FACULTY

Boston University Wheelock College of Education & Human Development

BU Wheelock faculty hold expertise in social, emotional, and behavioral supports for students with high-intensity needs and significant emotional and behavioral disorders.

Special Education Faculty	Counseling Faculty

Dr. Jennifer Greif Green is a professor in special education and a child clinical psychologist and the Principal Investigator for Project InSTEP. Her research focuses on supporting student mental health and well-being. She conducts studies on teacher identification of students with mental health needs and reducing racial/ethnic disparities in mental health service access, and she has evaluated school-based mental health promotion activities and bullying prevention programs. She also co-directs the Social Adjustment & Bullying Prevention Laboratory. Dr. Green has won awards for her advising, including the Excellence in Graduate Advising Award.	Dr. Kimberly Howard is a professor of counseling psychology & applied human development. Her research interests include the career development process of children and youth, particularly as it is shaped by social class, gender, and race/ethnicity. She is interested in factors that promote vocational development and resilience and the reasoning processes used by children and youth to understand career development processes, and STEM career development in children and youth.
Dr. Elizabeth Bettini is an associate professor of special education. Her research examines factors shaping the special education teacher workforce, particularly how working conditions contribute to the shortage of special education teachers and to inequities in access to skilled, committed special education teachers, based on students’ disability, race/ethnicity, or socioeconomic status. Her current work is focused on identifying potential interventions to improve working conditions, to eliminate these inequities. She previously taught students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) in self-contained and inclusive settings.	Dr. V. Scott Solberg is a professor of counseling psychology & applied human development. He works internationally and nationally on the design, implementation, and evaluation of effective career development programs and services, especially for high-need youth populations, including youth with disabilities. As part of the Center for Future Readiness, Dr. Solberg’s research, professional development, and curriculum is shaping the career development implementation policies and practices in the United States and around the world.
Dr. Zachary Rossetti is an associate professor of special education. His research focuses on social inclusion and belonging of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), specifically the contexts and dynamics of friendships and how educators and parents can facilitate friendship opportunities between students with and without IDD. His research also examines the experiences of families with children with IDD by centering on participation and language access in IEP meetings, family-professional partnerships of culturally and linguistically diverse families, family advocacy, community participation, and sibling roles and relationships. Central to all of his research is the context of inclusive education for students with IDD.	Dr. Bobby Hiep Bui is a senior lecturer, practicum/internship coordinator, and director of the EdM in Counseling program. His interests include creating greater access to high-quality and affordable psychotherapy for people adversely affected by persistent poverty or inequality, improving higher education in prisons, and enhancing the supervision experience of counselors in training. Dr. Bui has over 15 years of experience teaching and practicing psychology in a variety of academic and clinical settings with diverse populations, including psychiatric hospitals, outpatient clinics, accessibility centers, public and independent schools, and state prisons.
Dr. Lindsey Chapman is a senior lecturer and program director of special education, whose scholarship focuses on teacher preparation and development across the career span, including through the use of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and high-leverage practices. She teaches undergraduate and graduate coursework on disability-related issues and provides the seminar for field-based experiences. She has experience developing and teaching undergraduate and graduate courses focused on UDL, high-leverage instructional practices, social perspectives of disability, and family and community partnerships.	Dr. Edson Filho is an associate professor of sport, exercise & performance psychology, and director of the Performance, Recovery & Optimization Lab. His research centers on performance optimization in individual and team settings. He studies the individual and shared zones of optimal functioning as well as the relationship among team processes (e.g., cohesion, team mental models, and collective efficacy). He is also interested in developing applied interventions for performance optimization and mental health for athletes and performers across domains.
Dr. Nathan Jones is an associate professor in special education. He is affiliated faculty with the Wheelock Educational Policy Center (WEPC) and is a founding member of the BU Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences. Dr. Jones is currently serving as commissioner of the Institute of Education Sciences’ (IES) National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER). In his research, Dr. Jones focuses on the intersection of education policy and classroom teaching, particularly in special education.	Dr. Melissa K. Holt is a professor of counseling psychology, a licensed psychologist, and the director of the Kilachand Honors College. Her research explores how adolescents’ exposure to violence influences mental health and well-being; ways in which school-based prevention programs can play a central role in reducing students’ exposures to bullying and bias-based harassment and improving school climate; and the experiences of gender-diverse adolescents, with an emphasis on the ways in which contexts and systems can better support gender diverse youth and amplify youth strengths.

