Presenting: Application of DIRFloortime® Principles in Psychotherapy with Neurodivergent Adults: Clinical experience

Located in: Georgia

Bio: Olena Akulova is a psychologist with a Specialist Degree in Psychology (Master’s-level equivalent), child and family psychotherapist, trauma therapist, and DIRFloortime® Expert Training Leader with ICDL. She has more than 20 years of clinical, consultative, training, and supervisory experience supporting neurodivergent adults, children with developmental differences, and families.

In recent years, Olena’s professional focus has been on integrating the DIRFloortime® approach into psychotherapeutic practice with neurodivergent adults, families, and children with developmental differences. This integrative approach allows her to support development, relationships, emotional regulation, and work with traumatic experience within a unified framework.

Olena also brings 16 years of lived experience as a mother of a child with special needs, which has deeply informed her commitment to ethical, humane, and family-centered support.

She pays particular attention to complex and underexplored areas, including neurodevelopmentally oriented psychotherapy for neurodivergent adults and the implementation of DIRFloortime® principles in pediatric palliative care. She is the author of the Speech Steps methodology for speech development in non-speaking children with autism and training programs for professionals, including Positive Collaboration with Families of Children with Developmental Differences.

Co-Presenting: War Trauma and Development: A DIRFloortime® perspective on regulation, relating, and healing

Located in: Kuwait

Bio: Danah Al-Khatrash is a speech-language pathologist, play therapist and the first Kuwaiti and GCC-based DIRFloortime® Expert Training Leader. She is the founder of Communicate and Learn With Danah, where she provides therapy, parent support, training, and professional consultations.

Her work is rooted in neurodiversity-affirming, relationship-based, and developmentally informed practice, with a focus on communication, emotional regulation, attachment, and play. Danah supports neurodivergent children through respectful, child-led approaches that prioritize emotional safety, authentic connection, and meaningful participation.

She works closely with parents and professionals to deepen understanding of individual developmental profiles and to build inclusive environments that foster regulation, confidence, communication, and connection.

Co-Presenting: This is How We Do It- OT department MAPs students using the SpIRiT ©

Located in: United States

Bio: Lindsay Altman is the Occupational Therapy Supervisor at Rebecca School in New York City. She holds a Master of Science in Occupational Therapy and is a DIRFloortime® Expert and Training Leader, teaching DIR coursework both onsite at Rebecca School and online to support professionals in using developmental and strengths-based approaches. Lindsay’s clinical expertise includes certification in Ayres Sensory Integration (CASI, EASI), Therapeutic Listening, and the Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) with additional training in Learning without Tears, primitive reflex integration, interoception and the use clinical reasoning tools (SPIRIT and STEP2SI with Tracy Stackhouse). With a strength-based, individualized approach, she is dedicated to helping students discover their passions and thrive through collaboration with families and transdisciplinary teams.

Presenting: Using DIRFloortime® Developmental Capacities to Guide Everyday Communication Across All Neurotypes and Ages (Incorporating ‘yes, and, ‘no,’ and feelings & needs)

Located in: United States

Bio: For over 25 years, Sophia Ashman has worked alongside children with Autism, developmental differences, and their families — across home, school, and community settings. Her practice is deeply rooted in the DIRFloortime® framework, guided by a lifelong commitment to meeting each child within their own developmental capacities and building authentic, emotionally meaningful relationships.

Her training spans Drama Therapy, Play Therapy, Sensory Integration, the Neurorelational Framework, and DIRFloortime®, bringing a rich, interdisciplinary lens to all of her work. She is passionate about empowering families, educators, and professionals to bring the heart of DIR into every interaction.

Co-Presenting: A DIR® Journey from Diagnosis to Unmasking

Located in: United States

Bio: Jackie Bartell, MS. Ed., has worked in special education for over 30 years. She has worked with children with special needs in a variety of settings, including both private and public schools, and has consulted with families in their homes. She draws on her experiences, including work with Stanley Greenspan and Serena Weider, to offer insights that help professionals and parents understand their relationship with their child and how to apply the DIR model in a home or school setting.

As an expert training leader for ICDL, she provides online and in-person instruction in the DIR model for both parents and professionals worldwide. She also offers in-person consultation, mentoring, and support to schools globally. Since she was certified as a DIR facilitator in 2001, Jackie has trained hundreds of professionals and families in the DIR model of intervention. She received her B.A. in Psychology and her MS in Developmental Disabilities, with certification in Special Education from the University of Rochester.

Co-Presenting: From Diagnosis to Development: Clinical lessons in DIRFloortime® parent coaching in the Philippines

Located in: Phillipines

Bio: Angel Belle C. Dy is a physician, infant mental health specialist, and medical educator based in the Philippines. She serves as Assistant Professor at the Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health, where she coordinates the Human Development module and mentors medical students in research. Dr. Dy is an Expert Training Leader for the International Council on Development and Learning (ICDL), delivering DIRFloortime certificate courses to clinicians and allied health professionals regionally and internationally. She is currently completing a PhD in Infant and Early Childhood Development at Fielding University, California, having earned a second masters in Infant, Child and Family Mental Health and Development.

She is a certified provider of the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics and the first NMT-certified provider in Southeast Asia. Through The Growing Brain PH, the clinic she founded in 2020, she provides infant and toddler mental health services and DIRFloortime-informed parent coaching for families of children with autism and other neurodevelopmental differences. Her research spans early childhood development, autism, and Filipino child health, with publications in The Lancet, Frontiers in Public Health, and BMC Public Health, among others.

Co-Presenting:  Stories of Connection

Located in: Canada

Bio: Daria Brown, MA, holds a DIRFloortime® Advanced Certificate and serves as Parent Advocate and Advisor with ICDL. With more than three decades of experience across universities, government, and nonprofit sectors, she has supported educators, school administrators, and policymakers through research, data analysis, evaluation, and professional learning in psychological, educational, and public health research settings. She has delivered workshops, consultations, and professional learning sessions to diverse audiences, supporting teams in understanding their data in an appropriate context to inform thoughtful decision-making.

Following her son’s severe brain inflammation and Autism diagnosis, Daria discovered DIRFloortime® and never looked back. This framework expanded her work to include developmental and relational approaches to supporting neurodivergent children and families, while deepening her understanding of growth across the lifespan. Her work consistently bridges theory, lived experience, and practice for caregivers and clinicians alike.

Daria is also the founder of Affect Autism, creator and host of the We Chose Play podcast and documentary series, and the author of We Chose Play: Raising an Autistic Child to Thrive and Feel Understood. Known for her relatable approach, she is a trusted and resourceful source of knowledge who fosters connections through dedication, curiosity, and compassion.

Presenting:  DIR®Through a Trauma Lens: How following the child's lead causes unmanageable high arousal, shutdown or turmoil in children with history of unprotectedness

Located in: Turkey

Bio: Kemal graduated from the Physiotherapy Department in 2003 and began a Master’s program in Speech-Language Pathology (SLP) the same year. After graduating from the SLP program in 2006, he started working with children and adults with speech, language, and communication difficulties.

Kemal joined the DIR® community in 2009 and became an ICDL Expert Training Leader in 2020.

The majority of his caseload consists of children and families with developmental challenges. He works in a private practice setting. Some of his clients are typically developing children whose concerns include stuttering, articulation, phonology, and language delay.

Co-Presenting: Wonder at Work: How neuroscience validates the lessons of the neighborhood and the floor. Connecting the heart of Mr. Rogers and DIR®.

Located in: United States

Bio: Maggie Collins is a Developmental Therapist and DIRFloortime® Expert, specializing in early intervention, neurodivergence, and coaching caregivers, students, and professionals. Throughout her two-decade career, she has utilized relationship-based, developmental, and child-directed approaches in her practice. Today, the DIRFloortime® model serves as the main focus of her practice, offering a perfect complement to and expansion of her dedicated work with parents of neurodiverse children. Maggie deeply connects with this philosophy, which emphasizes that children learn and grow in joyful, connected relationships, and that every child and caregiver deserves to be truly seen and heard for who they are. Maggie's favorite part of her job is empowering parents to gain confidence and joy in their interactions with their child, using neuro-affirming practices and prioritizing connection over compliance.

