Dr. Holley Arnold Pitts
Postdoctoral Fellow
Dr. Holley Pitts Arnold is a postdoctoral fellow. She completed her PhD in Experimental Psychology through the University of Louisville. Holley’s work broadly focuses on understanding the cognitive, language, and socioemotional development of children who have neurodevelopmental disorders such as fragile X syndrome, Williams syndrome, and duplication 7q11.23 syndrome. Her current research focuses on investigating how early indicators of physiological and behavioral development may impact children’s everyday living skills, social communication abilities, self-regulatory skills, and psychopathology. Holley is very excited about her position at the NDD Lab and looks forward to working with the children and their families who participate in our research!
For more detailed information regarding Dr. Holley Pitts Arnold’s research, you can review her ResearchGate profile.
Link to research gate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Holley-Arnold
Dr. Lisa Hamrick
Postdoctoral Fellow
Dr. Lisa Hamrick is a postdoctoral fellow. Lisa is excited to be returning to the NDD Lab, as she worked in the lab for two years as a research assistant prior to completing her PhD in Clinical Psychology at Purdue University under the mentorship of Bridgette Kelleher (another NDD Lab alum!). Lisa’s research focuses on early social communication and language development of children at increased likelihood of autism and neurodevelopmental conditions, including children with neurogenetic syndromes such as fragile X syndrome, Down syndrome, and Angelman syndrome. Lisa is passionate about developing and utilizing assessment methods that are strengths-based and which capture the full range of abilities of children with neurodevelopmental conditions. In her free time, Lisa enjoys playing tennis, running, scrapbooking, and spending time with husband and daughter.
Kaitlyn Cortez
Graduate Student
Kaitlyn Cortez is currently a doctoral student in the Clinical-Community Psychology program at USC and a trainee in the Behavioral-Biomedical Interface Program (BBIP). She received a B.S. in Neuroscience and Behavior from the University of Notre Dame in 2018 and a M.S. in Applied Developmental Psychology from the University of Pittsburgh in 2022. After graduating with her B.S., Kaitlyn worked as a project coordinator for the Infant Communication Lab under Dr. Jana Iverson, assisting on a longitudinal study of motor and language development in typically developing infants and infants with an elevated likelihood for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). While completing her M.S., Kaitlyn also worked as an intern at the Neonatal Developmental Follow-up Clinic at UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, a clinic providing comprehensive and family-centered follow-up care for infants who have spent time in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Kaitlyn is currently interested in the trajectory of social and emotional development, specifically negative affect and emotion regulation, in children with neurodevelopmental disorders.
Erin Hunt
Graduate Student
Erin Hunt completed a B.S. in Cognitive Neuroscience with a minor in Chemistry from Fordham University in 2017. Throughout her undergraduate career, Erin worked in the Fordham Memory and Aging Lab as a research assistant and completed a senior thesis examining the effects of menstrual cycle phase on cognition and autobiographical memory. After graduation, Erin completed a two-year research assistantship at the Child Mind Institute's Healthy Brain Network, a community-based research program aiming to identify biomarkers underlying mental health and learning disorders in children and adolescents. Her current research interests include exploring developmental trajectories of neurocognitive abilities, such as inhibitory control, in relation to maladaptive outcomes in both typically developing children and children with neurodevelopmental disorders.
Chandler Knott
Graduate Student
Chandler Knott is currently a doctoral student in the School Psychology program at UofSC. She received her B.S. in Experimental Psychology from UofSC in 2017. After receiving her undergraduate degree, Chandler completed a two-year research assistantship here in the NDD lab where she gained extensive experience working with families of young children with FXS, DS, and ASD. Her interest in neurodevelopmental disorders originated from her previous experiences working with children with ASD in educational and therapeutic settings as a former Registered Behavior Technician. Her current research and clinical interests include early detection and intervention of ASD in high-risk populations, atypical sensory processing in young children with neurodevelopmental disorders, and differential diagnosis.
For more detailed information regarding Chandler’s research and clinical experience, view her curriculum vitae.
