Profiles in Success

On this page, you will find a listing of dissertation defenses at the top of the page and our "Alumni Spotlights" at the bottom of the page. 

Dissertation Defenses:

Adler, M. (2016). The Relation Between Anxiety and Intellectual Functioning

Blocher, J. (2017). Teaching Graduate Students an Evidence-based Treatment for Child Anxiety: A Student and Peer-Training Model

Clark, A. (2018). The Efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Soldiers and Veterans: A Meta-Analysis 

Dilmanian, D. (2017). Validating an Adolescent Measure For Personality Pathology: Construct Validity of the Shedler-Westen Assessment Procedure Adolescent Prototypes

Dziedzic, M. (2017). “Can I Do This By Myself?” The Interrelations Between Peer/Student-Faculty Relationships, Stressors, and Anxiety and Depression For Students in Clinical Psychology

Fanciullo, M. (2017). A Mediational Model of the Impact Of Caregiver Depression, Social Support, and Physical Health On Ugandan Preschool Children’s Mental State Talk: The Role Of Attachment Security

Feyijinmi, G. (2018). Premature Discontinuation in the Cross Cultural Therapeutic Dyad: Beginning Therapists’ Experiences

Fults, E. (2017). Neuropathic Pain and Adverse Childhood Events in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes: A Pilot Study

Haimoff, S. (2017). Do Families with Involved Fathers have Better Parent Training Outcomes than Families with Uninvolved Fathers: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Klein, J.S. (2017). A Qualitative Analysis of an Alumni Mentoring Program

Magid, L. (2017). An Exploration of Transitions into Motherhood Within the Context of Mortality Salience: A Qualitative Study 

Margolis, A. (2017). Conditional Love? The Mediational Effect of Sexual Satisfaction on Adult Attachment Style and Relationship Satisfaction

Meeter, J. (2017). The Effects of Topic Sequencing on Engagement in a Behavioral Parent Training Program: Examining Parent Preferences and Expectancies

Mercado, M. (2016). The Experience of Bisexual Adults in Psychotherapy: A Qualitative Study

Mesrie, V. (2017). Trainee Attachment to Supervisor and Perceptions of Novice Therapist Self-Efficacy: The Moderating Role of Level of Experience 

Muschel, A. (2016). Primary Socialization Theory and Protective Factors of Religious Identification and Family Relationships in Adolescent Substance Use

Petitti, C. (2018). Vicarious Resilience in Volunteer Trauma Workers: A Qualitative Study

Polonksy, J. (2018). The Impact of Smartphone Use on Relationship Satisfaction for Men and Women

Ramotar, K. (2016).Peer Support for Self-Care Adherence and Stress Reduction in Psychology Doctoral Students 

Ratner-Stauber, A. (2017). Ultra-Orthodox Rabbinical Counseling of Trauma: A Qualitative Study

Rizvi, S. (2016). The Role of Acculturation and Religiosity in Pakistani-American Parenting Styles

Rooney, E. (2016). Examining Parent Pretreatment Expectancies and Preferences in Dialectical Behavior Therapy with Adolescents

Sauro, D. (2016). Development and Validation of a Scale Measuring Interpersonal Interactions in Twins 

Schira, A. M. (2018). Turtle Magic Intervention: A Cognitive-Behavioral Play Therapy Treatment for Aggressive Preschool Children, A Pilot Study

Schroeder, M. (2016).The Effects of Client History on Mental Health Professionals’ Attitudes Toward and Diagnosis of Disruptive Behavior Disorders 

Shorteno Fraser, M. (2017). Sibling Rivalry/Jealousy, Attachment Style, and Social Competence in Young Adults

Smith-Lytle, A. (2018). Teacher’s Self-Efficacy in Teaching Students Exposed to Traumatic Events

Sood, C. (2017).The Cost of Caring: Vicarious Trauma in the Context of Conservation of Resource Theory 

Tieman, D. (2016). Perceived Social Support, Stress, and Burnout in Residential Treatment Care Providers

Zito, D. (2017). Common Characteristics and Experiences of Members of the Pick Up Artist Community
 

Alumni Spotlights

The program spotlights alumni throughout the year The link to these alums’ profiles is available here:

Distinguished Alumni Award 2018:

Manuel Guantez, Psy.D.

