Evidence for Video Games that Encourage Social Interactions, Reveal Unique Skills & Abilities and Foster Executive Function in Individual with Diverse Needs

Mona M. Delahooke, PhD is a Clinical Psychologist specializing in the development of infants, children, and their families. She has received specialized training as an infant mental health specialist, and works widely with multi-disciplinary teams supporting children with developmental or emotional delays. She is a faculty member of the Early Intervention Training Institute (EITI) of the Los Angeles Child Guidance Clinic. She is a senior faculty member and Mental Health Working Group Co-Chair of the Profectum Foundation. Dr. Delahooke also provides training to personnel in the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health and the Westside Infant Family Network. Currently in private practice in Arcadia, California, she consults with parents, preschools, regional centers and school districts in the areas of developmental screening, assessment and intervention for children and their families.

Celebrate the Children’s founder, Monica G. Osgood, is an experienced behavioral consultant and therapist who specializes in using developmental approaches to support children with autism and other differences in relating and communicating. She is also the Founder and Director of the Developmental Center for Children and Families and Executive Director and a founding member of the Profectum Foundation. Monica has worked in homes, therapy centers, and private and public school settings for over 20 years. Some of her experience has included assessment and the development of intervention programs, curriculum and IEP development, and parent and professional training. In 1998, Monica created the first public school program with the Developmental Individual Relationship-based (DIR model) approach as the core philosophy. ​In 2000, she was the first educator to join the senior faculty of the Interdisciplinary Council on Development and Learning(ICDL) to provide interdisciplinary training in the DIR model. During her time with ICDL, Monica served as faculty for all of their yearly training institutes, spoke at many of their conferences and had the opportunity to work closely and collaborate with Drs. Greenspan and Wieder to further develop the DIR model in school settings. ​In 2004, she collaborated with Lauren Blaszak to open a state-approved, DIR model school for children ages 3-21 in Denville, New Jersey, now serving over 70 school districts and 130 families. Additional accomplishments include, many speaking engagements at conferences and participation in television, radio and newspaper interviews across the USA, Wales, Ireland and Amsterdam. Monica has appeared on Welsh Channel 4 and BBC1 documentaries, sharing the DIR model approach with British parents and professionals. Monica and the Celebrate the Children school were featured in a TIME Magazine cover story in May of 2006. ​She serves on the Advisory Board for 3LPlace and the National Advisory Council for The Centers for Exceptional Children​. Monica also serves on the Economic Development Advisory Council and the Sustainable Economic Development Plan Steering Committee for her local Town Council. Finally, she collaborated with twice Grammy nominated children’s artists Dan Myers and Brady Rymer on an album and music video celebrating diversity in children with all abilities released April 2011. https://www.monicaosgood.com/

LouAnne Boyd, MA is a Ph.D. candidate in informatics at UC Irvine, studying the human counter interactions in assertive technologies for ASD. She has 20 years of experience working with children on the autism spectrum and their families. LouAnne was the principal investigator of the empirical study of the use of a collaborative iPad game, Zody to increase social interactions in autistic individuals.