Co-Presenting: Enhancing the DIRFloortime® Approach with an Understanding of Developmental Movement Rhythms and Motor Development: Capacities 4,5, 6 and beyond

Located in: United States

Bio: Mary Beth Crawford is a pediatric physical therapist and DIRFloortime® expert, practicing for over 26 years. Mary Beth owns Baby Steps Therapy, an integrated therapy center in PA, dedicated to providing optimal developmental therapy. Mary Beth brings a deep understanding of the neuroscience connecting our sensory, affective and motor systems to her courses and Mentorship programs, as well as her Floortime® and PT practice. Mary Beth is honored to teach DIR® curriculum courses and her Affect Mediated Motor Development course for ICDL. She is grateful to be a part of such a forward-thinking community. She loves collaborating and learning from others. When she is not teaching, creating coursework or working directly with clients and families, she enjoys spending time with her husband and three children, extended family and friends, exercising, reading and meditating.

Co-Presenting: The Power of Two: Enhancing DIRFloortime® with dual adult engagement

Located in: United States

Bio: Kaitlyn Darbe (she/her) loves collaborating and partnering with children and their family systems to support engagement in meaningful activities. She currently works at Developmental FX in Denver Colorado. Kaitlyn brings experience in the pediatric and neonatal intensive care unit and outpatient pediatrics focused on sensory health and wellness. Kaitlyn received her master’s degree in Occupational Therapy from Midwestern University. Kaitlyn’s treatment prioritizes building relationships with families through trust, respectful interaction, and communication. She has completed an Intensive Mentorship Program in Sensory Processing and Integration and is a certified DIR Floortime Provider. She hopes to make a lasting impact on the lives of those she works with and is honored to be a part of their journey. Kaitlyn is committed to foster and provide inclusive, neurodiversity affirming, and equitable therapy across the lifespan. In her free time, Kaitlyn enjoys skiing, hiking, and spending time with her sweet dog Lola.

Co-Presenting: Getting Road Ready: A DIRFloortime® approach to driver training for neurodivergent individuals

Located in: United States

Bio: Joann Fleckenstein, is an occupational therapist, neurodiversity advocate, and DIRFloortime® Expert Training Leader with over two decades of clinical experience. After earning both her BS and MS in Occupational Therapy from Brenau University in 2005, she dedicated her career to serving clients across the entire lifespan - spanning ages from two months to 108 years - with a specialized focus on supporting the holistic family system. As an international speaker on neurodivergence and caregiving, Joann founded her Atlanta-based practice, Across All Ages, in 2024 to provide dedicated, neurodiversity-affirming care for individuals and families at every stage of life.

Co-Presenting: Comfort Connection and Curiosity: The Use of DIR®-Informed Feeding and the Possibilities of What Mealtime can be

Co-Presenting: What Is Expansion, Really?: Supporting development across the FEDCs through one shared play activity

Located in: United States

Bio: Erin Forward, MSP, CCC-SLP, CLC, is a speech-language pathologist, DIR/Floortime Training Leader, founder of Nourishing Connection, and host of the Rooted in Connection podcast. She specializes in relationship-based feeding therapy, communication, and neurodiversity-affirming care, helping families better understand and connect with their child in an authentic way.

Erin is a national speaker and educator who presents on topics including trauma-sensitive and DIR-informed feeding, complex communication, and caregiver support. She is particularly interested in the intersection of social-emotional development and feeding and is the creator of the Mealtime Literacy framework, which encourages professionals to view mealtimes through the lens of comfort, connection, and curiosity.

Through her clinical work, teaching, mentorship, and podcast, Erin strives to bridge research, lived experience, and everyday practice while helping families and professionals create more meaningful, connected experiences for the children they support.

Co-Presenting: This is How We Do It- OT department MAPs students using the SpIRiT©

Located in: United States

Bio: Colleen Gabbert, OTR/L, is the Related Services Coordinator at the Rebecca School, where she supports collaboration between related service departments and the transdisciplinary team to create individualized programming through DIRFloortime®. A licensed occupational therapist, Colleen is also a DIRFloortime® Expert Training Leader, providing mentorship and training to professionals applying the DIR model to support social-emotional and developmental growth.

Since joining the Rebecca School in 2011, Colleen has been passionate about the DIRFloortime® approach and committed to promoting independence, advocacy skills, and overall quality of life for students through a strength-based model. She has completed advanced training in listening protocols (Safe and Sound Protocol and Therapeutic Listening), sensory processing (SpIRiT and STEPPSIⓒ), motor planning and praxis (NDT), and visual-spatial processing.

Colleen believes every child can thrive when supported through meaningful relationships, collaboration, and individualized, developmentally appropriate programming.

Presenting: From One-Off Interventions to Sustainable Practice: Implementing DIRFloortime® in preschool classrooms

Located in: Italy

Bio: Simone has been an Occupational Therapist since 2014, advancing to become a DIRFloortime® Practitioner in 2019, and an Expert and Training Leader in 2025.

Throughout his international career across Italy, Switzerland and American Military NATO bases, he has developed a unique expertise supporting both civilian and military families navigating neurodiversity, including ASD, ADHD, and DCD.

Professionally active across the lifespan, Simone divides his clinical time between his private pediatric practice and the Italian public health system, where he works with adults with intellectual disabilities. Deeply committed to the progression of his profession, he serves as a Counselor for the Italian Board of Occupational Therapists and is an active member of the Italian Scientific Association of Occupational Therapists.

Centered around a strict strength-based philosophy, Simone’s mission is to help communities view neurodiversity through the metaphor of a four-leaf clover: looking for the details that make us unique and different from regular clovers, rather than focusing on deficits or trying to imitate what is conventionally considered “normal”.

Since 2022, he has translated this vision into educational systems, delivering specialized teacher training, coaching, and context-based, client-centered, occupation-focused interventions to foster sustainable inclusion in preschool settings.

Co-Presenting: War Trauma and Development: A DIRFloortime® perspective on regulation, relating, and healing

Co-Presenting: Good Girls Don’t Stim: Gendered masking and the developmental cost of lost affect in DIRFloortime

Located in: Canada

Bio: Zaineb Ghlayem is a DIRFloortime® Expert Training Leader, educator, consultant, and founder of clever Clogs Inclusive Academy in British Columbia, Canada. She is recognized for her leadership in neurodiversity-affirming and relationship-based approaches across the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley.

Zaineb works closely with families, educators, therapists, and schools to promote inclusive, respectful, and developmentally informed support for neurodivergent children. Her work focuses on DIRFloortime®, emotional development, inclusive education, and strengthening authentic connections without compliance-based practices. Through her clinical work, teaching, mentorship, and podcast, Erin strives to bridge research, lived experience, and everyday practice while helping families and professionals create more meaningful, connected experiences for the children they support.

Presenting: Applying DIRFloortime® to Clinical Practice: Evidence-informed strategies for emotional dysregulation and aggression

Located in: Indonesia

Bio: Nadia Emanuella Gideon is an International Expert Training Leader in DIRFloortime and a licensed Child and Adolescent Clinical Psychologist based in Indonesia. She actively teaches and mentors professionals internationally through ICDL, specializing in relational development, emotional regulation, and family-centered intervention.

Nadia is the Founder and Clinical Director of JCDC Family Center in Jakarta, where she works closely with children and families across developmental and neurodivergent profiles. She is certified as an Autism Spectrum Disorder Clinical Specialist and Youth Mental Health Specialist through Professional Education Systems Institute and has advanced training in Ayres Sensory Integration through Collaborative for Leadership in Ayres Sensory Integration.

Beyond clinical practice, Nadia founded the Cita Anak Bangsa Foundation to support children requiring financial assistance for developmental services and contributed to the establishment of Golden Growth Preschool, which integrates the DIR Floortime approach into education.

She also contributes to national disability and child development initiatives in collaboration with the Kementerian Sosial Republik Indonesia and Kementerian Pemberdayaan Perempuan dan Perlindungan Anak Republik Indonesia. Nadia is frequently invited as a speaker at professional forums, schools, media programs, and international conferences.

Co-Presenting: What Did You See? A Transdisciplinary Video Review

Co-Presenting: Wonder at Work: How neuroscience validates the lessons of the neighborhood and the floor. Connecting the heart of Mr. Rogers and DIR®.

Located in: United States

Bio: Becky Gottlieb is an educator, mentor, and DIRFloortime® expert training leader with nearly 20 years of experience supporting families across home, school, and clinical settings. As the Intensive Program Coordinator for ICDL’s DIR® Institute in New Jersey, she coordinates immersive coaching programs for families worldwide. Becky also teaches courses and provides specialized mentoring through ICDL to help parents and professionals master the DIRFloortime® model. Dedicated to a developmental, relationship-based lens, Becky helps others understand each child’s unique profile. She believes deeply in the power of play as the foundation for growth, learning, and connection. As a parent herself, she continuously appreciates everyday opportunities for shared joy. Becky is passionate about empowering caregivers and professionals to build meaningful connections, helping them guide children on their unique developmental journeys.