Dr. Manuel Guantez is the Executive Director of Turning Point in Verona, Secaucus and Paterson, NJ.  Turning Point is a behavioral health treatment program that focuses on alcohol and substance abuse addictions as well as their co-occurring disorders.  Turning Point serves clients across the state of New Jersey.  Under Dr. Guantez’s leadership, Turning Point has expanded beyond residential treatment programs for men and women to include the recent acquisition of a significant portion of Barnert Hospital in Paterson, NJ, the opening of an outpatient program in Verona, New Jersey, and the launch of a new family program in Verona, NJ.

Dr. Guantez is an international speaker and consultant working with the United Nations to help other countries achieve the gains in combating addiction that we have seen here in the United States.  He has been singled out as an important contributor in shaping statewide policy and practices in mental health and substance abuse, and has served on the New Jersey Division of Addiction Services’ Residential Licensure Standards Revision Committee, the Residential Treatment Services Committee and the Quality Standards Substance Abuse Treatment Committee.  He currently serves as Chair of the State Professional Advisory Committee on addictions and is the co-chair of the state mental health association co-occurring disorders committee.  He was an Assistant Professor at Montclair State University and taught all core graduate and undergraduate courses in addiction and mental health.

In his very early career, Dr. Guantez worked in residential and outpatient addiction treatment conducting individual, group and family therapies, and coordinating programs for some of the more challenging treatment populations, including adolescents and persons with co-occurring disorders.

Dr. Guantez is an international speaker and consultant working with the United Nations to help other countries achieve the gains in combating addiction that we have seen here in the United States. A former U.S. Marine and Presidential Honor Guard, Dr. Guantez brings a wealth of diverse knowledge and experience to our field. Dr. Guantez received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Montclair State University.  He received his doctorate in Clinical Psychology at Long Island University, C.W. Post, as part of the entering Class of 1994 and graduated in 1999.  He lives with his wife and two children in New Jersey.

Distinguished Alumni Award 2017:

Bukky Kolawole, Psy.D.

Dr. Bukky Kolawole is a licensed clinical psychologist. Dr. Kolawole (or Dr. Bukky to her patients) completed her doctoral internship in clinical psychology at New York City’s renowned Bellevue Hospital, and received her doctoral degree (PsyD) in clinical psychology from Long Island University, Post Campus. She specializes in providing couple’s therapy and pre-marital counseling for all couples, including those in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (LGBTQ) community.

Dr. Bukky’s clinical and research interests include the development and assessment of experiential learning events for the enhancement of intimate relationships; the application of Motivational Interviewing approaches in teacher consultation; and the application of Emotionally Focused Therapy with same-sex couples and polyamorous partners. She is a current member of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (MINT), International Center of Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy (ICEEFT), New York Center for Emotionally Focused Therapy (NYCEFT) and the American Psychological Association (APA).

Dr. Bukky also maintains a voluntary faculty appointment at New York University Langone Medical Center’s Department of Population Health. Dr. Bukky is the founder of Dr. Bukky & Associates (now known as Relationship HQ). 

Distinguished Alumni Award 2016:

Christopher Kunkle, Psy.D.

Dr. Christopher Kunkle graduated from the Clinical Psychology Doctoral Program at LIU-CW Post in 2007. Upon leaving LIU-CW Post, he began his post-doctoral career in psychology with the New York State Bureau of Institutional Sex Offender Treatment, operated by the NYS Office of Mental Health where he served as a treatment provider to offenders confined to secure treatment. In 2009 he was promoted to the position of Psychiatric Examiner where he was tasked with conducting forensic psychological evaluations of offenders.

