Ryan is a recent high school graduate, after taking a gap year to continue his work on MindfulTeen, including creating a new podcast series, hike in the Himalaya mountains and intern at a start-up firm in Cape Town, South Africa, he is now a freshman at Duke University.

With a teen audience in mind, Ryan developed the MindfulTeen site content plan and layout, worked with Spark Creative on the site design and navigation, researched and created a curated list of resources and gathered pertinent questions and feedback through several focus groups conducted with groups of peers.

Academically, Ryan’s favorite subjects are English and science – especially biology and behavioral neuroscience. To destigmatize the conversation around mental health, he initiated a mental health program at his high school and organized guest speakers from Columbia University’s Department of Psychiatry.

Outside of school, Ryan enjoys tutoring adolescents, hiking and backpacking, spending time with his family and dog and surfing.

Colleen C. Cullen, PsyD is a licensed clinical psychologist specializing in the treatment of children, adolescents, individuals and families with advanced training in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and is a DBT-LinehanBoard of Certification, Certified Clinician™.

Dr. Cullen is skilled in the treatment of a number ofemotional and behavioral issues, including depression, anxiety, Borderline Personality Disorder, oppositional and defiant behaviors, ADHD, and family stress and has worked extensively with teens and adults with suicidal and self-harming behaviors. Dr. Cullen has expertise in behavioral parenting skills training and has worked with many parents and caregivers on improving their skills related to positive reinforcement and delivering effective consequences. Dr. Cullen has received training in a number of evidence-based treatment approaches, including Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and is intensively trained in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT).

Dr. Cullen is the Executive Director of the Faculty Practice Organization at Columbia University Medical Center, Department of Psychiatry and is also an Associate Professor of Medical Psychology (in Psychology) at Columbia University Medical Center. She has significant involvement in the teaching and supervision of psychology graduate students, child psychiatry trainees and medical students. From 2010-2016 Dr. Cullen worked in the Department of Pediatric Psychiatry at Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital of New York Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center where she was the team leader for the Adolescent DBT Program and Disruptive Behavior Disorders Clinic, and co-developed the ADHD Clinic.

Dr. Cullen received her B.A. from Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH, cum laude, with a psychology major and an education concentration. Prior to completing her doctorate in Clinical Psychology at Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, FL, she was an elementary school teacher while living abroad. She completed her internship and postdoctoral fellowship at the Child and Family Institute at St Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center in Manhattan and served as a co-chief postdoctoral psychology fellow while there.

Melina Wald, PhD is a licensed clinical psychologist specialized in providing care to children, adolescents, young adults and families. Dr. Wald is trained in several evidence-based therapies to assist in management of anxiety, mood disorders, and behavioral problems, including Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Adolescents (IPT-A), Parent and Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT), and Exposure and Response Prevention (ExRP). She has also worked extensively with caregivers to assist in improving communication and parenting skills. Dr. Wald’s strong training in evidence-based psychotherapy allows her to develop a unique and tailored treatment plan for each child, adolescent, and family. In addition to Dr. Wald’s broad training in child and adolescent and young adult psychology, she has extensive experience in working with individuals across the gender and sexuality spectrum.

Dr. Wald is the Clinical Director of the Gender Identity Program at Columbia University Medical Center. The program is devoted to improving the lives of gender non-conforming, gender non-binary, and transgender children, adolescents, and adults by providing the highest quality care to assist in managing gender distress and any co-occurring mental health challenges. In her role at the Gender Identity Program, Dr. Wald provides gender affirming psychotherapy for individuals with Gender Dysphoria and works to tailor evidence-based services as needed to assist in managing psychological distress. Dr. Wald also oversees clinical services within the program and is involved in the teaching and supervision of psychiatry staff and trainees.

Dr. Wald received her doctoral degree in child clinical psychology at Auburn University. She completed her pre-doctoral internship and postdoctoral fellowship at New York Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC). During her internship and fellowship, she received focused training in LGBT mental health care. From 2015-2018, Dr. Wald worked as a staff psychologist within the Department of Pediatric Psychiatry at Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital of New York Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center. In her role as staff, she worked with and advocated for the needs of transgender, non-binary, and gender non-conforming children, adolescents, and families.

Dr. Blumkin specializes in working with children, adolescents, young adults, and adults. In addition to individual and group therapy, Dr. Blumkin works with families, parents, and couples. Dr. Blumkin is trained in numerous evidence-based treatment approaches and has a wide range of experience spanning both externalizing and internalizing disorders as well as working with those affected by chronic illness and/or medical issues. He has significant experience navigating all levels of the education system, addressing family issues, and teaching parenting skills.

Dr. Blumkin received his B.A. from the University of Colorado in Boulder, Colorado with a major in psychology. He received his doctorate from the William James College with specializations in Health Psychology and Latino Mental Health. Dr. Blumkin completed his clinical internship and postdoctoral fellowship at Children’s Hospital of New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center (CHONY/CUIMC). After completing his training, Dr. Blumkin was on staff at CHONY/CUIMC where he coordinated group programs, the ADHD clinic, and the adolescent DBT program. While on staff at CHONY/CUIMC, he supervised both medical/psychiatry students and doctoral level psychology students.

In addition to his clinical and administrative roles, Dr. Blumkin coordinates the evidence-based treatments course for the psychology trainees and psychiatry fellows in the division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at CUIMC. Dr. Blumkin also works with medical students and lawyers in the Columbia P&S Asylum Clinic and Columbia P&S Human Rights Initiative.

Gemma’s clinical and research interests focus on evidence-based treatments for individuals with anxiety and mood disorders. Gemma is particularly interested in the transition from adolescence to young adulthood. Gemma is trained in numerous evidence-based treatment approaches and has a wide range of experiencing spanning both externalizing and internalizing disorders.

Gemma received her B.S. from Tufts University with a major in psychology and a minor in child development. She received her master’s in clinical psychology from Rutgers Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology (GSAPP) and is expected to receive her doctorate in May 2023. Gemma completed a two-year externship at Rutgers Youth Anxiety and Depression Clinic (YAD-C) directed by Dr. Brian Chu as well as an externship at Columbia Day Program, Columbia Irving Medical Center. She is currently a clinical psychology extern at Northwell Health’s Behavioral Health College Partnership program providing Dialectical Behavioral Therapy to young adults. Prior to graduate school, Gemma was a research assistant at Judge Baker Children’s Center/ Harvard Medical School, working on a multisite investigation regarding the dissemination of evidence-based treatments (MATCH-ADTC and PCIT) to youth mental health providers.

In her free time, Gemma loves hiking, trying new ice cream flavors, and playing with her two golden doodles.

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