Co-Presenting: Opening Presentation - DIR® and Masking Prevention: Supporting the Development of the Authentic Self

Located in: South Africa

Bio: Dr. Emile Gouws is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of South Africa (UNISA) and an internationally renowned disability activist that attends Commonwealth and United Nations higher political meetings. Dr Gouws is the president of the Board of ICDL and is only the 3rd person to hold this position. In his free time, Dr. Gouws was the former Vice-chairman of the National Executive committee of Autism South Africa and currently represents underrepresented groups on the Commonwealth Disabled Peoples Forum, In 2023, Dr. Gouws have been nominated for the Commonwealth Youth awards and is on the South African steering Committee to report to the United Nations. Dr Gouws has contributed to various international articles and research papers on neurodiversity including a published article in Forbes magazine Japan. Dr. Gouws was also invited as the academic representative on the steering committee of South Africa’s response to the United Nations. He is married to a beautiful Alexic autistic lady named Sammi who is also a autism self-advocate. Together they do advocacy on relationships and being married as an autistic couple.

Co-Presenting: Opening Presentation - DIR® and Masking Prevention: Supporting the Development of the Authentic Self

Located in: United States

Bio: Robert Jason Grant received is a Licensed Professional Counselor, National Certified Counselor, and a Registered Play Therapist Supervisor. He specializes in working with children, adolescents, families, and adults primarily serving neurodivergent individuals (autism, ADHD, sensory differences, learning disorders, and developmental disabilities). Dr. Grant is the creator of AutPlay® Therapy, an integrative family play therapy framework designed to help address the mental health needs of neurodivergent children and adolescents.

Dr. Grant utilizes several years of advanced training and his HSP lived neurodivergent experience (late diagnosed SPD, Misophonia, and dysorthography) to provide affirming services to children and their families. He has infused his experience and love for education and mental health care to create training programs for professionals and caregivers. He is also a multi-published author of several articles, book chapters, and books including the following titles:

The AutPlay® Therapy Handbook: Integrative Family Play Therapy with Neurodivergent Children

Play Interventions for Neurodivergent Children and Adolescents: Promoting Growth, Empowerment, and Affirming Practices

In 2015, Dr. Grant was awarded Play Therapist of the Year by the Missouri Association for Play Therapy. In 2017, He was presented with the APT Service Award by the National Association for Play Therapy.

Co-Presenting: Opening Presentation - DIR® and Masking Prevention: Supporting the Development of the Authentic Self

Co-Presenting: Beyond Intervention: The Impact of DIR® on Identity and Leadership

Located in: United States

Bio: Jeffrey Guenzel, EdD, DIR-Expert, has been leading the International Council on Development and Learning (ICDL) and Director of the DIR® Institute since 2013. Dr. Guenzel is a mental health and developmental counselor and has worked as a counselor for over 30 years. He was formerly the Deputy Commissioner of the New Jersey (USA) Department of Children and Families and Director of the New Jersey Division of Child Behavioral Health. He lectures and provides consultation throughout the United States and internationally on autism, child development, mental health, and program development. You can learn more about Dr. Guenzel at icdl.com and jeffreyguenzel.com.

Presenting: From Goals to Groove: Where treatment team goals meet relational and creative musical dialogue through voice, rhythm, and clinical improvisation in school-based music therapy, inspired by Stanley Greenspan

Located in: United States

Bio: Stacey Hensel is a board-certified music therapist, Licensed Creative Arts Therapist, DIRFloortime® provider, supervisor, educator, and presenter with more than 25 years of experience working with neurodivergent children, adolescents, adults, and families. Rooted in a developmental, relationship-based approach, her work integrates improvisational music therapy, creativity and collaborative engagement.

Stacey currently serves as a clinician and Creative Arts Therapy supervisor at Rebecca School in NYC, where she supports students, families, interns, and clinicians through direct therapy, supervision and interdisciplinary collaboration. She is also the founder of Innovative Music: Creative Arts Therapy Services, PLLC, where she provides music therapy, clinical supervision, parent support, social groups, DIRFloortime-informed consultation, and training for therapists and educators.

Trained in Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy, Vocal Psychotherapy, and DIRFloortime®, Stacey has presented nationally and internationally on topics including autism, improvisational music therapy, developmental growth, clinical improvisation, supervision, parent engagement, and the therapeutic power of relationship-centered creative arts work. She has taught and supervised graduate music therapy students at New York University, Montclair State University, Molloy University, SUNY New Paltz, and other training programs.

Throughout her career, Stacey has been deeply committed to helping individuals find connection, expression, creativity, and confidence through meaningful therapeutic relationships and shared musical experiences.

Presenting: Reimagining the "I": An exploration of current praxis and sensory knowledge to support our DIRFloortime® practice

Located in: United Kingdom

Bio: As an Occupational Therapist with more than 25 years experience in the pediatric field, Julie works in a wide range of practice contexts and modalities. Her practice focuses on supporting children and their families through the DIRFloortime and Sensory Integration frameworks. Julie was very lucky to be part of Floortime Atlanta and ITTS for Children services in Atlanta before moving to northern England. Currently, in addition to direct work with families, she actively teaches within the ICDL curriculum, mentors clinicians virtually and lectures in the local University in their Occupational Therapy Programme.

Presenting: From Regulation to Meaning: Integrating DIRFloortime®, sensory integration, and mentalization in complex developmental profiles

Located in: South Korea

Bio: HeeSeung Jung, Ph.D., KAOT, is a Professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy at Baekseok University, South Korea, and serves as an Academic Advisor in the Department of Psychotherapy at the Graduate School of Health and Welfare. She is an ICDL DIRFloortime® Expert and Trainer, Play Therapy Specialist and Trainer, and Sensory Integration Specialist and Trainer.

Dr. Jung has extensive clinical, educational, and supervisory experience working with infants, children, adolescents, and families experiencing developmental, sensory, emotional, relational, and learning challenges. Her work integrates developmental science, sensory integration, DIRFloortime, mentalization, play-based intervention, and family-centered practice.

Her primary professional interest is understanding how regulation serves as the foundation for emotional development, symbolic capacities, social communication, and meaning-making. Through clinical practice, teaching, supervision, and research, she has developed integrative approaches that connect sensory regulation, emotional development, relationships, and reflective functioning.

Dr. Jung is actively involved in training therapists, educators, and parents and is committed to advancing developmentally informed and relationship-based intervention models both within Korea and internationally.

Co-Presenting: Always Developing: How self-compassion supports building capacity

Co-Presenting: What Did You See?- A Transdisciplinary Video Review

Located in: United States

Bio: Gretchen Kamke, MS, OTR/L is an occupational therapist whose career has been shaped by a deep belief that every person deserves to be truly seen and understood. Gretchen holds an expert certificate in DIRFloortime® and has extensive training in sensory integrative processing. She has a passion for exploring ways that individual differences shape development. Gretchen has spent years coaching parents, caregivers, and professionals across the globe, and currently serves as a DIR® Expert Training Leader and Director of Practice Standards and Research at the International Council on Development and Learning (ICDL). She has worked in a variety of settings supporting others’ expanding their capacities and cultivating meaningful relationships. Gretchen lives in Western New York, USA and is endlessly curious about what it means to grow; for the children and families she serves, for the practitioners she trains, and for herself.

Co-Presenting: Good Girls Don’t Stim: Gendered masking and the developmental cost of lost affect in DIRFloortime®

Located in: Egypt

Bio: Nagwa Khedr is an Egyptian DIRFloortime® Training Leader and co-founder of Etwasel, the first DIR-based center in the MENA region. She holds a Master’s in Infant, Child, and Family Mental Health and Development and brings over 16 years of experience supporting children with developmental differences. In 2025, she organized the first ICDL event in the MENA region and has presented at national and international talks.

Co-Presenting: Meeting Them Where They Are: Supporting children with P.A.N.S through the DIRFloortime® approach

Located in: Australia

Bio: Megan King is the Director of Engaging Interactions, an early childhood development service located on the Central Coast of New South Wales, Australia. With a Bachelor of Education and 30 years’ experience in early childhood and early intervention, Megan has worked across a diverse range of early childhood settings, schools, and not-for-profit organisations before establishing her own DIRFloortime®-focused practice in 2016.

Working from a family-centred Key Worker approach, Megan works alongside children, families, and educators to support the development, participation, and inclusion of children with diverse abilities across everyday environments and experiences. Her practice is grounded in the DIRFloortime® approach and guided by the belief that meaningful relationships, play, and emotional connection are central to development.

