Speakers

Krisi Brackett PhD, CCC-SLP, C/NDT is a pediatric feeding/swallowing specialist/researcher with over 32 years of experience. She is a co-founder of the UNC Pediatric Feeding and Pediatric Dysphagia Teams. She is adjunct faculty at UNC-Chapel Hill, Yeshiva University, and UNC-Greensboro. She is an international speaker and author, developed the CAN-EAT Approach©, and is certified in pediatric NDT. Her research interests include interdisciplinary care for children with PFD. She blogs at pediatricfeedingnews.com.

Disclosures
Financial: Paid consultant, member of the Dr. Brown’s Scientific Advisory Board.
Non-financial: None.

Dr. Carmen Caruthers, PhD, BCBA, is a psychologist and Clinical Assistant Professor in The TEACCH Autism Program and the Department of Psychiatry at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine. Dr. Caruthers’ clinical and research work focuses on ASD, PFDs, and improving services for historically underserved families. She is most interested in the application of Structured TEACCHing© to interventions for pediatric feeding disorders.

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financial: None

Anna Maria Cavini, born 1981 in Austria, graduated from the Medical University of Graz and is a Pediatric & Adolescent Medicine, Doctor of Medicine (Dr. med. univ.), with distinction. Involvements include: Eating Disorders & ARFID, Pediatric Obesity & Metabolic Disorders, Psychosomatic Medicine, Medical Leadership & Healthcare Management, Team Development & Organizational Strategy, and Interdisciplinary Program Development.

Disclosures
Financial: Paid speaker for Nutricia, Danone (e.g. lunch symposium).
Non-financial: Speaker for universities, colleges, and congresses.

Lauren Charnov, M.S., CCC-SLP, CLC is a passionate speech-language pathologist and certified lactation counselor specializing in infant-toddler feeding and dysphagia. She earned her Masters of Science in Speech, Language, and Learning from Northwestern University and works with pediatric patients with complex medical and developmental needs. As Senior Clinical Competency Specialist at Cole Health, Lauren develops and leads clinical training, mentors clinicians, fosters interdisciplinary collaboration, and has guided over 100 feeding therapists in advancing clinical practice.

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financial: None

Shayla Collins is a devoted wife & a mother of two young boys. Both of her children were born with disabilities. She quickly learned that she would not only have to be a fierce advocate for herself & her family, but for all families who are thrust into a multitude of difficult to navigate systems. In addition to owning her own business Rain or Shine Consulting, she works at the University of WA (UW) Center for Child and Family Well-Being as a facilitator of mindfulness, the UW CoLab on projects focused on behavioral health & the UW Institute for Human Development and Disability with Washington State Medical Home Partnerships Project.

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financial: None

Dr. Ryan Davidson is an attending psychologist at Boston Children’s Hospital in the Division of Gastroenterology, Associate Program Director of the Growth and Nutrition Program, Instructor of Psychology in the Division of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. She specializes in working with young children with Pediatric Feeding Disorders and ARFID. Her current presentations focus on understanding culturally responsive feeding practices and the intersection of health-related social needs in medical care.

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financial: Employed by Boston Children’s Hospital in the Growth and Nutrition Program. International Association of Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing Board of Directors (Psychologist-at-Large.)

Dr. Kristin Hathaway is a licensed psychologist and doctoral level board certified behavior analyst with experience and training in pediatric feeding disorder and avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder. In her current role at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta’s Multidisciplinary Feeding Program, she serves as a case manager in the intensive multidisciplinary program, provides outpatient follow up services, and participates in multidisciplinary team evaluations. She also provides supervision and mentorship for doctoral psychology interns and postdoctoral fellows.

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financials: Chair of the Feeding Matters Feeding and Eating Psychology Summit Committee

Tiffany Elliott is a Speech-Language Pathologist and International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant, who specializes in pediatric feeding disorder and dysphagia with preterm and medically complex infants. Her work spans systems change with Northwest Center, direct clinical care at Seattle Children’s hospital, and mentorship through her consulting business. She is a Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND) program graduate and recent Georgetown University Thrive Center Innovation Fellow.

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financial: Employee at Northwest Center and Seattle Children’s Hospital; Founder and Owner of Feeding Connections, PLLC; Co-Chair Washington State Community Council for Feeding Matters.