Since 2012 he has served as the Director and Chief Psychiatric Examiner of the Bureau of Institutional Sex Offender Treatment. In this position he is responsible for overseeing the operation of New York State’s sex offender civil commitment programs for Dangerous Sexual Offenders Requiring Confinement, as well as the prison-based sex offender treatment program, and the prison-based sex offender evaluation unit. These programs provide treatment to sexual offenders deemed to be at the highest risk for committing sexual violence, and are responsible for screening and the risk and treatment needs of all sexual offenders entering the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.

As a Forensic Psychologist, Dr. Kunkle has offered testimony as an expert witness in NYS Supreme court on the dangerousness and re-offense risk posed by sexual offenders, the risk for violence posed by offenders found not guilty by reason of insanity, and the mental health status of violent offenders. He has also testified about the proper use of diagnoses and assessment practices in the field of sex offender evaluation and treatment, and his testimony in a case regarding the admissibility of diagnostic testimony, was recently recognized in the New York Law Journal in May 2015.  In 2013 Dr. Kunkle was also appointed by the Federal Court in the State of Minnesota to serve on a five member team of experts to evaluate the practices of the Minnesota Sex Offender Program. 

Since 2009, Dr. Kunkle has served as an adjunct professor at the College of St. Rose in Albany New York. At the College of St. Rose, Dr. Kunkle instructs courses on Criminal Profiling, Serial Offenders, and Forensic Psychology. He has also recently been working with the administration of the college on the development of a Cold Case Analysis Center that will focus on advanced course work in the investigation and analysis of unsolved criminal cases, and volunteer assistance to local law enforcement agencies in New York State. In 2014 Dr. Kunkle was appointed Consulting Chair of the American Investigative Society of Cold Cases (AISOCC). AISOCC is an organization of international experts on crime investigation who offer volunteer services to law enforcement agencies in the investigation of unsolved violent crimes and missing person cases. Dr. Kunkle is highly devoted to furthering public safety, protecting the rights of the mentally ill, and the service of crime victims and their families. In the past he has volunteered as a Rape Crisis Advocate in New York City, served on the Community Mental Health Advisory Board in St. Lawrence County, NY, and since 2011 has been on the Executive Committee of the Ride for Missing Children.

Dr. Kunkle’s research has included the study of sexual and violent offenders, offenders with mental illness, and stalkers / threateners of celebrities and public officials. He is currently in a partnership with researchers from John Jay College to identify the link between crime scene behavior patterns in serial sexual offenses, offender diagnoses, and risk factors that predict offending. He also recently authored a chapter on enhancing the identification, assessment and diagnosis of severe Paraphilic Disorders which is currently in press. Dr. Kunkle was awarded the Outstanding Dissertation award in 2008 by the Clinical Psychology Doctoral Program at LIU-CW Post for his study on the prediction of violent offending among men and women court ordered to outpatient treatment in New York City. 

Dr. Kunkle is a former forensic scientist and was employed by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement - Orlando Crime Laboratory. At FDLE, Dr. Kunkle obtained training and experience in trace evidence collection and analysis, and crime scene investigation. In addition to his doctorate he has a Masters Degree in Clinical Psychology from LIU-CW Post, a Masters Degree in Forensic Psychology from John Jay College of Criminal Justice, and a Bachelors Degree in Chemistry and Forensic Science from the State University of New York at Oswego.

Distinguished Alumni Award 2015:

Dawn Cuglietto, Psy.D.