Known for her calm, collaborative, and compassionate style, Megan is passionate about helping children feel safe, understood, and connected while empowering families and educators through mentoring, reflective practice, and practical support.

Presenting: Organizational DIRFloortime®: Exploring the relationship between DIRFloortime and the workplace cultures in which it thrives

Located in: United States

Bio: Andrew is a pediatric occupational therapist and DIRFloortime® expert training leader living in Durham, North Carolina. He lives with his wife and two highly spirited daughters. Over his 15 years of practice, Andrew has had the privilege of working with 3 different organizations that make Floortime accessible to their local communities. He now specializes in reflective supervision and Floortime coaching for parents and professionals, and enjoys supporting the growth of professional teams so that they are better equipped to provide meaningful Floortime for families and children.

Presenting: Listening to the Body: Interoception, trauma, and regulation in DIRFloortime® practice

Located in: United States

Bio: Maude Le Roux is an occupational therapist and global trainer in multiple methodologies and a mentor to therapists from multidisciplinary teams. Maude owns a private practice in Glen Mills, PA and also hosts the Maude Le Roux Academy. She has been a training leader for ICDL since 2011. Maude received the Champion Award through ICDL in November 2024.

Co-Presenting: Always Developing: How self-compassion supports building capacity

Located in: United States

Bio: Amy Lewis is a pediatric OT from Charleston SC who is passionate about supporting therapists, clients, and their families in their wellness journey and meaningful participation in life. Amy graduated from The Medical University of South Carolina with a Masters in Rehabilitation Sciences in 2001 and has sought advanced trainings in Sensory Integration, DIRFloortime®, Neurodevelopmental Treatment, Tensegrity Medicine, many listening therapies, Craniosacral Therapy, Circle of Security, Mindful Self-Compassion, and many more. Amy is the co-author of Powerfully You, a framework and curriculum for supporting self-regulation from a lens of compassion and connection.  Amy currently teaches and mentors through Powerfully You and is an Adjunct Faculty at the Medical University of South Carolina in their Pediatrics coursework.

Co-Presenting: From Diagnosis to Development: Clinical lessons in DIRFloortime® parent coaching in the Philippines

Located in: Philippines

Bio: Audrey Michelle Lim is a pediatric occupational therapist, Certified Sensory Integration Therapist, and DIRFloortime practitioner with over 17 years of clinical experience serving children and families in the Philippines.

Since 2008, she has served as Occupational Therapy Department Head at the Alternative Learning Resource School-Philippines (ALRES), leading therapeutic services for children with diverse developmental needs. Since 2022, she has also been part of The Growing Brain PH team, integrating sensory integration and DIRFloortime principles into clinical practice and support for parents.

Audrey completed the full four-course Sensory Integration Certification Program and holds certifications in sensory integration, pediatric and infant massage. She completed her DIRFloortime until DIR 202 and aims to pursue further courses for coaching through ICDL. She is an alumna of the Global Mentorship Alliance under Kim Barthel and has served as a resource speaker on sensory integration, feeding therapy, and child development across the Philippines.

Co-Presenting: Pay Attention! Thinking about FEDC 2 from an Educational Perspective

Located in: United States

Bio: Ann-Bailey Lipsett is a special education consultant, a DIRFloortime clinical supervisor, and a DIRFloortime Training leader for ICDL. In all of these roles she works with schools, families, and Floortimers to promote neurodevelopmental practices for all individuals. Ann-Bailey completed a Fellowship in the Infant-Parent Mental Health Program at the University of Massachusetts- Boston. Ann-Bailey is the co-author of the book Building Blocks for Social-Emotional Learning: Creating Safe, Secure, and Successful Schools. She lives in the mountains of Virginia with her husband, two daughters, two cats, two rabbits, and one dog.

Co-Presenting: Growing Together, Filippo’s Story: A six-year DIRFloortime® journey of systemic, ecological, and family-centered intervention

Located in: Italy

Bio: Martina Lotti is a Developmental Psychologist, Psychomotrician, and Psychotherapist in training specializing in neurodevelopmental disorders and developmental-age intervention. She earned a Master’s Degree in Psychology of Education and Development from the University of Padua, after graduating in Educational Sciences at the University of Verona. She completed a three-year specialization in Psychomotricity at CISERPP and is currently attending postgraduate training in Analytical Psychotherapy for Developmental Age.

She is a DIRFloortime® Expert Training Leader (ICDL, Level 204) and completed STAR Proficiency Level 1 training at the STAR Institute – Temple University, deepening her expertise in sensory integration and neurodevelopmental approaches.

Since 2020, she has been the founder and clinical coordinator of “Il Filo Rosso,” a center dedicated to developmental-age intervention in Caprino Veronese, Italy. Her work includes individual and group psychomotricity interventions, psychological interventions for children and adolescents within a DIRFloortime® framework, parent support, psychoeducational counseling, and preventive educational projects in schools and kindergartens.

Alongside her clinical practice, she participates in conferences and professional training activities focused on autism spectrum disorders, psychomotricity, and neurodevelopment.

Presenting: Using Cultural Awareness and Cultural Humility in our DIRFloortime® World

Located in: United States

Bio: Mahnaz Maqbool, M.S., CCC-SLP, is a Speech-Language Pathologist, DIRFloortime Expert Training Leader, speaker, and mentor with more than 25 years of experience supporting children and families across educational and clinical settings. Since earning her Master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology from Boston University in 1998, she has worked extensively in both public schools and private practice.

Her areas of expertise include autism, developmental language disorders, childhood apraxia of speech, literacy, narrative development, and written expression. Mahnaz is recognized for integrating developmental science, movement, relationships, and evidence-informed practice to support communication, learning, and social-emotional growth. Drawing on years of interdisciplinary collaboration, she emphasizes the connection between language, motor development, affect, and meaningful relationships.

A bilingual Urdu-English clinician, Mahnaz is a strong advocate for culturally responsive practice and cultural humility in speech-language pathology. She frequently presents nationally and internationally on language development, DIRFloortime®, neurodiversity, cultural responsiveness, and relationship-based intervention. Through her teaching and mentorship, she encourages clinicians to recognize each child’s unique strengths while fostering meaningful partnerships with families to support lasting growth, learning, and participation.

Presenting: Meet Them Where They Are: Nurturing meaningful relationships from a developmentally based psychotherapy

Located in: United States

Bio: Gabriel Marra e Rosa, PhD, is a clinical psychologist at Floortime Atlanta and the author of Terapia da identidade, Construção e negociação de identidades, and Facebook e as nossas identidades virtuais. He earned his doctoral degree in Psychology from Catholic University of Brasília in 2014, the same year he completed his specialization in Clinical Psychology.

Since obtaining his professional license in 2008—first in Argentina and later in Brazil—Dr. Rosa has provided individual psychotherapy for children with special needs, adolescents, and adults. His clinical work has focused on developmental and relational approaches to psychological care.

Since joining Floortime Atlanta in 2021, he has completed postdoctoral clinical training in the DIRFloortime model under the supervision of Dr. Platzman. His practice emphasizes developmentally based psychotherapy addressing coping difficulties, trauma, learning challenges, developmental variations, identity, mood and personality disorders.

Co-Presenting: Growing Together, Filippo’s Story: A six-year DIRFloortime® journey of systemic, ecological, and family-centered intervention

Located in: Italy

Bio: Lara Matera graduated with in SLP from Turin in 2008. She specializes in clinical management for neurodivergent children. Thanks to her training as a basic-level Bobath therapist, she possesses advanced expertise in feeding disorders, nutrition, and complex conditions such as Cerebral Palsy. She has pursued advanced training in Sensory Integration (Level 1 Star Institute) and the Integrated Listening System. She serves as a nationwide trainer in Natural Language Acquisition, a credential obtained through direct interviews and supervision with Marge Blanc. She shares this educational path with her colleague Dr. Martina Lotti, her fellow student and co-lecturer across several courses. Alongside psychologist Serena Suman, she co-directs "Centro LiberaMente" in Crescentino, the only private clinic in Italy accredited in DIRFloortime®. The center organizes events in collaboration with Kim Barthel. Her professional activity seamlessly bridges highly complex clinical practice with ongoing supervision from renowned international instructors such as Kim Barthel and Marge Blanc.

