GULEND Faculty & Staff Bios 2024-2025

A headshot of Pamala, a middle-aged brown woman with short black hair and brown eyes. Pamala is looking at the camera and smiling in this picture and wearing silver beaded earrings and a green and gray tunic. She is pictured in front of a bookcase in her home.

Pamala Trivedi, PhD, MEd (School Psychology), MA (International Studies), NCSP (Nationally Certified School Psychologist) GULEND Project Director. Pamala Trivedi is a licensed psychologist, nationally certified school psychologist, policy expert, and applied behavioral health researcher with more than two decades of experience supporting children, youth and adults across a range of developmental levels, as well as the providers and families who care for them. She is committed to strengths-based, resilience-focused approaches, and brings a national policy lens to her work in building and sustaining systems that are responsive to the behavioral health and learning needs of children, families, and providers; particularly folks from minoritized racial and ethnic groups.  Pamala has served in many roles across early care and education, public schools, and in health care institutions.  She has provided training & technical assistance, currently engages in clinical work, and conducts applied research in university settings and in federal government. Her research and policy portfolio has included a strong emphasis on early childhood special education, infant and early childhood mental health, school-based behavioral health, the engagement of fathers and father figures, and work at the intersection of behavioral health, disabilities, and racial equity.  During her time in federal government, Pamala worked on policy providing alternatives to exclusionary discipline that addressed disparities for young children from racially minoritized groups.  As the parent of a child with behavioral health needs and developmental disabilities, Pamala has also been a tireless advocate for embedding social-emotional supports and services in inclusive educational settings.  In addition to directing Georgetown’s Leadership Education in Developmental Disabilities (GULEND)  and serving as the Associated Director of the GUCEDD, Pamala supports educator and staff wellness, and provides direct therapeutic support to children and adults as a school-based behavioral health clinician in a DC charter school network  through the Georgetown/Medstar Center for Wellbeing in School Environments (WISE).  She has also worked extensively on parenting supports that build adult capacities to handle challenging behavior, particularly in children who are neurodiverse and are also coping with co-occurring behavioral health conditions.  Pamala continues to learn and be humbled by parenting her two school-age children, and lives with her family in Washington, DC.

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Laura Barrett MS, CCC-SLP Clinical Director and Co-Director of Training. Laura Barrett is an American Speech and Hearing Association (ASHA) certified Speech-Language Pathologist and Clinical Associate Professor at George Washington University, Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Science. She supervises students in their clinical rotations in pediatric speech and language disorders and social communication disorders/Autism and is the coordinator of pediatrics and the pediatric feeding program in the GWU Speech and Hearing Center. In addition, Laura teaches courses in Foundations of Communication and Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing and is part of the externship/outreach team, creating community partnerships and securing clinical placements for graduate students at GWU. Laura has presented on the subject of supervision in speech-language pathology for online webinars as well as state conferences and school in-services. Additionally, she has presented on the subject of Autism in Beijing and Shanghai, China. She is currently a university site visitor for the Council on Academic Accreditation division of ASHA. Prior to academia, Barrett has over 25 years of clinical experience in a variety of settings across the Boston, Northern Virginia, and Washington, D.C. areas including hospitals, clinics, early intervention, home care, public and private education, and university. She is licensed as a Speech-Language Pathologist both in Virginia and Washington, DC and holds a BS degree from the State University of NY at Plattsburgh and an MS from Northeastern University.

Kalie is pictured smiling in a headshot with a light-gray background. She is a biracial, Black-American woman with an olive complexion, shoulder-length, curly, black hair, brown eyes, and is wearing a green blouse with a navy blazer and gold hoop earrings.

