioning and mindfulness. Before joining PARC in September 2023, she worked as a research assistant in the Yale OCD Research Clinic. Alixandra’s undergraduate education in psychology, as well as her time volunteering in parent-child interaction therapy (PCIT) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) clinics, encouraged her to pursue clinical research. Her current research interests include vulnerability factors predicting OCD and evidence-based cognitive-behavioral treatments for obsessive-compulsive and related disorders. After her time at PARC, Alixandra hopes to continue studying OCD in a clinical psychology PhD program.
Intensive Program for OCD and Anxiety Related Disorders Staff
Lindsey Carillo
Administrative Assistant
Jessica Fresh, LICSW
Social Worker
Jane Martini, RN
Milieu Nurse Manager
A.M. Team A
Andrea Breen
Exposure Coach
Jennifer Moitoso
Exposure Coach Supervisor
A.M. Team B
Tom Kelley
Exposure Coach Supervisor
Kristina Nerone
Exposure Coach
Ben Padula
Exposure Coach
Tarajya Ramos
Exposure Coach
P.M. Team
Samantha Clarke
Exposure Coach
Maddie Hufford
Exposure Coach
Catherine Peterson
Exposure Coach
Terry Thompson
Exposure Coach Supervisor
A selection of
alumni
Aishvarya Arora, Research Assistant
Zoë Brown, Research Assistant
Grace Cain, Research Assistant
Matthew Carper, Trainee
Anna Charlton, Research Assistant
Lauren Edwards, Research Assistant
Caroline Forest, Research Assistant
Hannah Frank, Research Assistant
Kristen Gardiner, Research Assistant
Christopher Georgiadis, Research Assistant
Maddi Gervasio, Research Assistant
Robert Holloway, Trainee
Mitchell Jackson, Research Assistant
Zohaib Jessani, Research Assistant
Erin Mamaril, Research Assistant
Marika Marklin, Research Assistant
Isha Mayor, Research Assistant
Lauren Milgram, Research Assistant
Rebecca Mirhashem, Research Assistant
Briana Paulo, Research Assistant
Kesha Perkins, Research Assistant
Kiany Probherbs, Research Assistant
Amrita Ramanathan, Research Assistant
Elena Schiavone, Research Assistant
Kaitlyn Schneider, Trainee
Kate Sheehan, Research Assistant
Elyse Stewart, Research Assistant
Jenna Sung, Research Assistant
Brianna Wellen, Research Assistant