Tanja Kornfehl, born in Austria in 1996, holds a Bachelor of Science in Speech and Language Pathology from the University of Applied Sciences Wiener Neustadt and a Master of Science in Interdisciplinary Therapy in Pediatrics from the Carl Remigius Medical School in Frankfurt, Germany. Her focus includes treating infants, children, and adolescents with ARFID, pediatric feeding disorders, tube dependency, and disabilities. She also lectures in Speech and Language pathology programs. www.traintoeat.at. www.die-plauderei.at.

Disclosures
Financial: Paid speaker for Nutricia, Danone (e.g. lunch symposium).
Non-financial: Speaker for universities, colleges, and congresses.

Rebecca Kramer, PhD is a licensed clinical psychologist in the Growth and Nutrition Program within the Department of Gastroenterology and Nutrition at Boston Children’s Hospital and an Instructor in Psychology at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Kramer earned her PhD in Clinical Psychology from Seattle Pacific University. She completed her predoctoral internship at Mount Washington Pediatric Hospital in Baltimore and her postdoctoral fellowship on the GI Psychology Service at Boston Children’s Hospital.

Dr. Kramer has extensive experience working with children with autism spectrum disorder, particularly within the context of feeding difficulties. She specializes in pediatric feeding disorders, Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID), and disorders of gut-brain interaction (DGBIs). Her practicum training included multiple placements at Seattle Children’s Hospital, where she gained experience in the OCD Intensive Outpatient Program, ADHD Clinic, Early Childhood Clinic, Selective Mutism Program, and Autism Center. In addition to her full-time role at Boston Children’s Hospital, Dr. Kramer conducts comprehensive psychological and neuropsychological assessments on a part-time basis. Dr. Kramer’s clinical and research interests focus on the integration of behavioral health within medical settings. She has developed and co-led innovative projects such as a teen group for youth with DGBIs, now being used across several children’s hospitals. She also supervises psychology fellows training in GI psychology through Boston Children’s Hospital.

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financial: None

Rachel received her Masters in Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health and is deeply passionate about improving child and family health through systems change and strengthening partnerships between families, communities, and pediatric primary care teams. Her work centers on advancing early relational health, integrating community health workers into primary care, and building systems that feel more responsive, equitable, and human. Guided by a belief that families are experts in their own lives, Rachel brings thoughtful leadership, strategic insight, and a human-centered approach to every project she leads.

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financial: None

John Lysaker, is the William R. Kenan University Professor at Emory University, where he directs The Center for Ethics. Lysaker’s central interest remains the good life writ large and various phenomena that enable and/or frustrate its emergence, including character and metacognition, artworks, serious mental illness, and friendship. He has authored six monographs, co-authored a seventh book, and co-edited a collection of essays. In addition, he has written roughly eighty scholarly articles and chapters and delivered over a hundred lectures and presentations. Recent publications have appeared in JAMA Psychiatry, The Georgia Review, and The Journal of Speculative Philosophy.

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financial: None

Juliet is a speech-language pathologist and board certified specialist in swallowing disorders at Boston Children’s Hospital. She specializes in the evaluation and treatment of pediatric feeding and swallowing disorders in medically complex infants and children. She diagnoses and treats feeding and swallowing disorders in infants and children on an inpatient and outpatient basis including multidisciplinary clinics specializing in children with multifactorial feeding difficulties. Juliet is passionate about developing creative solutions in the management of dysphagia in populations with socio-economic, psychosocial, and cultural differences and conducts research on SDH and their impact on PFD.

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financial: None

With more than a decade of experience in program development, Jaclyn Pederson’s broad knowledge of programming in the public and social sectors includes program and strategic initiative design, fund development, special events, grant writing, and community engagement. A system thinker and positive team builder, she uses transformational leadership principles to develop energized and efficient workgroups that influence significant organizational and systemic change for all affected by pediatric feeding disorder –such as the development of the expanded PFD Alliance. Jaclyn also manages Feeding Matters’ strategic partnerships with numerous professional associations including American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), American Society of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition, and the North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition (NASPGHAN).