Kalie Kowalski, MS, CCC-SLP Speech-Language Pathology Discipline Coordinator and Co-Director of Training. (she/her/hers). Kalie Kowalski is an interventionist and educator in the areas of speech language pathology and cultural and linguistic competence. As a licensed, ASHA-certified speech language pathologist in Washington, DC and Maryland, Kalie specializes in treating children and adolescents from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds who are impacted by early childhood communication delays and disorders. In addition to her work as a speech language pathologist, Kalie works as the DEI-CLC Professional Development Associate at the Georgetown University National Center for Cultural Competence (NCCC) and University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD) to promote organizational and systems change in the intellectual and developmental disabilities communities. Kalie is an adjunct professor at New York University in the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development and is passionate about educating and mentoring clinicians on providing and advocating for accessible, inclusive, and equitable assessment and intervention services which positively impact the diverse populations that they serve. She is a proud Howard University alumna, former MCH trainee (LEND fellow at Georgetown University), AUCD trainee liaison, and graduate of Georgetown University Certificate in Early Intervention Program.

Photo by Sarah Tundermann: Lydia X. Z. Brown smiles in front of reeds blowing in a gentle breeze. They are an East Asian nonbinary/transmasc person with short black hair and glasses, wearing a dark blue suit and blue paisley necktie.

Ly Xīnzhèn Zhǎngsūn Brown, JD Law and Public Policy Discipline Coordinator. Ly Xīnzhèn Zhǎngsūn Brown is a queer, disabled, and East Asian advocate, organizer, attorney, strategist, and writer. They are the Director of Public Policy at the National Disability Institute, which works to advance economic opportunity and freedom for people with disabilities. Ly is also the founding Executive Director of the Autistic People of Color Fund, which advocates for disability, racial, and economic justice with a focus on building generative economies and just transition while providing mutual aid, peer support, and community-funded reparations. They bring nearly 15 years of experience as a committed advocate, community organizer, and policy expert at the nexus of disability rights and disability justice. Ly has spoken, facilitated, and consulted internationally and throughout the U.S. on a range of topics related to disability rights and disability justice, especially at the intersections of race, class, gender, and sexuality, and has published in numerous scholarly and community publications. Their work addresses the deep interconnections between ableism and other forms of systemic discrimination, marginalization, and oppression, and has often focused on interpersonal, state, and corporate violence, deprivation, and exploitation targeting disabled people at the margins of the margins.

Ly holds a lecturer appointment in the Women’s and Gender Studies Program and the Disability Studies Program at Georgetown University. They are also an adjunct professorial lecturer in American Studies in the Department of Critical Race, Gender, and Culture Studies at American University. Ly serves as Vice Chair and Past President of the Disability Rights Bar Association and Disability Justice Committee representative on the National Lawyers Guild board. They are currently creating Disability Justice Wisdom Tarot.

Ly was formerly Policy Counsel for Privacy & Data at the Center for Democracy & Technology, focused on algorithmic discrimination and disability; and Director of Policy, Advocacy, & External Affairs at the Autistic Women & Nonbinary Network. They are a former member of the American Bar Association’s Commission on Disability Rights, visiting faculty at Tufts University, and chairperson of the Massachusetts Developmental Disabilities Council. Often, their most important work has no title, job description, or funding, and probably never will.

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Maya Coleman, PhD (Clinical Psychology), MA (Special Education/Learning Disabilities) Director of Reflective Practice and Special Education Discipline Coordinator. Maya Coleman is the Executive Director of Hand in Hand Parenting, a non-profit training organization supporting parents, educators, and health professionals worldwide to use connection-based caregiving tools with the children in their care.

Maya is the Special Education Discipline Coordinator for the Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND Program) at Georgetown UCEDD and teaches in the Georgetown University Certificate Program in Early Intervention. Maya also directs the reflective practice component of LEND, which aims to build trainee capacity for self-reflection and providing peer support.

For the previous decade, Maya worked as a Clinical Psychologist in private practice supporting families of young children who have had challenging early experiences including preterm birth, perinatal complications, early illness and medical treatment, developmental challenges, and caregiving disruptions.

