SMG Board of Directors (2011)

Aimee Kotrba, Ph.D.
_President

Dr. Aimee Kotrba is a licensed clinical psychologist in Plymouth, Michigan offering expert consultation, diagnosis, and psychological treatment of Selective Mutism, OCD, anxiety, and disruptive behavior disorders. She earned her doctorate degree from Wayne State University, and obtained post-doctoral training in the effective, research-based treatment of childhood anxiety disorders at William Beaumont Hospital and Children's Hospital of Michigan. She currently lives in Brighton, Michigan with her husband and daughter. During her post-doctoral training, Dr. Kotrba began working with a child diagnosed with severe Selective Mutism, and became interested in gaining more training, experience, and knowledge in the treatment of SM. She currently conducts regular workshops on the identification and treatment of Selective Mutism for parents, educators, and professionals. In therapy, Dr. Kotrba integrates behavioral techniques with cognitive strategies, parent coaching, and school interventions to provide a well-rounded and complete treatment plan. Through her involvement with the SMG board, Dr. Kotrba hopes to promote early detection and effective treatment of Selective Mutism.

View Treating Professional Profile.

Rich Seggerman
_Treasurer

Rich grew up in Iowa, graduated from Florida Atlantic University with a B.S. degree in Accounting, obtained his CPA license and worked as an auditor for Deloitte for 5 years. He moved back to Iowa and worked in internal audit for an insurance company for 3 years and later became the Controller Wartburg College, a small liberal arts college. Rich currently is the Chief Business Officers & Treasurer at Wartburg College and lives in Waverly, Iowa with his wife Ann. They have a 6 years old daughter and two grown children from Ann's first marriage. Rich became aware of Selective Mutism when his then 5 year old daughter was diagnosed at the beginning of kindergarten. Since the diagnosis, Rich and his wife have attempted to learn more about Selective Mutism and became familiar with SMG. Rich recently joined the Board of Directors of SMG to contribute in any manner that will help to provide even more education to parents and school personnel (including pre-school personnel), with the hope of earlier diagnosis of Selective Mutism, which will lead to families receiving help earlier in the process. Rich enjoys spending time with family and friends, camping, biking, down-hill snow skiing, and watching the Minnesota Vikings.

Shannon Morgan-Gillard, Psy.D.
_Secretary

Dr. Shannon Morgan-Gillard is a Clinical Psychologist. She completed her internship and postdoctoral fellowship in inpatient and forensic settings and spent two additional years working with adult forensic clients in a maximum security hosptial. Dr. Morgan-Gillard became aware of Selective Mutism when her son demonstrated its symptoms. Finding so few resources for working with SM, she opened a private practice dedicated to evaluating and treating children with SM. Currently, Dr. Morgan-Gillard works with children with Selective Mutism, and with children and teenagers with a range of concerns at an inpatient and residential psychiatric hospital. She is especially interested in educating school personnel and pediatricians about SM to promote an accurate understanding of the disorder and early identification and treatment, and in guiding parents to provide effective advocacy for their children. Dr. Morgan-Gillard lives in St. Louis, Missouri with her family. Her son has overcome Selective Mutism.

View Treating Professional Profile.

Ruth M. Anan, Ph.D., BCBA
_Director

Dr. Ruth Anan is a Licensed Psychologist and Board Certified Behavior Analyst at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan. She received her PhD in Clinical Psychology from Wayne State University and completed both an internship and post-doctoral fellowship in Pediatric Psychology at Children's Hospital of Michigan. For over 12 years Dr. Anan has served as the Director of the Early Childhood Program in the Division of Developmental Pediatrics where she conducts diagnostic evaluations and provides treatment for young children with various developmental, emotional, and behavioral problems. Dr. Anan specializes in individual and group therapy for children with selective mutism.

View Treating Professional Profile.

Kevin Colvey
_Director

Kevin Colvey is a business professional with over 23 years of experience in developing energy and infrastructure businesses.

Mr Colvey brings to the SMG Board an understanding of business management and commercial acumen as well as cultural realities through his experiences having worked and lived in many countries around the world.

Mr Colvey currently lives in Nova Scotia, Canada with his 2 daughters, one who has been diagnosed with SM. Over the years Kevin has been delighted with the level of interest and support to children with SM. As a SMG Board Member Kevin wishes to provide deep-reaching contributions to SM awareness, treatment, and increased resources for all.