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financial: Paid employee of Feeding Matters

Cuyler Romeo has developed a broad clinical understanding of the needs of families and children by serving as an Occupational Therapist and industry expert in pediatric feeding disorder for over 20 years. As the Director of Strategic Initiatives at Feeding Matters, she assists in developing and executing a strategic plan to bring about system wide change for families struggling with pediatric feeding disorder. She utilizes her clinical understanding and leadership expertise to collaborate with constituents in identifying, tracking, and assessing innovative solutions to system problems. Cuyler also has extensive experience facilitating strategic partnerships and aligning diverse groups of people under a common goal. She designed and executed a state-wide multi-disciplinary mentorship program, launched a Community of Practice within the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) and advanced professional development through her position on AOTA’s Commission on Continuing Competence and Professional Development (CCCPD). Prior to joining Feeding Matters, she served as a founding partner of a feeding specialty clinic, Mealtime Connections, and rectified system issues on a broader scale as the Director of Clinical Innovation at Therapy 2000. She also treats clinically as a feeding specialist at Banner University Medical Center-Tucson in a Level 3 NICU and speaks professionally.

Disclosures
Financial Disclosures: None
Non-financial Disclosures: Cuyler Romeo facilitates AOTA’s Mealtime Occupation: Feeding, Eating and Swallowing Community of Practice and is an appointed member of the Commission for Continued Competence and Professional Development (CCCPD). She serves on the Board of Directors for the Institute of Perception-Action Approach and is a member of the National Perinatal Association’s Interdisciplinary Workgroup and Dissemination Committee. She is a member of AOTA, ArizOTA, and IAPFS. Paid employee of Feeding Matters.

Anna Rouse, MSW, LICSW is the social worker for the Growth and Nutrition Program at Boston Children’s Hospital. This is an interdisciplinary outpatient program that primarily treats children, from birth to school-age, with feeding difficulties and poor weight gain. The primary role of the social worker is to assess for and support families with any psychosocial needs that may contribute to the diagnostic presentation, and coordinate care with community based providers.

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financial: None

Dr Amy Talbot (she/her) is a multi-award-winning clinical psychologist and director of The Talbot Centre, a multidisciplinary service in Sydney. Her work focuses on eating, feeding, and body image concerns, with an emphasis on neurodiversity-affirming, family-centred care. Amy is a sought-after presenter, supervisor, and researcher, known for advancing interdisciplinary approaches to complex case formulation and integrating lived experience perspectives to improve outcomes for individuals with ARFID and related feeding presentations.

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financial: Director of a large interdisciplinary private Feeding Service in Sydney, Australia.

Sonia Trejo, OTD, OTR/L is an Associate Professor of Clinical Occupational Therapy at the University of Southern California.  She is a bilingual therapist and coordinator of an interdisciplinary feeding assessment clinic in a specialty mental health program at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.  Her passion and specialty is working with children with pediatric feeding disorders.  She enjoys educating and collaborating with professionals and families to best support children in their eating journey and has worked to increase access to care through innovative program development.

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financial- None

David W Willis, MD, FAAP is Professor of Pediatrics and Psychiatry at Georgetown University, within the new Thrive Center for Children, Families and Communities. There, he leads Nurture Connection, a field catalytic network to advance early relational health at the growing intersection of child health transformation, resilient community building, and co-development partnerships with families.

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financial: None

Pediatrician Mary Ann Woodruff, MD, FAAP serves as the Medical Director of Care Transformation at Pediatrics Northwest in WA State implementing team based care at the primary care medical home and leading efforts to scale this model: Integrated behavioral health and embedded community health workers, co-design with families, supporting family well-being and Early Relational Health from the start and reducing the friction families experience in medical systems. It’s what families should expect.

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financial: None

Rebecca Wynsma, PhD, is a licensed clinical psychologist specializing in pediatric psychology, early childhood mental health, and feeding disorders at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, and in their Feeding Development Clinic. Her work emphasizes trauma-informed, relationship-focused assessment and treatment for families and youth ranging from infancy to adolescence, particularly those with complex presentations of autism, ARFID, trauma, and developmental disabilities. She values interdisciplinary care, comprehensive assessment, and evidence-based therapy within accessible hospital or community-based settings.

Disclosures
Financial: None
Non-financial: None