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Tawara D. Goode, MA Equity & Cultural and Linguistic Competence Director. Tawara Goode is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pediatrics, Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington, D.C. and is the director of the Georgetown University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (GUCEDD). She has been on the faculty of the Georgetown University Center for Child and Human Development (GUCCHD), for over 30 years and has served in many capacities. She has degrees in early childhood education and education and human development. Professor Goode has extensive experience as a principal investigator for federal and private sector grants and contracts. A primary area of focus for Professor Goode is national level efforts to advance and sustain cultural and linguistic competence within an array of settings including but not limited to institutions of higher education, health, mental health, and other human service systems. Professor Goode is the director of the National Center for Cultural Competence (NCCC) at GUCCHD. Professor Goode is acknowledged as a thought leader in the area of cultural and linguistic competence and for building the NCCC into a nationally and internationally recognized and award winning program. She had a primary role in developing curricula, assessment instruments, professional development series, and other resources that support cultural and linguistic competence. Since 2015, Professor Good has been an invited scholar, lecturer, and visiting faculty: a) nationally to schools of medicine, public health, education, research institutes, professional associations, and state and national government; and b) internationally in Australia, South America, and the United Kingdom.

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Libbie Rifkin, PhD Family Discipline Coordinator. Libbie Rifkin is Teaching Professor in the Department of English and was the founding Director and is now Associate Director of the Program in Disability Studies. Under her directorship, Disability Studies received the first annual Provost’s Innovation in Teaching award for academic programs. Libbie teaches courses in contemporary American literature, gender, race, and disability studies. Her two books include the co-edited collection, Among Friends: Engendering the Social Site of Poetry (2013) and Career Moves: Olson, Creeley, Zukofsky, Berrigan, and the American Avant-Garde (2000). She has published numerous articles on gender, poetry, and, most recently, the poetics of care. Rifkin also works as Special Advisor to the Vice President of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for Disability. She serves on a number of University-wide committees addressing equity, access, and inclusion and mentors disabled students both in and outside the classroom. Libbie is the mother of a young adult with cerebral palsy and intellectual disability.

Kim Bullock, MD Medicine Discipline Coordinator. Kim Bullock is an Associate Professor of Family Medicine at Georgetown University Medical Center and teaches family and emergency medicine in clinical and educational settings. Kim is the Community Health Division Director, Community Health Leadership Development Fellowship Director, and Associate Director of the Community-Based Learning program. Past leadership roles were Chief Medical Officer for the DC Developmental Disabilities Administration-Georgetown Partnership Project, focused on health care quality assurance and improvement for DC residents with intellectual and developmental disabilities, Principal Investigator for the Faculty Development in Primary Care Fellowships in Community Health and Health Policy; and Vice Chairperson/Assistant Director, Providence Hospital Emergency Department.

A smiling picture of Diane, an older white woman with graying short curly care, a black and white sweater and hoop earrings.

Diane M. Jacobstein, PhD Psychology Discipline Coordinator. Diane Jacobstein is a Clinical Psychologist in the Georgetown University Center for Child and Human Development-UCEDD and an Adjunct Associate Professor in Pediatrics. She retired from Georgetown after more than 40 years on faculty and continues to teach part time. Diane has extensive experience as a clinical supervisor, therapist, diagnostician, and trainer in early childhood and pediatric settings. She was a psychologist and early childhood mental health consultant for more than two decades in a Head Start/Early Head Start program serving families in unstable housing. She worked on several Georgetown initiatives related to young children living in DC shelters, school-aged children and adults with developmental disabilities. Her national policy work over many years involved technical assistance and consultation for states and communities seeking to improve services for youth with developmental disabilities and mental health system experience, as well as their families. She served as psychologist in Georgetown’s Autism and Communication Disorders Clinic, and in a variety of medical and community settings, including the Pediatric Mobile Clinic, adult group homes, pediatric cancer and renal disease teams, intensive care unit, a general pediatrics practice and schools. Diane has a special interest in trauma-informed care and in public policy related to developmental disabilities and under-served communities.

Andy is pictured smiling in a headshot with a blurred background. He is a Latin X man with an olive complexion, short brown highlighted hair, and brown eyes, and he is wearing a purple argyle sweater. You can see the top of his wheelchair in the photo.