Co-Presenting: Making a Splash: Benefits of DIRFloortime using an aquatic modality

Located in: United States

Bio: Maggie McPherson, PT is a pediatric physical therapist with 25 years of experience working with families with complex needs. She specializes in aquatic therapy that is integrative and collaborative with an emphasis on independent initiation of skills that are patient led. She has attended many aquatic trainings including halliwick, watsu, handling specific, sensory, and ai chi techniques with an emphasis on using principles of motor learning to achieve the goals of each family. Over the years she has developed several aquatic programs in outpatient settings as she has seen the benefit of using the unique properties of water as a therapeutic intervention that allows patients the opportunity to participate in a holistic rehabilitation program. She has furthered her specialization to relationship-based therapy as she sees the strong connection between patients developing intrinsic motivation and patients allowing the water to assist with regulation, skill building, safety, and emotional wellbeing.

Co-Presenting: Getting Road Ready: A DIRFloortime® approach to driver training for neurodivergent individuals

Located in: United States

Bio: Julia McVicker, MS, OTR/L, DRP, is an occupational therapist, driving rehabilitation professional, and business owner dedicated to helping neurodiverse individuals develop safe, confident community mobility skills. Her strengths-based practice supports adolescents and adults with autism, ADHD, anxiety, and executive functioning or sensory challenges.

Julia serves as Chapter President for the Georgia/South Carolina Association of Driving Rehabilitation Specialists and was recently selected to help rewrite the national Best Practice Guidelines for ADED. Professionally featured in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, she teaches assistive technology at state OT programs and presents nationally. Integrating neurodiversity-affirming, relationship-based principles, Julia holds ICDL DIR 101 training and a Driving Badge in Autism. She collaborates closely with families and healthcare professionals to bridge occupational therapy and driver rehabilitation, creating supportive pathways toward independence.

Co-Presenting: What Is Expansion, Really?: Supporting development across the FEDCs through one shared play activity

Located in: United States

Bio: Karen McWaters, MOT, OTR/L, graduated from Georgia State University with her Masters in Occupational Therapy in 2018, and she has her Post-Professional Doctorate of Occupational Therapy (PPOTD) program from the Medical University of South Carolina.

Her special interests lie in working with neurodiverse/neurodevelopmental populations, learning differences, visual processing differences, and childhood trauma. She has experience with many treatment approaches including Sensory Integration, Praxis, and functional vision. She is a Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI) Trained Provider and holds a Certificate of Proficiency in the DIRFloortime approach. She loves that this job enables partnerships with families to meet each child’s unique needs and harnesses the power of relationships to impact each kid’s life.

Presenting: Using the DIR® Glasses: A personal journey through society’s views on disability

Located in: Portugal

Bio: Occupational Therapist and founder of the EDIJ Project – Child and Youth Development Center, she is certified by ICDL and dedicated to supporting neurodivergent children, youth, and families through relationship-based and developmental approaches.

Earned Bachelor’s degree in Occupational Therapy from the School of Health Technology of Porto in 2009 and a Master’s degree in Adapted Physical Activity from the Faculty of Sport of the University of Porto in 2012. In 2018, completed a postgraduate degree in Sensory Integration through 7 Senses (CLASI) and, in 2023, achieved Expert-level certification in DIRFloortime® by ICDL.

Her professional training also includes sensory processing, therapeutic listening, reflex integration, and Trauma-Informed Care Practitioner Level 2 certification from ATTACH.

Alongside her clinical and educational work, she embraces motherhood as an essential part of her professional perspective. As the mother of a child with a rare genetic condition, she is an active advocate for disability awareness, inclusion, and family-centered support within her community.

Co-Presenting: Enhancing the DIRFloortime® Approach with an Understanding of Developmental Movement Rhythms and Motor Development: Capacities 4,5, 6 and beyond

Located in: United States

Bio: Michelle Merna, LCAT, BC DMT, DIR Expert has over 15 years of experience using DMT to support neurodiverse children within a school setting. In 2022 she received her DIRFloortime Expert credential and now practices DIRFloortime informed DMT. In addition, she has a private clinical supervision and DIRFloortime mentoring practice. She has presented on using movement to support neurodiverse children at numerous conferences and community settings. Michelle has also held an adjunct position at Long Island University within the Art Therapy department teaching undergraduate students interdisciplinary collaboration. Her passion and focus is bringing the neurodiverse affirming model of DIRFloortime to the forefront of DMT practice.

Co-Presenting: Comfort Connection and Curiosity: The Use of DIR®-Informed Feeding and the Possibilities of What Mealtime can be

Located in: United States

Bio:  Julie Miller, MOT, OTR/L, SWC is the Executive Director of Professional Child Development Associates (PCDA), a Pasadena, CA-based nonprofit providing 12 DIR-based services to over 500 clients and families annually. She has been with PCDA for 23 years, including leading the Occupational Therapy department and Interdisciplinary Feeding Team, serving as Clinical Director, and becoming Executive Director in 2024.

Julie holds a Master's degree in Occupational Therapy, California Board of Occupational Therapy advanced practice certification in feeding and swallowing assessment and treatment, and a DIRFloortime Expert Certificate through the International Council on Development and Learning (ICDL). Her clinical work has centered on feeding and swallowing from infancy through young adulthood, with a particular focus on the developmental and relational dimensions of feeding, including medical and developmental diagnoses, limited diets, and non-oral to oral feeding transitions. She has presented on DIR and feeding at local and international conferences for over 15 years.

Presenting: Regulation Before Learning: From school distress to neurodivergent thriving, A DIR®-informed path

Located in: United States

Bio: Dr. Jessica Mooney, PhD, OTR is a pediatric occupational therapist, researcher, and speaker whose work bridges clinical practice, lived experience, and innovative learning environments. With advanced training in Infant Mental Health, sensory integration, and DIRFloortime, she brings a neurodiversity-affirming, relationship-based lens to her work with children and families.

Her doctoral research is an autoethnographic exploration of unexpectedly homeschooling her neurodivergent son, examining how DIRFloortime can inform a relational, regulation-focused approach to learning outside of traditional educational systems.

Dr. Mooney is the founded a private pediatric occupational therapy practice in West Michigan and is deeply committed to teaching, mentoring, and empowering others to reimagine how we support children’s development through connection, attunement, and play.

Co-Presenting: The Power of Two: Enhancing DIRFloortime® with dual adult engagement

Located in: United States

Bio: Sam Mulvey (she/her) loves collaborating with kids and their loved ones to support their communication. She currently works at Developmental FX in Denver Colorado. She has experience working in the pediatric private practice realm, as well as in the public schools. Sam received her master’s degree in Speech Language Pathology from The Ohio State University and her bachelor’s degree from Miami University in Ohio. Sam is a Gestalt Language Processing-Trained Clinician from Meaningful Speech. In addition, she has interests and advanced training in Autism, language development, augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), play-based and child-led therapy, complex communication systems, and the total communication approach. In her free time, Sam enjoys practicing yoga, hiking in the mountains, and reading, as well as spending time with her partner and their cat, Stevie.

Co-Presenting: What Did You See? A Transdisciplinary Video Review

Located in: United States

Bio: Catherine has practiced as a Clinical Social Worker for over 20 years and has been invested in the Illinois Infant and Early Childhood community for over 15 years. She is a Training Leader and the Coordinator of the Training Program with the International Council on Development and Learning (ICDL) and Adjunct Faculty with the Erikson Institute. She has concentrated on supporting young children in their development (and the adults who care for or support them) in light of developmental differences, multiply stressed family circumstances, and trauma. She also maintains a small private practice in Chicago primarily practicing DIRFloortime.

Presenting: In Search of Perspective, Nuance, and Shades of Grey: The evolution of political and cultural attitudes in two Autistic men and the impact of DIRFloortime®

Located in: United States

Bio: Dave Nelson is a Georgia mental health counselor in private practice, providing counseling, consultation, and training services to individuals, families, professionals, and programs. He was the Founder and Co-Executive Director of Threshold Community Program, an innovative education and transition-to-adulthood support program for autistic adolescents and adults, and their families. Dave holds an MS degree in Professional Counseling from the College of Education at Georgia State University in Atlanta and is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) and an Approved Clinical Supervisor (ACS). Hold Professional Counselor license from state of Georgia. Dave holds a DIR® Expert Certificate from the International Council on Development and Learning. Dave has over twenty-five years of experience working with developmentally challenged children, adolescents, and adults, and their families, and training other professionals in specific therapeutic techniques for individuals who identify as neurodivergent.

Co-Presenting: Meeting Them Where They Are: Supporting children with P.A.N.S through the DIRFloortime® Approach

Located in: Australia

Bio: Dr. Michelle Newby, is an experienced paediatric occupational therapist, educator and researcher, with more than 25 years of experience supporting children and families with complex neurodevelopmental needs.

