FIU experts ready to weigh in on back-to-school topics parents and educators care about most

Jonathan S. Comer

Distinguished University Professor
Psychology
Center for Children and Families
College of Arts, Sciences & Education

Jonathan Comer is a distinguished university professor whose research focuses on helping children and families cope with trauma, anxiety and disasters. He leads national initiatives that train professionals in psychological first aid and develops innovative approaches to expanding access to evidence-based mental health care following crises.

Office: 305-348-7580
Email: jocomer@fiu.edu

Daniel Bagner

Director, Clinical Training
Professor
Psychology
College of Arts, Sciences & Education

Daniel Bagner is a professor of psychology and an expert in early childhood behavior problems, child development and school readiness. His research focuses on developing and evaluating evidence-based interventions for young children with behavioral challenges, developmental delays and emerging mental health concerns. His work has been continuously funded by the National Institutes of Health for more than a decade.

Office: 305-348-7548
Email:dbagner@fiu.edu

Jeremy Pettit

Executive Director, Center for Children and Families
Professor
Psychology
College of Arts, Sciences & Education

Jeremy Pettit conducts research on depression, anxiety and suicidal behaviors in childhood and adolescence. He has a particular interest in the course of these problems over time, including interpersonal and cognitive factors that contribute to their onset, maintenance and recurrence. His research also focuses on the development and evaluation of interventions for these behaviors. Pettit is the author of four books, including a guide to help teens overcome suicidal thoughts, and more than 175 research articles and book chapters. His research program is funded by the National Institute of Mental Health. With the new school year approaching, Pettit can speak about children's and adolescents' mental health, including anxiety, depression, school transitions and emotional well-being.

Office: 305-348-1671
Email:jpettit@fiu.edu 

Nicole Fava

Assistant Professor
Center for Children and Families
College of Arts, Sciences & Education

Nicole Fava is a clinical psychologist specializing in childhood trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder. Her research and clinical work focus on helping children and adolescents recover from traumatic experiences using evidence-based treatments.

Office: 305-348-4568
Email:nfava@fiu.edu 

Maureen Kenny

Associate Chair, Academic Personnel
Professor
Psychology
Center for Children and Families
College of Arts, Sciences & Education

Maureen Kenny is a professor of psychology whose research focuses on trauma, grief, violence prevention and resilience among children and adolescents. Her work explores how schools, families and communities can support youth who have experienced adversity while promoting mental health and positive development.

Office: 305-348-5142
Email:kennym@fiu.edu 

Natalia Giordano

Clinical Assistant Professor
School of Social Work
Robert Stempel College of Public Health & Social Work

Natalia Giordano is a licensed clinical social worker and assistant clinical professor in FIU’s Robert Stempel College of Public Health & Social Work. Her work focuses on child welfare, youth development, and the transition to independent living for adolescents and young adults. She brings experience in counseling, case management and life coaching, as well as developing programs focused on employment, education and life skills. Her work is grounded in healing-centered, trauma-informed and empowering approaches to supporting young people.

Office: 305-348-7351
Email: ngiordan@fiu.edu

Dana McMakin

Chairperson
Professor
Psychology
College of Arts, Sciences & Education

Dana McMakin is a clinical psychologist whose research examines how sleep affects adolescent mental health, emotional well-being and brain development. Her work explores innovative interventions to improve sleep and better understand its role in anxiety, depression and overall functioning among youth.

Office: 305-348-0042
Email: dmcmakin@fiu.edu

Charles Bleiker

Associate Professor
School of Education and Human Development, Teaching & Learning
College of Arts, Sciences & Education

Charles Bleiker has been an early childhood educator for over 40 years. He began his career teaching preschool in the 1980s and after receiving his doctorate in Child Development from Stanford University began teaching at the University of New Mexico. He joined the faculty of FIU in 2001 before officially retiring in the summer of 2026. He is a nationally known scholar in the area of school readiness with a specific focus on early math education. In the early two thousands he co-founded the Miami School Readiness Project, a landmark study on the effects of early childhood education on the academic success of over 40,000 low-income children attending subsidized childcare in the Miam-Dade metro area. Bleiker's current work focuses on creating high-quality early math interventions for children and their families. 

Office: 305-348-2524
Email: bleikerc@fiu.edu

Jennifer Mirabel

Associate Teaching Professor
Early Childhood Education
Undergraduate Program Director, Department of Teaching and Learning
College of Arts, Sciences & Education

An expert in early childhood education, early literacy, and teacher preparation, Jennifer Mirabal's work focuses on preparing highly qualified educators through evidence-based practices and meaningful clinical experiences. She oversees undergraduate program initiatives, including curriculum development, course scheduling, and teacher certification processes. Her scholarship centers on early childhood special education, family engagement, and supporting novice teachers through mentorship while fostering strong partnerships between universities, schools, and the communities they serve.

Office: 305-348-3895
Email: jenmirab@fiu.edu

Alena Prikhidko

Associate Professor
Department of Counseling, Recreation and School Psychology
College of Arts, Sciences & Education

Alena Prikhidko is a licensed marriage and family therapist, researcher, and associate professor of counseling whose work focuses on how emotions shape our relationships, mental health, and everyday lives. Her research examines emotion regulation and emotion socialization, emotional absorption, counselor development, and the ways people learn to manage both their own emotions and the emotions of those around them. She also specializes in trauma and suicide prevention. Prikhidko can provide expert commentary on back-to-school stress and anxiety, emotion regulation during major life transitions, trauma and suicide prevention, parent-child emotion dynamics, emotional boundaries, empathy and emotional overload, and the ways parents, educators, and counselors can support young people’s mental health and help them develop healthier coping skills. Drawing on both clinical practice and academic research, Prikhidko translates research into practical, accessible strategies for navigating stress, relationships, parenting, trauma, and psychological well-being.