Andy Arias Leadership Discipline Coordinator. Andy Arias is a seasoned disability program manager, policy development professional, and accomplished actor and producer. He proudly self-identifies as a disabled, Latinx, and queer individual. In his current role as the Component Manager for Persons with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) and Families at the Georgetown University National Center for Cultural Competence (NCCC), Andy leads initiatives aimed at advancing cultural and linguistic competence, diversity, equity, and inclusion for the Office of Persons with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD)-Georgetown University NCCC Partnership for Systems Change. His wealth of experience has made him a recognized national expert in policy development and DEIA practices, stemming from his previous work as a Policy Advisor for the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment, and as a System Change Advocate and Program Manager in Orange County and Los Angeles. Beyond his policy work, Andy is deeply engaged in the entertainment industry. He has graced the screen in numerous productions, sharing the screen with renowned actors such as Tom Hanks, Mark Ruffalo, and Hilary Swank. As an accessibility consultant, he assists producers and directors in enhancing media visibility for people with disabilities. Furthermore, Andy has taken on the role of film producer, creating works that explore the intersectionality between disability, LGBTQIA, and Latinx identities.

Ellen is a pinkish, white woman with long and wavy dark hair with white and gray streaks and brown eyes. Ellen is wearing a black shirt and standing in front of a light blue wall.

Ellen Nedrow Sullivan Self-Advocacy Discipline Coordinator and Community Engagement Coordinator. Ellen Sullivan has a background in public policy from her former decade plus career in the US Senate and her tenure as a Washington, DC ANC Commissioner. In more recent years, Ellen has coordinated the care and education of her school-age child with disabilities, who is now a very talented middle schooler. Ellen also has her own personal experience of disabilities and brings an inclusive and strength-based approach to all of her work. She completed two years of our GULEND fellowship, and additionally, completed another graduate-level leadership traineeship with the University of Georgia UCEDD, funded through the Association of University Centers on Disability. Ellen is interested in how community spaces, especially faith spaces, can include people with disabilities and their families, and the ways that accessible, plain-language communication can be used more broadly with both disabled and non-disabled persons and populations.

Other GULEND Team Members

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Elio McCabe, JD (he/they) GULEND Leadership Team Member, Graduate Representative. Elio McCabe is the Policy Manager for the Autistic Women & Nonbinary Network. As a neurodiverse transgender person, he is deeply aware of and connected to the advancement and maintenance of legal policies around LGBTQIA+ and disability rights. Advocating for LGBTQIA+ and disability rights, both in formalized roles and daily practice, has been his central principle in his education and career. He has extensive research and writing experience, which ranges from appellate briefs in conservatorship matters to spoken word poetry about living with chronic pain. In his spare time, Elio creates abstract paintings. He has been exhibited both locally and internationally.

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Sarah Ward Multimedia and Adult Learning Specialist. With a dynamic blend of artistic expertise and a rich educational background, Sarah Ward brings a wealth of experience to the field of multimedia communication. Holding a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Video/Film and a Master’s degree in Motion Graphics, Sarah boasts an impressive two-decade career encompassing videography and post-production. Sarah’s skill set spans video production, animations, interactive learning module design, graphic design, layout, and proficiency in document and web accessibility.

Betelhem is pictured in a headshot with a light gray background and some plants at the bottom. She is a black woman with a brown complexion, curly black hair tied in a top knot, dark brown eyes, and is wearing a black sequin dress, glasses, and a gold necklace.

Betelhem Eshetu Yimer, MS GULEND Evaluation Specialist. Betelhem Eshetu Yimer serves as a Research Associate at the Georgetown University National Center for Cultural Competence (NCCC) and University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD), working in research and evaluation. Her work is mainly focused on evaluating services and supports for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities through the lens of cultural and linguistic competence. Betelhem holds a bachelor’s in Neuroscience from the University of Miami, and a master’s in Global Health from Georgetown University.

A headshot of Safiya, a black woman wearing a black covered hijab (headscarf), and a black colored long sleeve dress. She is seen standing outside of her neighborhood– smiling and posing for the camera.

Safiya Hassan GULEND Project Assistant and Trainee Support Specialist. Safiya Hassan serves as a Project Assistant for Georgetown University – University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD), and Trainee Support Specialist for Georgetown University LEND (GULEND).

In her current role, Safiya will be providing both administrative and technical support for trainees and faculty. Safiya holds a bachelor’s degree in Global Affairs from George Mason University.