Introduction
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Faculty

Faculty

Sharon Berry, PhD, LP, director of training. Dr. Berry received her PhD in clinical psychology from the Florida State University in 1986 having previously earned a masters degree in clinical behavioral therapy at North Dakota State University. The predoctoral internship was completed at the Medical College of Georgia/VA Consortium, with a specialization in pediatric psychology. Primary clinical interests include chronic illness populations, pain management, bereavement, and behavioral medicine. Prior to joining the clinical faculty at Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota, Dr. Berry was an assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Northwestern University Medical School, serving on the internship faculty and providing clinical services to a wide range of pediatric populations at Children’s Memorial Medical Center in Chicago, Illinois. Dr. Berry is Chair of the Board of Directors for the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers (APPIC) and served six years on the executive board for APA Division 54, the Society of Pediatric Psychology. She coordinates the Mentoring Project for Division 54 and connects mentors across the nation. In addition, she is the 2007 recipient of the Division 54 Martin P. Levin Mentorship Award, and 2003 APA Education Advocacy Distinguished Service Award.

Jeremy Alden, PhD, LP, received his degree in clinical psychology from the University of Minnesota in 1994. He completed a predoctoral internship in neuropsychology at Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke’s Hospital in Chicago in 1993. Dr. Alden completed a two-year postdoctoral fellowship at Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital in pediatric neuropsychology. He has been with Children’s of Minnesota since 1999 and specializes in evaluation of children with a wide range of neurological and neurodevelopmental disorders.

Don Brunnquell, PhD, LP, resident ethicist, director, office of ethics, received his degree in clinical psychology from the University of Minnesota in 1981, and a masters degree in philosophy in 1992. His primary responsibilities are in the office of ethics as the coordinator for ethics education, consultation, and policy work throughout the Children’s system. He also chairs the Children’s IRB. Dr. Brunnquell provides consultation and supervision in the areas of mental health and medical ethics. Dr. Brunnquell teaches psychology ethics for the University of Minnesota Institute of Child Development and clinical psychology program.

Bonnie Carlson-Green, PhD, LP, received her clinical child psychology degree from Georgia State University in 1993 where she specialized in developmental neuropsychology. She completed an internship in child clinical/pediatric psychology at the Children’s Memorial Medical Center in Chicago and went on to a two-year fellowship in neuropsychology at the University of Minnesota Medical School. She remained at the University of Minnesota as a staff pediatric neuropsychologist until joining Children’s of Minnesota in 1996. Dr. Carlson-Green’s primary interests are in the areas of childhood cancer (assessment of neurocognitive and late effects, parent and teacher training and advocacy), neurodevelopmental disorders, and evaluation of neuropsychologic outcomes in children with medical disorders.

Julie Erickson, PhD, LP, received her degree in clinical psychology from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 1999. She completed the predoctoral clinical internship at The Children’s Hospital, Boston. Subsequently, Dr. Erickson completed a post-doctoral fellowship in the division of pediatrics and adolescent health at the University of Minnesota focusing on family therapy, inpatient consultation-liason, and eating disorders. She has been with Children’s since 2002 and is located primarily at Teenage Medical Service (TAMS), where she provides outpatient individual and family therapy, psychological testing, and medical clinic consultation.

Sarah Jerstad, PhD, LP, earned her degree in counseling psychology from the University of Minnesota in 2004, followed by a predoctoral clinical internship at the Denver Health Medical Center in Denver specializing in child and adolescent mental health and medical psychology. Following her internship, Dr. Jerstad completed a two-year postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Minnesota in the division of pediatrics and adolescent health focusing on the treatment of eating disorders, as well as advocacy and leadership in adolescent health. She has been with Children's of Minnesota since September 2006 with a focus on outpatient therapy (particularly with adolescents) and consultation liaison with pediatric oncology patients and their families.