Dr. Dawn Cuglietto is a Director and licensed psychologist at St. Mary’s Hospital in New York, NY. Following hospitalizations in acute care facilities, children with special needs and life-threatening conditions and their families come to St. Mary’s to receive intensive rehabilitation, specialized care and education in order to learn to manage their illness or injury, and achieve a better quality of life. One such specialty program at St. Mary’s is the Center for Pediatric Feeding Disorders. In this combined day and in-patient treatment program, Dr. Cuglietto oversees a team of interdisciplinary professionals including pediatric gastroenterologists, speech pathologists, occupational therapists, behavioral psychologists, nutritionists, social workers and pediatric nurse practitioners who treat children with dysphagia and/or a feeding aversion. Her specific responsibilities include supervising and conducting comprehensive evaluations, and developing individualized treatment plans aligned with parent’s goals, therapeutic meals, and nutritional implementation. Utilizing a family-centered behavioral approach strategy, Dr. Cuglietto and her team of feeding disorder specialists assist children who present with difficulties such as mealtime tantrums, food refusal, nutritional deficiencies, failure to thrive, dependence on liquids, poor chewing/swallowing skills and extreme weight loss.

Dr. Cuglietto received her doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Long Island University, C.W. Post, as part of the entering Class of 1995. Beyond her work at the Feeding Disorder Center at St. Mary’s, Dr. Cuglietto supervises a Chronic Illness Management psychology externship program and the second rotation in a Pediatric Neuropsychology/ Child Health Psychology postdoctoral fellowship program at St. Mary’s. She also serves as The Ask The Expert on St. Mary’s nutritional advice column. She has recently received the High-5 Honor Roll Platinum Award at St. Mary’s in recognition of her work and dedication. In addition to her numerous roles at St. Mary’s, Dr. Cuglietto has her own independent practice where she consults with families, schools and medical professionals. Her private practice specialties include child/adolescent development, building emotional/social competence in children, developmental disabilities, chronic illness, and sensory/behavioral treatment of feeding disorders. Dr. Cuglietto’s core research interests lie in the area of child health psychology, chronic illness and feeding disorders. For further information, Dr. Cuglietto can be reached by email at dcuglietto@stmaryskids.org or through her Ask The Expert Tip Advice column at stmaryskids.org/patients-and-families/family-resources/feeding-and-nutrition-tips.

Distinguished Alumni Award 2014: 

Carol Mackauf, Psy.D.

Dr. Mackauf’s work has been exemplary in terms of the Clinical Psychology Doctoral Program’s mission to serve the underserved, as well as the overall LIU Post mission. This award is being presented to her for her generous, dedicated and unswerving charitable work under the banner of the non-profit Tibetan Buddhist Charitable Aid Corporation. The PsyD Program faculty wishes to recognize her (and Dr. Cuglietto received her doctorateher husband Stephen Mackauf) support for establishing and conducting humanitarian projects in impoverished and remote areas of India and Nepal.

The organization she and her family have developed and supported, including bringing safe and efficient stoves to villages where the traditional, unvented, open stove in the family hut is causing deforestation as well as eye and lung damage, represents the true spirit and mission of the Clinical Psychology Doctoral Program. As a result the faculty has awarded her this honor and also wishes to convey its enormous pride that she is an alumna of our program. Here is some information on her work:

• A short documentary clip about the Clean Stove Project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5oXDzzz_wjg
• She is a co-founder of the Tibetan Buddhist Charitable Aid, Inc : http://www.buddhistcharity.org

From the website: “Tibetan Buddhist Charitable Aid, Inc. is recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)(3) charitable corporation and by the State of New York as a not-for-profit charitable corporation. The founders of TBCA absorb all operating costs, and therefore 100% of all donations are sent to our charitable projects each year.

“We created TBCA to help support the ongoing humanitarian projects initiated and directed by Geshe Pema Dorjee. To date, these projects are located in impoverished and/or remote areas of India and Nepal, and they include: Creating schools; Arranging medical care for the sick and injured; Creating a safe house for street children in Kathmandu; Educating villagers to protect them from human trafficking; Bringing equipment and experts from Israel, Norway, and Sweden to remote villages to teach modern agricultural techniques; Bringing safe and more efficient stoves to villages where the traditional, unvented, open stove in the family hut is causing deforestation as well as eye and lung damage.”

