Speaker

One of the United States most cited researchers and translational research in absenteeism and school attendance problems is Dr. Christopher Kearney, Distinguished professor, Chair of Psychology at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and Director of the UNLV Child School Refusal and Anxiety Disorders Clinic. Most notable known for his work in the development of the Multi-tired Systems of Support (MTSS) Approach and Response to Intervention (RTI), Dr. Kearney is a clinical child psychologist who specializes in internalizing problems in youth, with particular emphasis on (1) problematic absenteeism and school refusal behavior, (2) post-traumatic disorder among maltreated and otherwise traumatized youths, (3) selective mutism, and (4) assessment and other anxiety-related problems such as perfectionism in children. Dr. Kearney is highly active in publishing with his graduate students, provides many resources to clinicians and lay persons regarding his assessment and treatment protocols, and commonly conducts training workshops for professional groups and school districts. His latest work redefines the need to enhance synergy regarding school attendance/problems via shared conceptual schemas, cohesive organization of key variables, fundamental evolutionary processes, assimilated measurement tools, and coordinated intercession strategies. In sum, we must be systemic defining core constructs, shared domain architectures and ecological factors with, nuanced early warning systems, and data mining algorithms for appropriate evaluation and assessment in order for the multi-tiered systems of support to work well for broad and specific interventions. problematic school absenteeism, selective mutism, post-traumatic stress disorder in maltreated children, and other internalizing disorders. My research focuses on assessment and treatment issues as well as taxonomy.