Rachel Hantman
Doctoral Student
Rachel Hantman is a doctoral student in the Clinical-Community Psychology program here at the UofSC and a trainee in the Behavioral-Biomedical Interface Program. She completed her B.S. in Neurobiology at the University of Washington in 2016 and her M.Ed. in Mind, Brain, and Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) in 2017. During her B.S., Rachel worked under Dr. Wendy Stone in the Research in Early Autism Detection and Intervention Lab where she studied parental verbal responsiveness to child communicative acts in relation to ASD-risk. Upon graduating with her M.Ed., she worked at HGSE as a Lab Manager under Dr. Gigi Luk, assisting in a study examining learning outcomes of bilingual, dyslexic, and typically developing adolescences through fMRI and eye tracking. She then worked with Dr. Helen Tager-Flusberg at Boston University where she designed and implemented a qualitative study examining how parents of young adults with ASD believe that their children’s sensory sensitivities impact their transition to adulthood. Currently, Rachel is interested in using biopsychosocial ecological approaches to study neurodevelopmental disorders, specifically regarding how factors that surround children (e.g., parental stress, intervention history) impact and interact with their symptomology, behaviors, and neurobiology in relation to their daily functioning (e.g., anxiety, adaptive functioning).
Former Post Docs and Graduate Students
Dr. Katie Bangert
Dr. Bangert completed her postdoctoral fellowship at the NDD Lab and SC Family Experiences Lab at the UofSC. In 2022, she accepted an Assistant Professor position in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at the University of Wisconsin – River Falls.
Conner Black
Conner Black was a School Psychology doctoral student in the NDD Lab from 2017 to 2022. Following his time at the NDD Lab, Conner accepted an internship at Nationwide Children’s Hospital.
Dr. Carla Wall
Dr. Wall worked in the NDD Lab as a Clinical-Community Psychology doctoral student at UofSC. Following the completion of her degree programmed, she transitioned to a postdoctoral associate position at the Duke Center for Autism and Brain Development.
Dr. Jordan Klein (Ezell)
Following her time as a doctoral student in the NDD Lab, Dr. Klein completed an internship and worked as a postdoctoral fellow in Clinical Psychology at the Medical University of South Carolina.
Dr. Sara Matherly
Dr. Matherly worked in the NDD Lab as a School Psychology doctoral student at UofSC. She is currently a psychology postdoctoral fellow at Chapel Hill TEACCH (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill).
Dr. Debra Reisinger
Dr. Reisinger is a licensed clinical psychologist and assistant professor of Clinical Pediatrics at the Child Development Center at Riley Hospital for Children and Indiana University School of Medicine. Dr. Reisinger completed her doctoral degree in School Psychology from UofSC with the NDD Lab.
Dr. Marjorie Grefer Cloninger
Dr. Grefer Cloninger worked in the NDD Lab as a doctoral student in School Psychology at UofSC. She is currently a licensed psychologist with Prisma Health Medical Group in the Child Development and Behavioral Health division within the Department of Pediatrics.
Dr. Jessica Scherr
Dr. Scherr worked in the NDD Lab as a doctoral student. She is currently in a post-doctorate position at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio.
Dr. Marissa Robinson
Dr. Robinson completed her Pre-Doctoral Internship with Greenville County Schools. She then completed a Post-Doctoral Fellowship with Greenville Assessment and Learning Specialists, where she is a currently a Licensed Psychologist.
Dr. Lindsay McCary
Dr. McCary completed a post-doctoral position with the NDD Lab from 2011-2014. She is currently the Director of Psychological Services at KGH Autism Services.
Dr. Laura Mattie (nee Hahn)
Following her post-doctoral position with the NDD Lab, Dr. Hahn joined the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign faculty in the Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences where she is currently an associate professor.
Dr. Ashley Robinson
Dr. Ashley Robinson was a School Psychology doctoral student with the NDD Lab. She is currently an assistant teaching professor in the Department of Special Education at Ball State University.
Shannon O’Connor
Shannon worked in the NDD Lab as a graduate student and earned her M.A. in the School Psychology program before transitioning to a Policy Associate and Project Manager position at the Autism Legal Resource Center.
Dr. Kelly Caravella White
Dr. Caravella worked in the NDD Lab as a Clinical-Community Psychology doctoral student at USC. She is currently a T32 postdoctoral fellow at the Carolina Institute for Developmental Disabilities at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