Distinguished Alumni Award 2013:

Amy Mack, Psy.D.

Psychology in the Public Interest: When Federal and State Agencies are the Clients

Dr. Amy Mack, a senior project manager with ICF International, is the project director of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Disaster Technical Assistance Center (SAMHSA DTAC). Her clinical training and research areas have been focused primarily on trauma, disaster behavioral health, violence, and school-based mental health programs. Most recently she directed the development and launch of a national needs assessment survey of state/territory disaster behavioral health/mental health/substance abuse coordinators and local level providers.

Distinguished Alumni Award 2012:

Gil Tippy, Psy.D.

Dr. Gil Tippy is the Clinical Director and a Founder of the Rebecca School in New York, NY. The Rebecca School is a therapeutic day school for children 4 to 21 with neurodevelopmental disorders of relating and communication, including PDD and autism. Utilizing the Developmental, Individual difference, Relationship-based model (DIR) which has as its core belief that relationships are the foundation of learning, Dr. Tippy helps to develop a specialized clinical program for each child based on his/her own individual motor and sensory processing issues as well as unique strengths. He is in private practice in Oyster Bay, New York where he sees children and adults who are not on the developmental spectrum, and he is the founder of a not for profit foundation specializing in providing developmental services consistent with the DIR/Floortime philosophy.

Dr. Tippy received his doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Long Island University, C.W. Post, as part of the entering Class of 1993. He has been either a teacher or a psychologist for the last 32 years. He was directly supervised by Stanley Greenspan, M.D., who created the DIR model. Dr. Tippy is also a well-known author and speaker. He co-authored a book with Dr. Greenspan, Case Studies in DIR/Floortime Model in the School Setting: The Rebecca School Casebook for Parents and Professionals. He also co-authored a journal article, Attachment and Autism: Parental Attachment Representations and Relational Behaviors in the Parent-Child Dyad (Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 2010) as well as contributed a chapter on DIR/Floortime in the book, Cutting Edge Therapies for Autism 2010-2011 (Seri & Lyons, 2010). His most recent speaking engagements include a talk entitled, A Complicated Friendship: DIR and MusicTherapy, at the annual conference of the Mid-Atlantic Region of the American Music Therapy Association in Pittsburgh, PA and a talk entitled, School as Home in Autism, at Columbia University Children’s Rights Group at Columbia University in New York, NY.

Most recently, written during the third year of The Rebecca School’s operation in Manhattan, RESPECTING AUTISM: The Rebecca School DIR Casebook for Parents and Professionals adroitly describes the results of Tina McCourt and Michael Koffler’s efforts to conceive and create a new school in New York City for children diagnosed on the autism spectrum. Because of the devotion of the entire staff as well as parents, all New York students can now receive a developmentally appropriate, thoughtful, and integrated education. According to co-author Dr. Gil Tippy, Clinical Director: “At Rebecca School we believe that everything we do originates with respect. Respect for the children we serve, respect for the staff with whom we work, and respect for the families of the children.”

Dr. Tippys’s core research interests lie in the area of child development, parental attachment, ASD and PDD. For further information, Dr. Tippy can be reached via his Child Development Blog at http://drgiltippy.wordpress.com , his facebook account, http://www.facebook.com/ people/Gil-Tippy/708181508, his twitter account, http://twitter.com/DrGilTippy or by email at Drtippy@hotmail.com.

Distinguished Alumni Award 2011: 

Jesse Suh, Psy.D.

Dr. Jesse Suh is a clinical research psychologist and an investigator for the VISN 4 Mental Illness, Research Education, and Clinical Center (MIRECC) at the Philadelphia VA Medical Center where he oversees the MIRECC Neuroimaging Research Program. He is Instructor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Center for Studies of Addiction. Using the latest therapies and neuroimaging techniques, he examines novel treatment approaches and behavior-brain vulnerability factors in the co-morbid conditions of substance addiction and PTSD. Dr. Suh’s primary responsibilities include submitting research grants, overseeing research projects, conducting assessment and treatment, analyzing behavior and neuroimaging data and publishing results.