Dr. Felicity Crawford is a clinical associate professor of special education. She is an experienced preK-12 educator who has worked for many years, and at every grade level, in racially and culturally diverse classroom settings. Her research interests include teacher ideology, the social context of urban special education, and pathways toward effectively transforming the experiences of students from diverse racial, cultural, and linguistic backgrounds in urban special education classrooms.	Jaime Suvak is a lecturer in counseling psychology & applied human development. She has both a teaching role and coordination responsibilities for internships. As a licensed mental health counselor, she is a trauma therapist, activist, educator, and prevention specialist in the field of sexual violence prevention, response, and healing. Her area of research is creating inclusive pathways to prevention, response, and healing for survivors of sexual violence who are persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). She is currently a PhD student at UMASS Boston.
Dr. Nancy Harayama is a senior lecturer in special education. Her work focuses on the assessment and instruction of students with significant cognitive disabilities, more specifically, the adaptations for access to the general education curriculum, augmentative and alternative communication, and positive behavioral supports. Dr. Harayama also serves as the director of BU Wheelock’s undergraduate program.	Dr. Maria Teresa Coutinho is a clinical associate professor in counseling psychology & applied human development. Her research focuses on the impact of cultural, social, and healthcare system factors on healthcare utilization for urban children of color and their families. Dr. Coutinho serves as the director of clinical training for the APA-accredited doctoral program in counseling psychology.
Dr. Nancy J. Nelson is an assistant professor of special education and deputy director of the National Center on Improving Literacy and the Lead for Literacy Center. She is a former special education teacher and school psychologist, and a principal investigator on more than a dozen federally funded projects to develop or test the efficacy of reading and math interventions for students with reading and math difficulties and learning disabilities.	Dr. Jenna Sung is an assistant professor in counseling psychology & applied human development, where she directs the Lab for Expanding Access for Families. Her research focuses on transforming mental health care systems to make evidence-based support more accessible for youth and their caregivers—especially those facing socioeconomic barriers. More specifically, her research centers the development, evaluation, and implementation of brief, scalable digital mental health interventions—single-session interventions (SSIs).
	Dr. Anna Ward is a lecturer in sport, exercise & performance psychology in the Counseling Psychology & Applied Human Development Department. Anna teaches graduate courses in sport psychology, counseling, and research methods, bridging the gap between theory and applied practice. Her research focuses on the professional practice and development of sport psychology practitioners and students.
	Dr. Amie Grills is the associate provost for undergraduate affairs at Boston University and a professor of counseling psychology & applied human development. She is a licensed clinical psychologist and researcher whose work specializes in anxiety, trauma, depression, and behavioral difficulties, as well as the development and evaluation of cognitive-behavioral assessments and interventions, including those conducted using web-based designs.
Project Manager Allison Andreola supports several research projects within Wheelock College, including Project InSTEP, Project TEAMS, and the WISE Institute. Allison has experience working for various youth development nonprofits in the Boston area and is currently pursuing her EdM in Educational Leadership & Policy Studies: Higher Education Administration at BU Wheelock.	Dr. Kristina Moore teaches and supervises graduate students in the Sport Psychology program. Her developmental and social perspectives of applied sport psychology have informed quantitative and qualitative research projects exploring preservice coach philosophies, perceived parental influence on adolescent athletes’ self-handicapping and goal orientations as well as sport stress and enjoyment, the interaction of basic psychological needs and self-theories of ability and their prediction of collegiate athletes’ self-handicapping, and a test of high school athletes’ personal theories of character development in sport.