Estie Hess, Ph.D.
_Director

Dr. Esther Hess is a developmental psychologist specializing in the assessment, diagnosis and treatment of children with regulatory disturbances. Her method of intervention is DIR/Floor Time, a developmental relational approach created by Dr. Stanley Greenspan. Dr. Hess is certified in DIR/Floor Time and serves as Dr. Greenspan's Senior Clinician on the west coast. Dr. Hess is also the founder and executive director of Center for the Developing Mind, a multidisciplinary treatment facility for children and adolescents with regulatory disturbances in West Los Angeles, California.

View Treating Professional Profile.

Vera Joffe, Ph.D. P.A.
_Director

Vera Joffe was born in Sao Paula, Brazil. She obtained her Bachelor's Degree and her License in Psychology in Brazil at the University of Sao Paulo. Coming to study in the U.S., Dr. Joffe received her Master's Degree at the University of California at Berkeley, and she completed her Ph.D. at Iowa State University. Dr. Joffe completed her Internship at the Child and Adolescent Guidance Center in Des Moines, Iowa. She also finished her Post-Doctoral Residency at Iowa Lutheran Hospital in Des Moines, Iowa.

Dr. Joffe has been working in South Florida for over 20 years in private practice. Her specialty is in the area of neurodevelopment disorders, including ADHD, Toilette's Syndrome, Asperser Syndrome and Selective Mutism, among others. Dr. Joffe works cooperatively with parents, schools, physicians and other health providers. She has been working in promoting preventive measures and strategies to decrease the impact of mental health disorders in young children.

Dr. Joffe is a member of the National Register of Health Providers of Psychology, a member of the American Psychological Association, Florida Psychological Association, and a Professional Board Member of the South Florida Chapter of CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder), a professional member of the Selective Mutism Organization, a member of the Association for Behavior and Cognitive Therapies, and a member of the Associacao Brasileira de Deficit de Atencao (Brazil).

Dr. Joffe is licensed as a psychologist in Florida, New York, and in Iowa.

Dr. Joffe has presented and published on the topic of Selective Mutism at National meetings (AACAP and APA), and in Israel and in Brazil.

Dr. Joffe published a book about Selective Mutism: Joffe, V. (2007), Sophie's Story: A Guide to Selective Mutism. Dr. Joffe also published a book on Adult ADHD in Portuguese, English, and Spanish; Joffe, V. & Iachan, M. (2006), A Day in the Life of an Adult with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. She just published a book on Asperger Syndrome from the point of view of a child who is 8 years old called Hi, My Name is Matt: I Have Asperger Syndrome.

Dr. Joffe is honored to be part of the national Board of the Selective Mutism Organization. She would like to help in developing strategies to educate parents, physicians, educators, and guidance counselors about Selective Mutism (as well as other conditions of childhood) in early childhood.

Dr. Joffe's website is: www.verajoffe.com.

View Treating Professional Profile.

Evelyn R. Klein, PhD, CCC-SLP, BRS-CL
_Director

Dr. Evelyn Klein is an associate professor in the Speech-Language-Hearing Science Program at La Salle University in Philadelphia, PA. She is a licensed and certified speech-language pathologist and licensed psychologist in Pennsylvania with post-doctoral training in neuropsychology from Drexel University. She holdsboard recognition in child language from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association where she is an ASHA Fellow. Dr. Klein holds certification in Pennsylvania as a supervisor of special education. As an educator, clinician, and researcher, Dr. Klein has more than 20 years of experience in the fields of communication disorders and psychology.Her areas of specialization include selective mutism, autism spectrum disorders, developmental disabilities, language-learning disabilities, and acquired language disorders. In addition to being an author of therapeutic language-based programs for individuals with communication disorders, Dr. Klein is the co-author of a new textbook, “Acquired Language Disorders: A Case-Based Approach.” She publishes in peer-reviewed journals and presents her work at local, national, and international conferences. Dr. Klein consults with the Selective Mutism Research Institute, where she is a principal investigator studying assessment and treatment methods for children with selective mutism.