Dr. Suh received his doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Long Island University, C.W. Post, as part of the entering Class of 1996. He then went on to complete the NIH National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)-funded postdoctoral fellowship at the Center for Studies of Addiction at the University of Pennsylvania. He has received research grants from NIH-NIDA to study the role of affect regulation in cocaine dependent patients, and from VA-MIRECC to investigate behavior-brain vulnerability factors in veterans with PTSD using behavioral and neuroimaging assessment tools. He has presented at various national and international conferences, and has published numerous book chapters and scientific journal articles on substance addiction and co-morbid conditions. Several of his most recent journal articles include: Effects of Varenicline on Smoking Cue-triggered Neural and Craving Responses (Archives of General Psychiatry, 2011), Identifying Marijuana Use in High-Risk Veterans for Targeted Screening (Journal of Addiction Medicine, 2010), Low Prefrontal Perfusion Linked to Depression Symptoms in Methadone-Maintained Opiate-Dependent Patients (Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 2009), and Gender Differences in Predictors of Treatment Attrition with High-dose Naltrexone in Cocaine and Alcohol Dependence (American Journal of Addiction, 2008).

Dr. Suh’s core research and clinical interests lie in the area of substance addiction, co-morbid conditions, and treatment. He maintains a private practice in Philadelphia working with adolescents, adults and their families with trauma experiences and/or substance abuse problems, with the aim of facilitating a therapeutic environment, promoting emotional growth and building coping skills. As a Korean-American clinician, he possesses invaluable experience in working with Asian adolescent and adult clients, with emphasis on cultural, acculturation and intra-familial issues. For further information, Dr. Suh can be reached at Suh_J@mail.trc.upenn.edu.

Dr. Suh will be coming back to Long Island University, C.W. Post Campus, on April 28, 2011. In the morning, he will receive a Distinguished Alumni Award at the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Award Ceremony. In the afternoon, he will give a campus-wide lecture entitled Using Affect-Related Behavioral-and Brain-Markers to Predict Relapse and Resilience in Substance Abuse.

Distinguished Alumni Award 2010: 

Linda Daniels, Psy.D.

Dr. Daniels is a consultant, forensic and clinical psychologist and former Director of the Doctoral Forensic Concentration Program and core faculty at the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology. Dr. Daniels conducts seminars about trauma, and she has published in numerous peer-reviewed journals. She has also served as a panel expert and featured guest on television and at professional conferences, nationally and internationally, related to her professional experiences associated with trauma and the juvenile justice system. As a court-qualified expert witness, Dr. Daniels is frequently called upon to provide trauma evaluations in civil court proceedings.

As the former Chief Psychologist at Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (1999-2004), Dr. Daniels is a direct survivor of the 9/11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. She later treated over 200 other direct survivors of 9/11, including civilians, police and other emergency personnel. Subsequently, she published the book entitled: Healing Journeys: How Trauma Survivors Learn to Live Again (2004). In addition, Dr. Daniels served as an expert trauma consultant during hurricane Katrina, and was a member of the support team for Massachusetts families at the State Supreme Court during Zacarias Moussaoui’s 9/11 conspiracy trial.

Dr. Daniels is also a Diplomate member of The American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress and a board-certified expert in Traumatic Stress and Emergency Crisis Response. She has conducted numerous post-traumatic interventions and critical incident debriefings with law enforcement personnel and for financial and federal institutions. Dr. Daniels is a former State of Massachusetts Emergency Preparedness Department Trainer in Behavioral Health Disaster Response for Mental Health and Substance Abuse Professionals. She also served as a consultant with the Transportation Security Administration for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

These accomplishments represent just a small subset of the impressive achievements of our graduates.  A journal containing even more of these achievements is available.