Faculty

Bio

Katherine (Betsy) Murray, MD, MPH, is a Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrician, working with patients and families in the Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics Program at the Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain (MIDB).
Dr. Murray joined the University of Minnesota faculty in 2006 after completing her pediatric residency, pediatric chief residency, Masters in Public Health, and developmental-behavioral pediatrics fellowship at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Murray works with patients and families who are navigating a broad range of behavioral, emotional, and developmental concerns. She is particularly interested in developing child and parent skills and self-efficacy and collaborating with families to create individualized and enduring solutions to complex and challenging problems. Dr. Murray’s research centers on medical education and training the next generation of physicians in the State of Minnesota.

Clinical Summary

Emotional, Behavioral, and Developmental Differences in Children and Youth

Research Summary

My laboratory focuses on two lines of research. The first asks how practicing retrieval or testing on material enhances our ability to retain that material over the long term. Putting information aside that we want to learn and trying to recall that information from memory is one of the most effective ways to "study". We use neuroimaging techniques, primarily functional MRI, to understand how the brain supports this phenomenon. Future research will focus on the development of these neural systems and abilities in school-aged children and adolescents. The ultimate goal is to better understand how children learn most optimally and use this research to inform educational practices. Secondly, we use functional connectivity MRI to map networks and areas in the brain to better understand how neural systems are organized at the individual level. One of the major goals of this line of research is to examine how these systems or connections within these systems change through learning. Applications of precision mapping approaches to brain stimulation, which can be used to treat disorders like depression, are also of significant interest.

Bio

Dr. Rene Pierpont is a Pediatric Neuropsychologist and Associate Professor of Pediatrics. She completed doctoral (PhD) and postdoctoral training in experimental and clinical psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Dr. Pierpont participated in a pediatric clinical psychology internship and a two-year postdoctoral fellowship in pediatric neuropsychology through the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Minnesota Medical School.

In her current clinical work, Dr. Pierpont conducts neuropsychological evaluations and consultations for children with complex medical conditions (e.g., congenital heart disease, seizures, brain tumors), inherited metabolic disorders, brain injury, and a variety of other neurodevelopmental or social-emotional challenges. Dr. Pierpont has specialized expertise in assessment of children with genetic syndromes such as: neurofibromatosis type 1; Noonan syndrome; fragile X syndrome; Down syndrome; Williams syndrome; 22q deletion syndrome; and rare chromosomal anomalies. Dr. Pierpont is licensed as a psychologist through the Minnesota Board of Psychology. She works with individuals during infancy through young adulthood.

Dr. Pierpont is passionate about research and about communicating scientific advances to the public in ways that will positively impact the lives of children. Dr. Pierpont's research focuses on neurocognitive and behavioral development in children with genetic syndromes. She is interested in how genetic and environmental variables affect risk and resilience in these populations. Dr. Pierpont is a member of the Center for Neurobehavioral Development at the University of Minnesota, the International Neuropsychological Society, and the American Psychological Association/Division 40. She also participates on the Medical Advisory Board for the Noonan Syndrome Foundation.

Bio

Jane Nofer Poskanzer, PhD is a clinical psychologist who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of individuals with autism spectrum disorder and other related disorders. She is currently Assistant Professor of Pediatrics in the Medical School at the University of Minnesota, where she works in the Autism and Neurodevelopment Clinic.

Dr. Nofer earned her Bachelor's degree in English from Haverford College, and her master's and doctoral degrees in Clinical Psychology from Emory University. She completed her pre-doctoral internship at Boston Children's Hospital/Harvard School of Medicine, and a post-doctoral fellowship at Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital/Case Western Reserve University. Dr. Nofer has served people with autism and their families in a variety of settings since 1984, including university centers such as the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and The University of Chicago Hospitals, as well as in service agencies and schools.She has taught, supervised, and mentored students from a variety of fields and at many levels, including post-doctoral psychology fellows, pre-doctoral psychology students, medical fellows and students, and undergraduates. Dr. Nofer frequently presents to the community in order to broaden understanding and acceptance of individuals with autism.

Research Summary

Methamphetamine addiction to explain differences in brain functioning
Adolescent cognitive development
Research education

Clinical Summary

Autism Spectrum Disorders

Bio

Margaret Semrud-Clikeman, PhD received her doctorate from the University of Georgia in 1990. She completed an internship and postdoctoral fellowship at the Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical school (MGH) and received a post-doctoral neuroscience fellowship at MGH from NIH to study neuropsychological and brain morphology in children with ADHD. Her dissertation was awarded the Outstanding Dissertation of the Year Award from the Orton Dyslexia Society. She continues her research interests in the areas of ADHD and educational neuroscience. She is currently working on research in ADHD, 18q- syndrome, and autistic spectrum disorders with Dr. Plizska at UTHSCSA,
Dr. Semrud-Clikeman was awarded a NIH grant to study the effects of stimulant medication on neuropsychological functioning. Dr. Semrud-Clikeman and her students have developed a social competence intervention that has been successfully piloted. In 1999 she was awarded the Early Career Contributions award from the National Academy of Neuropsychology. She has also been awarded support for her work studying NVLD and Asperger Syndrome from a private foundation. Dr. Semrud-Clikeman was recently awarded intramural funding for her study of executive function and attention problems in children who survive cerebral malaria in Malawi.
Dr. Semrud-Clikeman has published more than 60 articles, 75 chapters, 6 textbooks, and given over 200 presentations at national and international conferences. Dr. Semrud-Clikeman holds the rank of Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics at the University of Minnesota.

Clinical Summary

ADHD; Autism; Learning Disabilities; Developmental Disabilities

Bio

Dr. Kyle Sterrett is a licensed clinical psychologist with a specialization in the assessment and treatment of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). He received his doctoral training at the University of California Los Angeles and received a postdoctoral fellowship at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at the University of California Los Angeles. The focus of this postdoctoral fellowship was on conducting comprehensive autism diagnostic evaluations across the lifespan.

He has extensive experience working with children and families with neurodevelopmental disorders both clinically and in various research programs. He has provided direct intervention and parent training in evidence based naturalistic developmental, behavioral interventions to teach communication and language to infants, toddlers and school-aged children.

His program of research lies in understanding the mechanisms of treatment response for children with ASD enrolled in early interventions. He is also focused on developing novel measures to monitor social communication changes over time and improving the quality of methods we use in early intervention research.

Bio

Dr. Katie Stone is a clinical child psychologist and Assistant Professor in the Department of Pediatrics, Division of Clinical Behavioral Neuroscience at the University of Minnesota Medical School. She received her PhD in clinical child psychology from the University of Kansas. Her predoctoral internship was completed at the Medical University of South Carolina and her postdoctoral fellowship was at the University of Minnesota Medical School. In line with a systems-based framework, her research and clinical work focus on the influence of interpersonal trauma and caregiver disruptions on neurodevelopment and self-regulation during early childhood.

Bio

Meghan Swanson, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and a developmental and cognitive neuroscientist. She received her PhD in Behavioral Neuroscience from the Graduate Center at the City University of New York. While completing postdoctoral training in neuroimaging and neurodevelopmental disorders at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, she was awarded a NIH Pathway to Independence Award (K99/R00).

In her research she investigates the neurobiology of early communication. She is also interested in how infants and their parents communicate and how this early communication supports brain development and later language and cognitive skills. Her current research is supported by an NIH R01, which aims to identify infant-based language and communication risk markers, caregiver-based intervention targets, and brain-based monitoring biomarkers to guide presymptomatic intervention for autism.