Sherrie Kamm, PhD, LP, received her degree in clinical psychology from the University of Missouri-St. Louis in 1999. She completed her predoctoral internship and postdoctoral fellowship at Children’s of Minnesota, where she gained specialized training in pediatric psychology. Her primary responsibilities include liaison to the oncology team, general inpatient consultation-liaison, and outpatient therapy. Dr. Kamm's clinical interests include coping with chronic illness and prolonged hospitalization, bereavement, pain management, and behavioral medicine.

Denise Marvinney, PhD, LP, received her degree in developmental psychology from the Institute of Child Development at the University of Minnesota in 1989 and has been on the staff of Children’s of Minnesota since 1997. She completed a two-year postdoctoral fellowship in research in clinical psychology and certification in school psychology at Indiana University before completing two years of clinical training in assessment and psychotherapy with children and adults at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis. Dr. Marvinney enjoys working with children and adolescents with a wide variety of emotional/behavioral problems.

Jonathan Miller, PhD, LP, ABPP, earned his PhD in clinical psychology from Washington University, with specialty training in neuropsychology. Subsequently, Dr. Miller completed his predoctoral internship at the University of Florida Health Science Center in the department of clinical and health psychology. Furthermore, Dr. Miller participated in an APA-approved post-doctoral fellowship in pediatric neuropsychology with additional training in rehabilitation. He has been on the faculty at Children’s of Minnesota since September 1997. Dr. Miller's interests are the assessment and remediation of children with acquired neurological dysfunction (e.g., prematurity, brain injury, late effects of cancer treatments, strokes, etc.) as well as neurodevelopmentally-based disorders (e.g., learning disabilities, autism, mental retardation, etc.).

Donna Miliotis, PhD, LP, received her clinical child psychology degree through a joint program in child development and clinical psychology at the University of Minnesota in 1996. She completed an internship and fellowship at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis, providing outpatient therapy and assessment for children and adults and inpatient therapy for children hospitalized with severe burns. Dr. Miliotis joined the St. Paul staff in 1997, and particularly enjoys working with adolescents. In addition to providing outpatient therapy services, Dr. Miliotis is a member of two multidisciplinary school problem assessment teams.

Paula Pitterle, PhD, LP, received her degree in clinical psychology from the Illinois Institute of Technology in 2001. She completed her predoctoral internship at the University of Minnesota, in pediatric and clinical psychology, and a predoctoral fellowship at Fraser Child and Family Services where she jointly developed and co-directed a preschool day treatment group. She completed a post-doctoral fellowship at The Minneapolis campus of Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota and joined the staff in 2005. Her primary responsibilities include outpatient therapy and assessment. Dr. Pitterle's clinical interests include childhood abuse and neglect, and early childhood emotional and behavioral difficulties, as well as early childhood development and the impact of parent-child interaction and attachment.

Julie Robinson, PhD, LP, earned her degree in counseling psychology from the University of Iowa in 1993, followed by a predoctoral clinical internship at the University of Florida Medical Center in Gainesville specializing in neuropsychology and medical psychology. Subsequently, Dr. Robinson completed a two-year postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Minnesota in pediatric neuropsychology. She has been with Children’s of Minnesota since March 1996 and with interests in a combination of pediatric neuropsychology, outpatient therapy (particularly with adolescents), and consultation liaison with medical psychology patients and their families.

Cynthia Koehler Troy, PhD, LP, received her degree in clinical psychology from the University of Minnesota in 1988. She completed her predoctoral internship at UCLA’s Neuropsychiatric Institute, and did a predoctoral fellowship at Hennepin County Medical Center. Dr. Koehler Troy has been on the staff at Children’s of Minnesota since 1990. At Children’s St. Paul, she was the psychologist for the hematology-oncology team from 1996 to 2006. In addition to her interest in chronic illness, she enjoys working with a broad range of psychopathology across the developmental spectrum.