Office: 305-348-6340
Email: aprikhid@fiu.edu

Jaime Gomez, M.D.

Associate Professor
Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine
Nicklaus Children’s Orthopedics, Sports Medicine and Spine Institute

Dr. Jaime Gomez is an associate professor of pediatrics at FIU Medicine and a board-certified pediatric orthopedic spine surgeon at Nicklaus Children’s Orthopedics, Sports Medicine and Spine Institute. He specializes in the treatment and research of scoliosis and other complex spinal conditions in children and adolescents. He can discuss backpack safety and the myths of scoliosis and proper posture while in school and using devices.

Wilson Heredia Nuñez, M.D.

Assistant Professor
Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine
Nicklaus Children’s Hospital Neuroscience Institute

Dr. Wilson Heredia Nuñez is an assistant professor of pediatrics at FIU Medicine and medical director of the Headache Program at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital Neuroscience Institute. He is a board-certified neurologist with a special qualification in pediatric neurology and can discuss sports physicals and base line concussion testing. It's not just for kids who play football.

Danyal Khan, M.D.

Professor
Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine
Nicklaus Children’s Hospital Heart Institute

Dr. Danyal Khan is a professor of pediatrics at FIU Medicine and a pediatric cardiologist at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital Heart Institute. He is board-certified in pediatrics, pediatric cardiology and adult congenital heart disease. He can discuss EKGs in general and requirements for student athletes.

Katie Hart

Director, Center for Children and Families
Associate Professor
Psychology
College of Arts, Sciences & Education

Katie Hart is a clinical psychologist and director of FIU's Center for Children and Families. Her work focuses on improving outcomes for children with ADHD and behavioral challenges through evidence-based treatments, parent training and school partnerships. She specializes in helping families and educators support children's success at home and in the classroom.

Office: 305-348-4160
Email: khart@fiu.edu 

Paulo Graziano

Professor
Psychology
Center for Children and Families
College of Arts, Sciences & Education

Paulo Graziano is a professor of psychology whose research examines how attention, self-regulation and executive functioning influence children's academic and social success. His work focuses on improving outcomes for young children with ADHD through evidence-based interventions that support school readiness and classroom functioning.

Office: 305-348-4007
Email:pgrazian@fiu.edu

Gregory Fabiano

Associate Director, Clinical Training
Professor
Psychology
Center for Children and Families
College of Arts, Sciences & Education

Gregory Fabiano is a professor of psychology and internationally recognized expert in ADHD assessment and treatment. His research focuses on developing and implementing evidence-based interventions for children with ADHD, including school-based supports, parent training and strategies that improve academic, behavioral and social outcomes.

Office: 305-348-7500
Email:gfabiano@fiu.edu 

Marcela Ramos

Research Assistant Professor
Center for Children and Families
College of Arts, Sciences & Education

Marcela Ramos is a research assistant professor at FIU's Center for Children and Families whose work focuses on evidence-based behavioral interventions for children with ADHD. She specializes in implementing school- and community-based programs that help children strengthen behavior, social skills and academic success.

Office: 305-348-5389
Email:marcramo@fiu.edu 

Nicole Schatz

Clinic Director, Center for Children and Families
Research Associate Professor
Psychology
College of Arts, Sciences & Education

Nicole Schatz is a research associate professor and clinic director at FIU's Center for Children and Families. Her work focuses on evidence-based interventions for children and adolescents with ADHD, helping families improve communication, behavior and school functioning through behavioral treatment.

Email:nschatz@fiu.edu 

Melissa Baralt

Professor
Applied Psycholinguistics
Center for Children and Families; Modern Languages
College of Arts, Sciences & Education

Melissa Baralt is a professor whose research focuses on bilingual language development and early literacy among young children. Her work explores how families and educators can support language development across multilingual environments.

Office: 305-348-2854
Email: mbaralt@fiu.edu

Shannon Pruden

Associate Chair, Psychology
Professor
College of Arts, Sciences & Education

Shannon Pruden studies how young children learn to talk (e.g., words that describe locations, directions, sizes, and shapes) and think about the spatial world in which they live and how early language shapes the spatial skills (e.g., navigation and wayfinding, mental rotation, perspective-taking, spatial orientation) tied to later success in math and science. Leveraging technology like eye-tracking, eye-blink conditioning, and structural MRI, Pruden explores the causes and consequences of individual and sex differences in spatial language and spatial cognition. Her longitudinal research, which shows that the amount of spatial language caregivers use with their children in the first four years of life predicts children's later spatial skills, has become a widely cited foundation for research on early spatial and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) skill development. Her most recent research used portable eye-tracking while families visited the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science to peek into the minds of young children as they solved spatial puzzles. Her ongoing research examines how the developing brain and children’s experiences with roaming in the world are related to their ability to know where they are located in space (i.e., spatial reorientation). 

Office: 305-348-2784
Email:sdick@fiu.edu