Steve Kurtz, Ph.D., ABPP
_Director

Dr. Kurtz is a New York licensed clinical child and adolescent psychologist currently in his 23rd year of practice. He is an Assistant Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry on the faculty of the New York University School of Medicine where he mentors externs, interns, Post-Doctoral Fellows, and Residents - the next generation of child psychologists and psychiatrists. He is currently the Co-Director of the NYU Child Study Center Selective Mutism Program, which aside from treating families living with SM, is actively engaged in advancing the evidence base of empirically supported assessments and treatments specific to selective mutism. Dr. Kurtz also is the inaugural Clinical Director of the NYU Child Study Center 's Institute for ADHD & Disruptive Behavior Disorders, now in its 10th year. Dr. Kurtz received his Doctorate from Washington University and holds a Diplomate in Cognitive and Behavioral Psychology from the American Board of Professional Psychology. Dr. Kurtz is very active in national professional psychology societies where his volunteer activities include being a Diplomate Examiner for ABPP, an Ambassador for the Association of Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies (ABCT), and an ad hoc journal reviewer for professional publications. Steve routinely presents at national scientific meetings on selective mutism, as well as in his other specialties of ADHD, comorbid disorders, treatment engagement and training issues, and does many inservice workshops and trainings for school and community organizations. He is the Director as well of NYU's Parent-Child Interaction Therapy program and consultants with agencies statewide to train their staff members in this highly-regarded parent training program. He has appeared as an expert on numerous television shows, including a PBS special on SM and participated in many newspaper and magazine pieces on SM and other child issues, aside from his professional publications. Dr. Kurtz has also received the Teacher of the Year award from the NYU Child Study Center and was nominated for the NYU School of Medicine Distinguished Faculty Award. Steve has two adult daughters, both of whom work with children, and Bonnie, his wife of 30 years, is a certified elementary and art teacher. He is an avid skier and cyclist and an addicted lover of bluegrass music. He shares his music passions as well with the children of the Junior Choir at his congregation.

View Treating Professional Profile.

Pamela Martis
_Director

Pamela resides in Redondo Beach, California with her husband and two children. Pamela has been an active volunteer for the past nine years, chairing and coordinating many fundraisers for a local elementary school and also assisted in the establishment of the St. James School Education Foundation, an educational supporting organization. Prior to her full time volunteer activities Pamela served as an assistant controller for a medium sized publically traded financial institution. Pamela enjoys volunteering and looks forward to assisting the Selective Mutism Group with their endeavors.

Mike Schulman, Esq
_Director

Michael D. Schulman grew up in Southern California and graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder with a degree in Business Administration. Thereafter, he attended Loyola Law School in Los Angeles where he earned his Juris Doctorate. Michael has been a licensed and practicing attorney in the State of California for over 20 years. Originally, he worked for a large national law firm in its' California office. Michael left the large law firm 13 years ago and started his own law practice. Currently, he practices Business and Commercial Litigation throughout California. Michael lives in Southern California with his wife and three children. Michael became aware of Selective Mutism when his middle child was diagnosed, at the age of 6½. Since the diagnosis, Michael and his family have been dedicated to educating themselves and others about Selective Mutism. Michael joined the Board of Directors of SMG with the hope that he can continue to participate in a more meaningful way to educate the general public about Selective Mutism and to expand the resources available to families and educators touched by this anxiety disorder.

Lisa Kovac
_{Executive Director}

Lisa Kovac is a school psychologist and certified assistant behavior analyst. She practiced as a school psychologist working with children of all ages with learning disabilities, ADHD, other behavioral disorders in the public school system. She completed psycho-educational evaluations, behavioral assessments and worked in conjunction with parents and teachers to develop individualized evidence-based interventions to help students become more successful. In addition, she facilitated support groups, performed crisis intervention and trained teachers in behavioral management. After practicing a number of years, she elected to say home with her three young children. Lisa got involved with the selective mutism population after one of her daughters was diagnosed with selective mutism in 2007. Frustrated with the lack of resources, knowledge and awareness of selective mutism in the local area, Lisa began researching the disorder and provided successful treatment to her own daughter. Since, she has become passionate about helping other families cope with selective mutism. In addition, she is dedicated to increasing early diagnosis and subsequent evidenced-based intervention. She has been an SMG Florida State Coordinator since 2009, and currently serves on the SMG-CAN Board of Directors. Lisa lives in Orlando, FL with her husband and three young daughters.