Michael Troy, PhD, LP, behavioral services manager, received his PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Minnesota in 1988, and has been on staff at Children’s of Minnesota since then. He is also an instructor in the psychology department of the University of Minnesota and Hamline University, and is the past-president of Minnesota Child Psychologists. He works with both a general outpatient mental health population and with children hospitalized for acute and chronic medical problems. Areas of clinical interest include developmental psychopathology, brief therapy models with children and adolescents, and personality assessment.

Alyssa Kaying Vang, PsyD, LP, earned her Clinical Psychology degree from the California School of Professional Psychology in 2000, with an emphasis in Cross-Cultural Psychology. She completed her predoctoral internship and post-doctoral training at Hennepin County Medical Center. Dr. Vang has been on staff at Children's of Minnesota since 2001. She has a specialized interest in working with Hmong children and their families. Dr. Vang also enjoys working with younger children and has been involved with the statewide project on early childhood mental health, known as the ABCD II/Great Start Minnesota project.

Renee von Weiss, PhD, LP, received her degree in clinical psychology with a specialization in health psychology from the University of Kansas in 2002. She completed her predoctoral internship at the department of clinical and health psychology at the University of Florida in Gainesville specializing in clinical child and pediatric psychology. Subsequently, Dr. von Weiss completed a one-year postdoctoral fellowship in clinical child and pediatric psychology at the University of Louisville. She jointed the staff at Children’s of Minnesota in 2003. Her primary responsibilities include outpatient therapy, assessment, and inpatient consultation-liaison. Dr. von Weiss’ clinical interests include pain management, adherence to medical regimens, anxiety, and coping with chronic illness.

Jason L. Walker, PhD, LP, earned his doctorate in clinical psychology program from the University of Georgia in 1989. Prior to moving to Minnesota, Dr. Walker worked for a year in the attention deficit disorder program with Dr. Bill Pelham at Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Dr. Walker subsequently worked for 12 years at Pilot City Mental Health Center in Minneapolis doing outpatient assessment and treatment with children and adolescents. Dr. Walker joined Children’s of Minnesota in March of 2002, where he continues to provide outpatient assessment and treatment. His primary clinical interests include individual, family, and group therapy for boys with attention deficit and disruptive behavior disorders.

Karen Wills, PhD, LP, ABPP, completed her PhD in clinical and developmental psychology at the University of Iowa in 1983, followed by an internship and post-doctoral training in pediatric consultation/liaison and neuropsychology at The Children's Hospital, Boston (1983-1985). She is board-certified in clinical neuropsychology, and specializes in evaluation and treatment planning for children with neurodevelopmental or acquired brain dysfunction. Before joining the faculty at Children’s of Minnesota in 2001, Dr. Wills worked as a pediatric neuropsychologist at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota (1998-2001) and at Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago (1985-1991); and as assistant professor in the clinical and developmental psychology PhD programs at Loyola University Chicago (1991-1998).

Kathleen Woods, PhD, LP, received her degree in child psychology in 2006 through a joint program between the Institute of Child Development and the Clinical Psychology department at the University of Minnesota. She completed her predoctoral internship and postdoctoral fellowship at Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota, where she joined the professional staff in 2008. In addition to conducting outpatient assessments and therapy with a wide age range of children and adolescents, Dr. Woods also consults with the Feeding Clinic and provides inpatient consultation-liaison services in the hospital.

Mary Zielinski, PhD, LP, earned her PhD in clinical psychology from the University of North Dakota in 1993, following a predoctoral internship at the University of Minnesota. She has been a staff psychologist at Children’s of Minnesota since 1995 and has worked in the child development, Down syndrome, learning and behavior, and craniofacial clinics. She currently specializes in diagnostic assessment and treatment of early childhood disorders, including autism spectrum disorders. Her primary interests are in the areas of early childhood development and emotional and behavioral difficulties in the toddler, preschool, and elementary school aged populations. Dr. Zielinski is currently on the board of directors for the Minnesota Child Psychologists and serves as chair of the education commission at a local school.