Special Education Faculty

Counseling Faculty

Dr. Jennifer Greif Green is a professor in special education and a child clinical psychologist and the Principal Investigator for Project InSTEP. Her research focuses on supporting student mental health and well-being. She conducts studies on teacher identification of students with mental health needs and reducing racial/ethnic disparities in mental health service access, and she has evaluated school-based mental health promotion activities and bullying prevention programs. She also co-directs the Social Adjustment & Bullying Prevention Laboratory. Dr. Green has won awards for her advising, including the Excellence in Graduate Advising Award.

Dr. Kimberly Howard is a professor of counseling psychology & applied human development. Her research interests include the career development process of children and youth, particularly as it is shaped by social class, gender, and race/ethnicity. She is interested in factors that promote vocational development and resilience and the reasoning processes used by children and youth to understand career development processes, and STEM career development in children and youth.

Dr. Elizabeth Bettini is an associate professor of special education. Her research examines factors shaping the special education teacher workforce, particularly how working conditions contribute to the shortage of special education teachers and to inequities in access to skilled, committed special education teachers, based on students’ disability, race/ethnicity, or socioeconomic status. Her current work is focused on identifying potential interventions to improve working conditions, to eliminate these inequities. She previously taught students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) in self-contained and inclusive settings.

Dr. V. Scott Solberg is a professor of counseling psychology & applied human development. He works internationally and nationally on the design, implementation, and evaluation of effective career development programs and services, especially for high-need youth populations, including youth with disabilities. As part of the Center for Future Readiness, Dr. Solberg’s research, professional development, and curriculum is shaping the career development implementation policies and practices in the United States and around the world.

Dr. Zachary Rossetti is an associate professor of special education. His research focuses on social inclusion and belonging of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), specifically the contexts and dynamics of friendships and how educators and parents can facilitate friendship opportunities between students with and without IDD. His research also examines the experiences of families with children with IDD by centering on participation and language access in IEP meetings, family-professional partnerships of culturally and linguistically diverse families, family advocacy, community participation, and sibling roles and relationships. Central to all of his research is the context of inclusive education for students with IDD.

Dr. Bobby Hiep Bui is a senior lecturer, practicum/internship coordinator, and director of the EdM in Counseling program. His interests include creating greater access to high-quality and affordable psychotherapy for people adversely affected by persistent poverty or inequality, improving higher education in prisons, and enhancing the supervision experience of counselors in training. Dr. Bui has over 15 years of experience teaching and practicing psychology in a variety of academic and clinical settings with diverse populations, including psychiatric hospitals, outpatient clinics, accessibility centers, public and independent schools, and state prisons.

Dr. Lindsey Chapman is a senior lecturer and program director of special education, whose scholarship focuses on teacher preparation and development across the career span, including through the use of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and high-leverage practices. She teaches undergraduate and graduate coursework on disability-related issues and provides the seminar for field-based experiences. She has experience developing and teaching undergraduate and graduate courses focused on UDL, high-leverage instructional practices, social perspectives of disability, and family and community partnerships.

Dr. Edson Filho is an associate professor of sport, exercise & performance psychology, and director of the Performance, Recovery & Optimization Lab. His research centers on performance optimization in individual and team settings. He studies the individual and shared zones of optimal functioning as well as the relationship among team processes (e.g., cohesion, team mental models, and collective efficacy). He is also interested in developing applied interventions for performance optimization and mental health for athletes and performers across domains.

Dr. Nathan Jones is an associate professor in special education. He is affiliated faculty with the Wheelock Educational Policy Center (WEPC) and is a founding member of the BU Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences. Dr. Jones is currently serving as commissioner of the Institute of Education Sciences’ (IES) National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER). In his research, Dr. Jones focuses on the intersection of education policy and classroom teaching, particularly in special education.

