Bio/Background of the Speaker: 

Dr. Lola Halperin, EdD, OTR/L is an Assistant Professor in the Graduate Occupational Therapy (OT) Program at Sacred Heart University (SHU). Her specialty is psychosocial OT, and she designs, teaches, and coordinates the mental health curriculum at her school. Dr. Halperin earned her Bachelor in OT degree from Tel Aviv University, Israel, and her Master of Arts degree from NYU. She then completed her doctoral studies at Columbia University.

Dr. Halperin has served children, adolescents, and adults with mental illness and other forms of adversity in inpatient, outpatient, and community-based facilities in the United States, Canada, and Israel. To augment her clinical experience, she has obtained training/completed courses in psychodrama and individual and group counseling. Dr. Halperin is a certified Assessment of Motor and Process Skills (AMPS) rater and has also obtained certificates in Dialectical-Behavior Therapy and Lifestyle Redesign for Chronic Pain and Headache Management.

Dr. Halperin's current professional interests center on OT assessments and interventions (including group therapy) for clients with mental illness, history of trauma, and chronic pain. Dr. Halperin has created and serves as one of the OT students' supervisors in the Monday Night Social (SHU enrichment program for young adults with neurodevelopmental conditions). She also serves on the Technical Advisory Committee of the American Veterans Archaeological Recovery (AVAR), a therapeutic archaeology-based peer-run organization for military veterans with physical and emotional injuries.

Dr. Halperin has presented on group-based OT interventions to the ConnOTA community in the past.