CDSPP Election Ballot
Samuel Kim
Greetings Colleagues-
I hope you are finding time for rest and renewal this summer.
I’m reaching out to share your PhD program’s ballot for the CDSPP Board Member Election. The candidates’ brief bios are included below.
Your program’s ballot is available at this link: https://gsu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_agkCx4DL5ZjPpau
Each CDSPP-member program receives one vote in the election.
You may choose up to 4 candidates on the ballot.
Please vote by July 15th, 2026.
Thanks,
Andy Roach, CDSPP Board Chair
Candidate Bios
Dr. Kayla Bates-Brantley is an Associate Professor and Director of Clinical Training in the School Psychology Program at Mississippi State University, where she has served as DCT since Fall 2022. She is a licensed psychologist and NCSP whose scholarship focuses on academic and behavioral assessment and intervention. Dr. Bates-Brantley received the 2023 CDSPP Emerging Leader Award and is involved in doctoral training, accreditation, and student mentorship. She is committed to advancing high-quality school psychology preparation and collaboration among training programs and seeks to serve on the CDSPP Board to support training directors and contribute to the future of school psychology.
Theresa J. Brown, Ph.D., BCBA-D, LBA-NJ. I am the doctoral program director of the Psy.D. School Psychology program at Montclair State University (MSU). Prior to coming to MSU to develop and launch the Psy.D., I was a core School Psychology faculty member at another NJ university. In addition to my academic work, I have nearly two decades of experience as a consulting school psychologist in the NJ public schools. I am a NASP program reviewer and was an executive board member of the NJ Association of School Psychologists. I would welcome the opportunity to work with CDSPP members to advance doctoral training in School Psychology.
Beth Meisinger, Ph.D., is a licensed psychologist and Associate Professor at the University of Memphis. She has served as Director of the School Psychology Doctoral Program since 2020, after nine years as Associate Program Director. She has held several editorial leadership positions, including Associate Editor of School Psychology Review and board member for School Psychology Review, Journal of School Psychology, and School Psychology Quarterly. CDSPP has been an invaluable source of support and professional growth for me. I hope to contribute my experience with APA accreditation, recruiting and retaining diverse students, and sustaining our training mission during these tumultuous times.
Colleen O'Neal is an Associate Professor of School Psychology at University of Maryland, College Park. She does research on immigration and refugee policies, resilience processes, and consultation in schools serving immigrant and refugee students, both in the US and abroad. In addition, she has taught school consultation since 2012. She was the previous director of both the school psychology program and the school psychology/counseling psychology/school counseling “area.” Now she is leading the SP program’s 2028 APA re-accreditation process. Guided by a collaborative team-based approach, she hopes to both learn from and contribute to CDSPP leadership as a potential board member.
Dr. Chavez Phelps is an Assistant Professor of School Psychology Program at Georgia State University. His research focuses on trauma-informed care for minoritized youth and educators. Prior to joining Georgia State University, he served as an Assistant Professor at Indiana State University, where he was the acting program director during the 2019–2020 academic year. As a practitioner in New Orleans, he held leadership positions including director of a therapeutic program. He also served as a supervisor for the Louisiana School Psychology Internship Consortium. He is a PREPaRE trainer and a member of the editorial board for School Psychology Review.
June L. Preast, PhD, NCSP is an Associate Professor of School Psychology at The University of Alabama. She obtained her PhD in school psychology from the University of Missouri and her MA/CAS in school psychology at East Carolina University, practicing school psychology in between. Since entering academia at UA in 2018, Dr. Preast has led her program through NASP approvals and the submission of their initial APA self-study. She is focused on providing excellent training to all students in an ever-changing environment and is interested in giving back to the organizations that have supported her and her program, like CDSPP.
Dr. Ann Santos is a licensed psychologist, Training Director, and faculty member, with 12 years of university leadership and K-12 practitioner experience. A dedicated advocate for school psychology programs, she specializes in aligning curricula with APA and NASP standards and expanding evidence-based services to underserved populations. Dr. Santos has direct experience navigating accreditation both as a program director, former site visitor for APA and NASP, and as a member of the APA Commission on Accreditation. On the board, she will leverage this unique regulatory insight to champion graduate programs, support trainers, and protect the rigorous standards of the field.
Dr. Desiree Vega is a Professor and School Psychology Program Coordinator in the Department of Disability and Psychoeducational Studies at the University of Arizona. She received her M.A. and Ph.D. in School Psychology from The Ohio State University. Dr. Vega’s research focuses on three primary areas: 1) Understanding bilingual school psychology training and practice; 2) Preparing school psychologists for culturally competent assessment and intervention practice; and 3) Building collaborations to advance college access and persistence. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including NASP’s Presidential Award for Exceptional Service to Children and School Psychology (2023).
Meredith Weber, PhD, ABPP, NCSP, is a licensed psychologist who is board certified in School Psychology. She is also a certified school psychologist in Pennsylvania as well as a Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP). She has served as Director of Clinical Training for two doctoral school psychology programs and currently serves as the program director of the PsyD program in School Psychology at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM). Dr Weber is also on the board of the Association of School Psychologists of Pennsylvania. Her clinical and professional interests include trauma, child maltreatment, clinical supervision, resilience, disruptive behavior disorders in children and social justice.
Associate Professor
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