Michelle is the Director of Stepping Stones Therapy for Children and a Clinical Lecturer at the University of Newcastle, Australia. She holds a Bachelor of Health Science (Occupational Therapy), a Master of Science with Distinction in Health and Social Research, and a PhD in Occupational Therapy. Her doctoral research explored sensory processing and developmental challenges in children with Paediatric Acute-onset Neuropsychiatric Syndrome (PANS), an area in which she has developed an international clinical and research profile.

Michelle is passionate about translating research into meaningful clinical practice and is widely recognised for her work in sensory processing, interoception, neurodiversity-affirming practice, and participation-focused intervention approaches. Alongside her clinical and academic roles, she regularly presents nationally and internationally and mentors occupational therapists.

Co-Presenting: Stories of Connection

Located in: United States

Bio: Princess Owens is a proud Jersey girl and mother of five, including two sets of twins and two neurodivergent children. She is also the founder of Bloom Village Co., an organization dedicated to elevating voices, telling meaningful stories, and empowering professionals and brands in the early childhood and family space. Her work focuses on helping educators, caregivers, and organizations strengthen communication, grow visibility, and build authentic relationships that positively impact children and families.

Princess holds degrees in child development and childcare management, along with certifications in mindfulness, wellness, parenting, and developmental advocacy. These credentials, combined with her lived experience as a mother of neurodiverse children, allow her to approach her work with both expertise and compassion. She is very passionate about supporting families and professionals to cultivate intentional, conscious, and inclusive practices in their daily lives.

Presenting: Reframing the Approach: Why and how "social" behaviors may signal distress in children with Autism, A Case Study

Located in: Thailand

Bio: An associate professor and rehabilitation physician, she specializes in relationship-based, developmental frameworks that transform clinical practice and family support systems. As a certified expert training leader, she is dedicated to professionalizing educational programs and building structured certification paths for physicians and therapists.

Her clinical and academic work consistently champions a strength-based approach, focusing on an individual's functional potential, resilience, and innate resourcefulness rather than a purely deficit-based model. Committed to elevating academic standards, she actively advocates for the integration of international reporting guidelines and rigorous peer review in medical publishing and conference presentations.

Bridging the gap between theory and practice, her unique approach explores the powerful synergy between ancient philosophical principles and modern developmental therapies, creating a holistic framework for relational learning and human development. Reflecting a career dedicated to both institutional excellence and empathetic care, her work empowers clinicians and families alike, leaving a lasting impact on the fields of rehabilitation medicine and neurodevelopment.

Co-Presenting: Comfort Connection and Curiosity: The use of DIR®-informed feeding and the possibilities of what mealtime can be

Co-Presenting: What Did You See? A Transdisciplinary Video Review

Co-Presenting: The Hills Are Alive with the Sound of... DIRFloortime®: Harnessing parallel process in neurodivergent coaching dyads

Located in: United States

Bio: Bridget Palmer has been a strengths-based, developmental, relationship-based Speech Language Therapist for over 25 years. She embraces neurodiversity and is neurodiversity-affirming. She is a Developmental-Individual Differences-Relationship-based (DIR) Floortime Expert Training Leader at the International Council on Development and Learning (ICDL) where she teaches courses and mentors providers. She loves supporting and promoting engagement, connection, and communication, and going for the gleam in the child's eye. She also loves getting the gleam in the adult's eye when teaching courses and during mentoring and coaching interactions. She lives with her wonderful husband in Buffalo, New York in the United States.

Co-Presenting: The Hills Are Alive with the Sound of... DIRFloortime®: Harnessing parallel process in neurodivergent coaching dyads

Located in: United States

Bio: Kelly Penny is the founder of Buttercup Speech Therapy and a consultant at Includ(ed), a nonprofit re-imagining inclusive early childhood education in San Diego, CA. Bilingual in English and Spanish, she holds an Advanced DIRFloortime® Certificate and grounds her work in relationship-based, neurodiversity-affirming care.

Kelly is passionate about bringing communication support out of the clinic and into the everyday spaces where children live, play, learn, and connect. Her work often unfolds in living rooms, kitchens, parks, playgrounds, beaches, backyards, swimming pools, and other community environments where authentic interaction and emotional connection naturally create opportunities for growth.

In addition to her clinical work, Kelly is exploring coaching partnerships with ABA centers in San Diego, with the goal of building bridges between DIRFloortime® and ABA-informed settings and strengthening collaborative, cross-disciplinary practice. Across therapy, coaching, and interdisciplinary collaboration, she thrives on helping children deepen their connection with their loved ones through joyful, co-regulated experiences.

Presenting: Affect Tolerance: Getting a “feel” for feeling feelings

Located in: United States

Bio: Kathy is a Licensed Psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia. Her private practice, Floortime Atlanta [www.floortimeatlanta.com], is transdisciplinary and focuses on both assessment and treatment of individuals with a wide range of developmental conditions and their families.

She received her doctorate from the University of Chicago, Committee on Human Development. Additionally, she completed a re-specialization in Child and Family Psychotherapy from Georgia State University.

She was on the research faculty at Emory School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, where she worked in the Human Genetics Laboratory taking part in a research team that focused on prenatal drug exposure and long-term developmental consequences thereof.

Some of her research efforts have been with nonhuman primates at the Harvard School of Public Health’s Nutrition Laboratory, at Georgia State’s Language Research Center, and at Yerkes Primate Center.

Kathy is a long-time “floortimer.” She first met Stanley Greenspan in 1979 when she was working with Selma Frieberg at the University of Michigan. She began using Floortime when she began private practice in 1994. She was the first recipient of the DIR Lifetime Champion Award (2022).

Co-Presenting: Stories of Connection

Located in: United States

Bio: Krithika Rajendran is a parent advocate dedicated to creating relationship-based community spaces. Her work is deeply inspired by her 11-year-old son, an inventive tween and emergent multimodal communicator. Recognizing his unique passions, the family embraces DIR as a way of life. Krithika and her husband serve as co-creators, building structured programming around his imagination, which sparked two Alameda County Library initiatives: an Inclusive Book Club and an AAC/DIR-based D&D-style gaming group.

Krithika draws on her role as a Family Resource Navigator to help families navigate IEP and Regional Center systems. She also manages grassroots parent networks and previously served on the Parent Voices Community Advisory Board. By weaving her navigation experience with her son’s creative vision, Krithika focuses on building accessible public spaces where neurodivergent youth can share their authentic ideas, play, and thrive within a supportive community.

Co-Presenting: One Family's DIRFloortime® Journey

Located in: United States

Bio: David Raphael is a social worker whose career has spanned both the Jewish communal world and the front lines of autism advocacy. In the months following his son Jacob's autism diagnosis, he co-founded the Floortime Foundation, providing support and resources to families and clinicians navigating the autism spectrum. He has delivered keynote presentations at national gatherings of autism professionals, educators, and parents, met with multiple parent groups, and published essays on his family’s experience of autism in the Zero to Three Journal. David and Jacob co-authored the recently released book A Miracle of the Heart: A Father and Son’s Autism Journey. David is also working on a children’s book about autism and the DIRFloortime method, told from the perspective of a sibling. David is the father of three, grandfather of two, and slave to two dogs.

Co-Presenting: One Family's DIRFloortime® Journey

Located in: United States

Bio: Jo is a seasoned therapist who works with adults and families providing assessment, consultation, treatment and education, in private practice in Atlanta, Georgia. Using DIRFloortime as her foundation Jo partners with her clients to help them on their journey. She is a specializes in ASD, ADHD, AuDHD, Anxiety, Depression, Grief and life transitions.

Jo worked directly with Drs. Greenspan and Wieder serving the Autism community. She has served on the faculty of the DIR Institute, established the Parent Network, edited the journal and newsletter, and has served as mentor to clinicians seeking certification in DIR, and the PLAY Project. She is a DIR-Expert and certified Autism therapist.

Jo lives in Atlanta, is married with three adult children, two delicious grandchildren, and, unfortunately two dogs.

Co-Presenting: Exploring the Interconnectedness of Ideation, Regulation, and Social Communication: A practical, transdisciplinary application of DIRFloortime® in a child with a complex profile

Located in: United States

Bio: Dr. Stephanie Rodzewicz is an occupational therapist with over 25 years in the field, dedicated to supporting individuals across the lifespan. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Occupational Therapy in 2001 and later completed her Post-Professional Doctorate in Occupational Therapy in 2014 at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, with a specialized focus on autism spectrum disorders.