Dr. Melissa K. Holt is a professor of counseling psychology, a licensed psychologist, and the director of the Kilachand Honors College. Her research explores how adolescents’ exposure to violence influences mental health and well-being; ways in which school-based prevention programs can play a central role in reducing students’ exposures to bullying and bias-based harassment and improving school climate; and the experiences of gender-diverse adolescents, with an emphasis on the ways in which contexts and systems can better support gender diverse youth and amplify youth strengths.

Dr. Felicity Crawford is a clinical associate professor of special education. She is an experienced preK-12 educator who has worked for many years, and at every grade level, in racially and culturally diverse classroom settings. Her research interests include teacher ideology, the social context of urban special education, and pathways toward effectively transforming the experiences of students from diverse racial, cultural, and linguistic backgrounds in urban special education classrooms.

Jaime Suvak is a lecturer in counseling psychology & applied human development. She has both a teaching role and coordination responsibilities for internships. As a licensed mental health counselor, she is a trauma therapist, activist, educator, and prevention specialist in the field of sexual violence prevention, response, and healing. Her area of research is creating inclusive pathways to prevention, response, and healing for survivors of sexual violence who are persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). She is currently a PhD student at UMASS Boston.

Dr. Nancy Harayama is a senior lecturer in special education. Her work focuses on the assessment and instruction of students with significant cognitive disabilities, more specifically, the adaptations for access to the general education curriculum, augmentative and alternative communication, and positive behavioral supports. Dr. Harayama also serves as the director of BU Wheelock’s undergraduate program.

Dr. Maria Teresa Coutinho is a clinical associate professor in counseling psychology & applied human development. Her research focuses on the impact of cultural, social, and healthcare system factors on healthcare utilization for urban children of color and their families. Dr. Coutinho serves as the director of clinical training for the APA-accredited doctoral program in counseling psychology.

Dr. Nancy J. Nelson is an assistant professor of special education and deputy director of the National Center on Improving Literacy and the Lead for Literacy Center. She is a former special education teacher and school psychologist, and a principal investigator on more than a dozen federally funded projects to develop or test the efficacy of reading and math interventions for students with reading and math difficulties and learning disabilities.

Dr. Jenna Sung is an assistant professor in counseling psychology & applied human development, where she directs the Lab for Expanding Access for Families. Her research focuses on transforming mental health care systems to make evidence-based support more accessible for youth and their caregivers—especially those facing socioeconomic barriers. More specifically, her research centers the development, evaluation, and implementation of brief, scalable digital mental health interventions—single-session interventions (SSIs).

Dr. Anna Ward is a lecturer in sport, exercise & performance psychology in the Counseling Psychology & Applied Human Development Department. Anna teaches graduate courses in sport psychology, counseling, and research methods, bridging the gap between theory and applied practice. Her research focuses on the professional practice and development of sport psychology practitioners and students.

Dr. Amie Grills is the associate provost for undergraduate affairs at Boston University and a professor of counseling psychology & applied human development. She is a licensed clinical psychologist and researcher whose work specializes in anxiety, trauma, depression, and behavioral difficulties, as well as the development and evaluation of cognitive-behavioral assessments and interventions, including those conducted using web-based designs.

Project Manager

Photo of Allison Andreola

Allison Andreola supports several research projects within Wheelock College, including Project InSTEP, Project TEAMS, and the WISE Institute. Allison has experience working for various youth development nonprofits in the Boston area and is currently pursuing her EdM in Educational Leadership & Policy Studies: Higher Education Administration at BU Wheelock.

Dr. Kristina Moore teaches and supervises graduate students in the Sport Psychology program. Her developmental and social perspectives of applied sport psychology have informed quantitative and qualitative research projects exploring preservice coach philosophies, perceived parental influence on adolescent athletes’ self-handicapping and goal orientations as well as sport stress and enjoyment, the interaction of basic psychological needs and self-theories of ability and their prediction of collegiate athletes’ self-handicapping, and a test of high school athletes’ personal theories of character development in sport.