Some of our staff would like to introduce themselves to you:
ABA (Applied Behavioral Analysis)
Kathy Gute
Kathy Gute is the ABA supervisor. She comes to us with a rich background in Applied Behavioral Analysis working exclusive with children with special needs. Together with our Behavioral Consultant, she supervises a staff of professionals and paraprofessionals to in assessing the individual needs of children and implementing the principles of ABA. In our department all ABA services are delivered with data collection and analysis to insure the highest quality of service delivery. Kathy brings to CEED more then 20 years of experience in psychology, special education and Applied Behavioral Analysis.
Multidisciplinary Therapy & On-Going Service Coordination
Judy Katz, M.A., Ed
Judy Katz is the Clinical Supervisor and Director of On-Going Service Coordination at CEED. Judy has a Master’s degree in Special Education and has been working in the Special Education field for more then 25 years. She has expansive experience as both a teacher and an administrator with a variety of diagnoses and in a multitude of settings.
In her current role as Clinical Supervisor and Director of On-Going Service Coordination (OSC), she collaborates with parents, therapists, teachers, County Officials and School Districts to determine the most effective intervention planning for each child and to help carry over therapeutic treatment strategies to home, or other settings. Judy has works to enhance the Toddler Developmental Groups at CEED, introducing innovative programs and working with the staff to keep current with new approaches.
Occupational Therapy
Emily Kitson, M.S, OTR/L
Emily Kitson is the Occupational Therapy Department Supervisor. She has been practicing as an occupational therapist for 9 years and has been working for WCEED for 5 years! Emily received her Bachelors degree in Health Sciences and a Masters degree in Occupational Therapy both from the University of Scranton. She completed a specialized internship in pediatrics. she is trained in sensory integration and techniques to address sensory processing difficulties. She is trained in Therapeutic Listening which is a music program to address attention, organization, and auditory processing difficulties. Emily also has training in the Handwriting Without Tears Program. She has had experience working with families and children addressing variety of needs including attention, body awareness, strengthening, grasp, and visual motors skills. She looks forward to watching and helping the children she works with progress and grow!
Kimberly Lamela
Kimberly Lamela is an Occupational Therapist at WCEED. She graduated with a BA degree in Psychology from Iona College in New Rochelle and then went on to receive a MS degree in Occupational Therapy from Seton Hall University. She has taken additional courses in Sensory Integration, NDT for infants, and handwriting.
Physical Therapy
Lauren Azuolay, M.S, PT
Lauren is the physical therapy supervisor. She has 10 years of experience with the pediatric population. She has used her skills with children between the ages of newborn through 5 years of age in many settings such as homes, Early Intervention Centers and Preschools. She worked at United Cerebral Palsy in the Bronx for several years gaining experience working with children with developmental disabilities requiring assistive and mobility devices. Lauren recently attended a course in Treating Torticollis and is thoroughly enjoys helping first – time parents become more educated and comfortable with the implementing “tummy time”.
Lauren currently works at WCEED in both the classroom and in the outpatient clinic. She also works within integrated classroom settings in 3 Westchester school districts. Lauren has 3 children, one of whom received services through WCEED service coordination. She strongly believes that her therapist skills were enriched by being the parent of a child with special needs and learning about the ways in wich parents and therapists can work together to help children reach goals. Please feel free to approach her at any time for ideas on how to try to make therapy fun in any enviroment.
Lauren enjoys bike riding, music, and traveling. She speaks Hebrew as a second and in her free time experiments with Middle eastern Cusine, and sneaking healthy foods into her kid’s meals.
Special Education
Elizabeth Asprea
Elizabeth Asprea is the Special Education Supervisor at Westchester Center for Educational and Emotional Development. She has been with CEED since May 2002. Elizabeth has been a special education teacher for nineteen years. She has experience working with children who display varied developmental delays and disabilities. Elizabeth received her Master’s Degree at Lehman College, Bronx New York in Early Childhood Special Education. She has training in using the PECS Communication System and in TEACCH. Elizabeth looks forward to her continued work with children and their families at CEED.
Barbara Wasserman, MA ED
Barbara has her Masters in Special Education from NYU where she attended on a full fellowship. She has been teaching special needs children for 25 years. She began her career with New York City Board Of Education at the Manhattan School, where she taught for 11 years. She also co-directed the sleep away summer camp program sponsored by the Manhattan School. For the past 13 years , she has been with WCEED, both as a special educator in the Toddler Developmental classroom, as well as a department head and supervisor of the special education department. Barbara has also provided both center-based and home-based ABA services for Early Intervention. Her many years of dedicated service to the special needs population has earned her a well-deserved reputation with both professionals and parents.
Emily Tabacoff, B.A.
Emily Tabacoff is the Supervisor of the Teaching Assistants at CEED. She herself is a certified Teaching Assistant and she is trained in Applied Behavioral Anaylsis, ABA. Emily has a Bachelor of Science degree in Social Work from the University of Wisconsin. Emily has been a member of the CEED team since 1993. She loves working with the children, staff and families.
Speech Therapy
Christine Pina-Cunha
Christine Pina-Cunha is the speech and language director at CEED. She is a speech and language pathologist. Over the past 18 years Christine has worked with children and families in a variety of settings. Christine has been with CEED since 2002. She received her Master’s Degree from Lehman College in Bronx, New York. Christine is experienced in speech-motor disorders, language disorders, and feeding disorders. She has training in PROMPT and PECS. In addition to providing treatment and evaluations to children she works closely with families and other professionals to enhance communication. She has trained and mentored graduate students and Clinical Fellows. She finds working with children and their families very rewarding.
Lindsay Ruiz
Lindsay Ruiz is an enthusiastic speech language pathologist. She received Bachelors degree from SUNY Cortland in Speech and Language Disabilities and completed her Master’s degree at Mercy College in Communication Disorders. She is also certified as a Teacher of Children with Speech and Language Disabilities. Lindsay also holds a certification in Children with Special Health Care Needs.She completed her Clinical Fellowship here at WCEED and has been working at CEED ever since. She is fluent in American Sign Language. She also participated in a research program named LEND, where a team of professionals explored communication techniques for individuals with disabilities and their families. Lindsay enjoys utilizing a combination of therapy techniques and working on a multi-disciplinary approach to maximize a young child’s development and progress.
Lauren Long, M.A.
Lauren Long is a Speech-Language Pathologist. She received her Bachelors in Communication Disorders & Sciences from the State University of New York- at Plattsburgh. She also received her Master of Arts in Speech-Language Pathology from Hofstra University. Lauren treats children under The Early Intervention Program (birth-3 years) and through the Committee for Preschool Special Education (3-5 years). Lauren has been a Speech-Language pathologist for 5 years. She is PROMPT and TEACCH (Treatment & Education of Autistic and related Communication-handicapped Children) trained. She truly enjoys helping children improve their communicative abilities.
Gina Ferraro, MS Sp. Ed.
Gina has been teaching for 20 years. She holds a Masters Degree in Special Education and Reading from Manhattanville College. Her Preschool and Elementary Education Degrees were awarded from Lehman College and the University of London. She has taught in Westchester County and the Bronx. She has particularly enjoyed working in Early Intervention at CEED. She finds the staff throughly knowledgeable . The trans-disciplinary team has been a major focus for her, in working cooperatively with other team members in the best interests of the children and families they serve. Gina shares her love of art, music, movement and yoga with children is her classroom or programs. She originated the “Saturdays at CEED” program, and is planning new offerrings for Fall 2012 including “Moms of Multiples” Workshop and an after school tutoring program.