In her early career, Dr. Rodzewicz primarily worked in mental health settings such as a Clubhouse Model program, homeless shelters, and supporting adults with HIV/AIDs. She transitioned into pediatrics over time and has extensive experience in a variety of settings including schools, outpatient clinics, early intervention, and in the community. Her diverse experience informs a holistic, compassionate approach to care for the entire family.

Dr. Rodzewicz specializes in creative child-led, relationship-based therapy and holds an Expert Level certification in DIRFloortime, along with advanced training in sensory integration and praxis. She is passionate about supporting neurodiverse adults, children, and whole families, by fostering meaningful connections and honoring each person’s unique strengths.

Co-Presenting: What Did You See? A Transdisciplinary Video Review

Located in: United States

Bio: Dr. Colette Ryan is a Floortime expert and training leader for ICDL. She has a bachelor’s degree in special education, and a master’s degree in both Early Childhood Education and Infant and Early Childhood Development. She is an Infant Mental Health Fellow at Montclair State University, is a New York State endorsed Infant Family Specialist, and holds a PhD from Fielding University in Infant and Early Childhood Development. She has been in the field of Autism for over 40 years and has been a Floortimer for 30 of those years. Colette has spoken at many conferences on topics including infant massage, grief in the young child, discipline, play, and child development, in places such as Japan, Kiev, Orlando, NYC, and NJ. Next month she will add Brazil to that list. Currently Dr. Ryan teaching Floortime classes, and working with families, children, organizations, and individuals in her private practice. She is also a world traveler, bring DIRFloortime to children and families everywhere!

Co-Presenting: Stories of Connection

Located in: Canada

Bio: Mary Santiago is a mother of a 9-year-old autistic child who discovered DIRFloortime and embraced this relationship-based, developmental approach to support her son. Originally from Mexico, Mary and her husband, who is from India, have built their family life in Canada, where they have lived for the past 15 years.

Mary works in health data analytics for a Canadian non-profit organization and, while her professional background is rooted in data and evidence, her most meaningful learning journey began in 2020 following her son’s autism diagnosis.

Since then, with the guidance, generosity, and encouragement of DIRFloortime practitioners, expert training leaders, and fellow parents, Mary has worked to integrate DIRFloortime principles into everyday family life. Through moments of joy, uncertainty, growth, and connection, she continues learning how to better understand, support, and connect with her son while honoring his unique way of experiencing the world.

Presenting: Levelling Up: Harnessing video games as a therapeutic tool within a DIRFloortime® framework

Located in: Australia

Bio: Reuben is an occupational therapist and founder of Waypoint OT, a Sydney-based practice supporting neurodivergent people. He is a DIR-Advanced provider who believes authentic connection sits at the heart of meaningful development. A passionate advocate of the DIR model, Reuben is involved with initiatives in Australia working to expand its reach and impact. Reuben's clinical work centers on the power of relationships, helping children grow through attuned, play-based interactions that meet them where they are. He is passionate about equipping families, educators, and practitioners with the tools to understand and support development in ways that feel human first.

Co-Presenting: Quiet Does Not Mean Disengaged: Cultural interpretations of emotional expression in DIRFloortime® with Mandarin-speaking families

Located in: China

Bio: Qinyi Shi is a licensed pediatric occupational therapist and a DIR-Expert. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Sports and Health Rehabilitation from Beijing Sports University. Her advanced certifications include CLASI Ayres Sensory Integration (SIPT), SOS Approach to Feeding, MORE, ATTACH Level 2 (Trauma), and The Polyvagal Certificate Course.

She has 10 years of clinical experience. She worked at LIH-Olivia’s Place (Beijing & Shenzhen) and later at West China Second University Hospital, where she supported children with ASD, global developmental delay, ADHD, SPD, and CP. At the hospital, she successfully served over 200 families using DIR model and introduced DIR principles to the system.

Currently, she provides home-based DIRFloortime and OT services for Chinese families, focusing on functional emotional development, daily living skills, sensory strategies, and parent coaching. She also leads online training and mentoring for professionals and parents, promoting DIRFloortime across China. She is fluent in Mandarin and English.

Co-Presenting: Beyond Intervention: The Impact of DIR® on Identity and Leadership

Located in: United States

Bio: Katya Sidor, PhD is the Deputy Director of ICDL and a DIR® Expert. In this role, she oversees many of ICDL's initiatives, connecting her passion for education and human development as she helps lead the organization. Dr. Sidor has taught DIRFloortime® courses live-online and in-person around the world, supporting practitioners across disciplines and cultures. She holds a Master's degree in in Intercultural Service, Leadership and Management from SIT Graduate Institute, and a PhD in Human Development and Learning from Lesley University, where her doctoral research explored the experiences of multidisciplinary practitioners around the world applying DIR in their professional practice, with a particular focus on adult development. She is committed to helping ICDL reach its vision of a world where individual differences are embraced and everyone achieves their fullest potential.

Co-Presenting: From Banging to Storytelling: Understanding the developmental stages of play and their relationship to FEDCs in DIRFloortime® practice

Located in: United States

Bio: Andrea Snyder is an occupational therapist and DIRFloortime® training leader and expert provider based in Colorado Springs, CO. She specializes in relationship-based, developmentally informed care that supports children and families in real-life contexts, providing in-home therapy services that honor each child’s unique strengths, areas of growth and developmental progression. Andrea is committed to collaborative, family-centered care and equipping caregivers with practical strategies that foster meaningful engagement across daily routines and community settings. Andrea partners closely with parents and caregivers, empowering them with practical tools and confidence to support growth beyond therapy sessions. She is committed to compassionate, individualized care that nurtures connection, fosters resilience, and helps children thrive across home, school, and community environments.

Andrea has taught DIR certification courses through ICDL for 10 years and mentors clinicians both in DIRFloortime as well as general occupational therapy practice. She is passionate about supporting professionals in their education and expansion and development of their clinical and professional practice.

Co-Presenting: Pay Attention! Thinking about FEDC 2 from an Educational Perspective

Located in: Switzerland

Bio: Davina is an educator, inclusion specialist, and DIRFloortime Expert Training Leader with twenty-five years of experience working with children and families across the United States, Jamaica, and Switzerland. She holds a Master's in Special Education from Columbia University and is ICDL certified in DIRFloortime — a framework she encountered over fifteen years ago that became the organizing philosophy of everything she does.

Davina believes that all good education is DIR education and that every child, regardless of their profile, thrives when learning is grounded in development, relationships, and individual differences. That conviction is taking shape in Geneva, where she is founding Lignum Vitae, a bilingual DIR middle school for all learners.

When she is not in the classroom or playing with a child, you will find her in the kitchen, on the salsa dance floor, or out with her dog — which she will tell you is also DIRFloortime.

Co-Presenting: A DIR® Journey from Diagnosis to Unmasking

Located in: United States

Bio: Caroline Stacey is a neurodivergent costume designer, youth mentor, and emerging theater professional with a decade of theater experience and five years of dedicated backstage management. Having personally experienced the exhausting toll of negative masking throughout her own educational and post-secondary journey, Caroline has made it her mission to actively dismantle the need for masking. Currently serving as the adult wardrobe coordinator at Greece Odyssey High School, she manages costume construction and directly mentors student crews. As she transitions into the professional theater industry, she leverages her lived experience to replace high-stress, unpredictable backstage environments with clear, accommodated routines that support executive functioning and eliminate performance anxiety.

Presenting: Individual Differences Through the Lens of Sensory-Affective-Motor integrative Processing

Located in: United States

Bio: Tracy Stackhouse, MA, OTR, is an internationally recognized occupational therapist, author, educator, and thought leader whose work has contributed to contemporary approaches to neurodevelopmental disorders, sensory integration, developmental trauma, and Polyvagal-informed practice.

As Co-Founder and Director of Innovation at Developmental FX (DFX), Tracy leads initiatives that advance clinical excellence through education, mentorship, research translation, and interdisciplinary collaboration. For more than 40 years, she has specialized in supporting neurodivergent individuals, particularly those with Fragile X syndrome, autism, sensory processing differences, and complex developmental challenges.

Tracy is the creator/lead author of the SpIRiT and S.T.E.P.P.S.I. Clinical Reasoning Frameworks, innovative models used internationally to guide individualized, relationship-based intervention planning. Her work integrates neuroscience, occupational therapy, sensory integration, and Polyvagal Theory into practical frameworks that support meaningful participation and well-being.

An internationally sought-after speaker, Tracy has educated thousands of practitioners across healthcare, education, and mental health settings. She serves as a Course Partner with the Polyvagal Institute, Senior Advisor to ICDL, advisor to Unyte, LLC, and holds leadership roles with the National Fragile X Foundation's Clinical Research Consortium, Scientific and Clinical Advisory Committee, and Advisory Council.

Her work focuses on translating science into compassionate practice that fosters resilience, connection, and engaged belonging.

Presenting: The Importance of Complex Reciprocity and Our Role In It: Supporting the development of capacity four

Located in: United States

Bio: Mary Beth Stark is a pediatric speech therapist whose work with children has always occurred in natural, real-world contexts. Over the course of her career, she has gained knowledge, expertise, and confidence while continually refining her understanding of social interaction. For nearly fifty years, Floortime has been the lens through which she approaches communication.

Mary Beth's first job was as a speech therapist in a progressive public school preschool program modeled after the research of Stanley Greenspan. The key insight attained there was that communication is not about words — it's about relationship.

Her second position was as a teacher and language therapist in a pilot Floortime preschool program designed for autistic children and their families. This experience deepened her respect for the critical role parents play in communication development. She came to understand that her relationship with parents was as important as her relationship with their child — though neither was as foundational as the parent-child connection itself.

For the past thirty years, Mary Beth has been in private practice, focusing on social interaction in children. She has consulted, taught, presented, mentored, and led projects on social communication development, with Floortime always at the center of her work.

Co-Presenting: Exploring the Interconnectedness of Ideation, Regulation, and Social Communication: A practical, transdisciplinary application of DIRFloortime® in a child with a complex profile

Located in: United States

Bio: Sara-Sullivan Cross, M.S., CCC-SLP, is a dedicated speech-language pathologist who earned her Master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology from Old Dominion University. She currently practices in a pediatric outpatient rehabilitation setting, where she is passionate about supporting children in developing strong communication and literacy skills. Her work emphasizes collaborating with providers, families, and patients using a transdisciplinary approach in order to provide holistic speech and language intervention. She has special interests in treating the intersections of receptive-expressive language disorders, AAC, and social communication disorders. Both participating in a pediatric fellowship and working in a collaborative clinical setting has informed her passion for mentorship and transdisciplinary collaboration. As a certified Basic DIR/Floortime practitioner, Sara-Sullivan integrates her expertise in social communication with a relationship-based, child-centered approach to therapy. Her work is grounded in fostering engagement, connection, and individualized growth for every child she serves.

Co-Presenting: Making a Splash: Benefits of DIRFloortime® using an aquatic modality

Located in: United States

Bio: Christine Sumara is an ASHA-certified Speech Language Pathologist with 18 years of experience. As the founder of HLC Therapy, LLC, Christine is passionate about multi-disciplinary, holistic, family-centered approaches to optimize treatment outcomes. Christine is an Advanced Level DIR Floortime certified therapist, and specializes in speech therapy using an aquatic modality. Christine has observed the benefits of aquatic-based therapies first-hand through multidisciplinary practice. The parallels in the approaches, research, and benefits of DIRFloortime interventions and Aquatic Therapy interventions are noteworthy and worth further exploration. Making a Splash: Benefits of DIRFloortime Using an Aquatic Modality is HLC Therapy Group’s introductory presentation to share about a.) the hidden benefits of aquatic therapy, including but not limited to social engagement, vocalization of speech, executive functioning, sensory regulation, and motor planning, b.) how Floortime merges naturally with aquatic-based therapies, and c.) application of aquatic strategies and tools to facilitate and transition between FEDCs in the aquatic environment (focus on FEDCs 1-6).

Co-Presenting: Quiet Does Not Mean Disengaged: Cultural interpretations of emotional expression in DIRFloortime® with Mandarin-speaking families

Located in: Taiwan

Bio: Ting-Yen Wu is a speech-language pathologist with over 16 years of clinical experience in early intervention and speech-language therapy. He also serves as an adjunct lecturer in the Department of Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology at Asia University, where he teaches speech-language pathology courses. In 2021, he began studying DIRFloortime and became a DIRFloortime Expert Training Leader in 2024. Together with his partners, he founded a speech-language therapy clinic in Taoyuan, Taiwan, guided by a clinical philosophy rooted in DIRFloortime principles. He is frequently invited by hospitals, medical institutions, and schools to deliver DIRFloortime lectures and training. The clinic has since expanded into an integrated practice combining speech-language pathology, occupational therapy, and physical therapy to provide interdisciplinary care. Every therapist at the clinic holds DIR 203 certification or above, and the team is committed to deepening its Floortime practice to help more people understand and benefit from DIRFloortime.

Presenting: The Hand That Rocks The Cradle

Located in: United States

Bio: Gil Tippy, PsyD is the former Clinical Director and one of the founders of the Rebecca School in New York City. He is the former Director, the Clinical Director Emeritus and one of the founders of Shub Oak International School in Westchester County, New York. He is the co-author, along with Stanley Greenspan, MD, of Respecting Autism, (Vantage Press, 2011.) He is the author of many articles and book chapters on the subjects of developmental support, and appropriate developmental education. Dr. Tippy consults internationally to schools, individuals and clinical programs, and has been a featured presenter at many national and international conferences. He has been a teacher, a psychologist or both for the last 45 years.

Co-Presenting: This is How We Do It- OT department MAPs students using the SpIRiT ©

Located in: United States

Bio: Rebecca School Clinical Director ICDL Expert Training Leader Toni Tortora brings more than 18 years of experience as an Occupational Therapist, DIRFloortime® provider, consultant, and parent coach. Since joining the Rebecca School in 2008, she has played a key role in supporting neurodivergent children, families, and transdisciplinary teams through relationship-based, developmental practice.

Toni is an Expert-level DIRFloortime® Training Leader through ICDL and teaches courses for professionals and parents on child development, DIRFloortime® in educational settings, and DIRFloortime® across the lifespan. She also lectures and provides training on sensory integration, trauma-informed practice, and learning within classroom environments.

Grounded in a collaborative and respectful approach, Toni is deeply committed to honoring parent perspectives and self-advocate choice when supporting neurodiverse individuals and their families.

Co-Presenting: Quiet Does Not Mean Disengaged: Cultural interpretations of emotional expression in DIRFloortime® with Mandarin-speaking families

Co-Presenting: From Banging to Storytelling: Understanding the developmental stages of play and their relationship to FEDCs in DIRFloortime® practice

Located in: Singapore

Bio: Naomi Wong is a speech-language therapist based in Singapore and an international DIR® Floortime trainer and speaker. She actively delivers face-to-face DIR® courses in Singapore and provides ongoing training and mentorship to clinicians and educators in China. Through teaching learners from diverse professional backgrounds, she has developed deep insight into the challenges faced by emerging Floortime practitioners as they transition from discipline-specific intervention approaches toward embracing DIR® as a cohesive, transdisciplinary, and relationship-based clinical framework.

Through her work with clinicians across Asia, Naomi has also become increasingly interested in helping practitioners contextualize Floortime within Asian cultural perspectives, making the framework more accessible and applicable across different family, educational, and therapeutic contexts.

Naomi has previously presented on topics such as executive functioning through a DIR® lens, cultivating playfulness in therapy, and supporting intentionality across developmental capacities, while consistently linking concepts back to the Functional Emotional Developmental Capacities (FEDCs) as the foundation for learning and development. Through this work, she aims to bridge theory and practice by grounding intervention planning within the DIR® framework.

Naomi’s teaching style emphasizes reflective clinical reasoning, cultural responsiveness, and practical application, with the overarching goal of supporting holistic child development across therapeutic, educational, and family contexts.

Co-Presenting: Stories of Connection

Located in: United States

Bio: Oana Zayic is an advocate, educator, and community builder supporting children with disabilities and their families. She currently works for a parent training and information center in Minnesota where she guides families through complex systems with clarity, compassion, and evidence-based insight. Oana’s career spans higher education, student services, accessibility coordination, and family engagement—roles that have sharpened her commitment to equity, inclusion, and neuroaffirming practices.

As co-owner of We Rock the Spectrum Twin Cities SW, a sensory gym designed for all bodies and neurotypes, she partners with her husband, Garret, to create joyful spaces where children and families thrive.

A mother of two autistic/ADHD teens, Oana brings lived experience and lived expertise to her work, grounded in relationship-based approaches like DIRFloortime® that honor child strengths, build connection, and support growth. She is known for her thoughtful leadership, community building, and authentic advocacy that empowers families across systems.