Hi! I’m Dr. Alexandra Carter. I am a Registered Psychologist who specializes in assessment and consultation for neurodivergent children and teens, and I am the director at Akira Child Development Group. For over 10 years I have been providing comprehensive assessments of toddlers, children, and teens and have worked in various settings (e.g., public school system, community mental health, hospital). In my private practice I assess children for learning disorders, ADHD, autism spectrum disorder, developmental delays, or mental health concerns like anxiety. I believe that early assessment and intervention is critical to ensuring the best outcomes for my clients. I embrace opportunities to consult with educators and other professionals such as speech pathologists, occupational therapists, and paediatricians before, during and after an assessment to ensure a child’s academic and social-emotional success. I no longer see children for therapy/counselling. If you’d like to learn more about assessments, please  visit services.

I have a doctorate in School Psychology from the University of British Columbia and a masters degree from the University of Toronto in Cognitive Neuropsychology. I have been classified as a Qualified Specialist (QS) in autism assessment through the BC Autism Assessment Network (BCAAN). I previously worked as a consultant for the provincial government, providing support in designing programs for children with autism.

Hi! I’m Chelsey Chichak, M.S. SLP(C), CCC-SLP, a Registered Speech Language Pathologist. I discovered my passion for helping individuals achieve better communication skills through speech and language therapy when I was on a golf scholarship to Eastern Washington University. I received both my Bachelors and Masters of Communication Disorders in beautiful Spokane, Washington. Once I moved back to Canada I started my career at a not-for-profit in Calgary, Alberta where I gained a wealth of knowledge and experience working within a supportive and collaborative team environment.

I have been fortunate to receive a number of specialized trainings and certifications such as: HANEN: ABC and Beyond Advanced Workshop, HANEN: More Than Words, HANEN: Learning Language and Loving It, HANEN: It Takes Two To Talk, LETRS: Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling Training, LiPS: Lindamood Phonemic Sequencing Program Training, V&V: Visualizing and Verbalizing Language Comprehension Training, LAMP: Language Acquisition Through Motor Planning, ORPP- Orofacial Myofunctional Disorders Level 1 and Prompts for Restructuring Oral Muscular Phonetic  argets (PROMPT).

Combined with my love and passion with Early Intervention, I also have an interest in Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) systems as well as school-aged, adults and intensive care/brain-injured patients. I am a certified TouchChat Trainer and I’m able to help parents, therapy team members and school teams to better support their TouchChat AAC users.

When I’m not working, I’m hanging out with my two young children, my husband and my dog. We love the outdoors and of course–golf!

Hi! I’m Sarah Stacey, client case manager at Akira Child Development Group. I’m a Registered Holistic Nutritionist(R.H.N) and after years of working with clients to help them reach their health goals, I made the transition into health management. I really enjoy working with Dr. Alexandra and her team, assisting families in getting the support needed for their child.

Hi! I’m Jacqueline Pelayo, a Certified School Psychologist in British Columbia, Licensed Specialist in School Psychology in Texas, and across the United States under the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP). My graduate degree is a master’s and specialist in School Psychology, I’m currently working on my doctorate in Clinical Psychology. While working at schools in Texas, I specialized in working with students with Autism, ADHD, emotional disturbance, and developing individualized education plans. I worked for Houston Independent School District and Dallas Independent School District, mainly identifying children with autism and emotional concerns. Working as a school psychologist has allowed me to communicate with teachers to develop adequate plans for children to succeed academically, emotionally, and behaviourally. I was trained to implement behaviour and academic interventions, monitor progress, promote positive behaviour support and mental health, create safe and positive school climates, identity at-risk students, provide crisis prevention, reinforce positive peer relationships and social problem solving, and provide individual and group counseling. I’m currently completing my doctoral trainee experience with Dr. Carter. I love working with children, and I’m particularly drawn to working with children on the autism spectrum.

Hi! I’m Rajeena Kumar, a doctoral student in the Doctor of Philosophy program in Counselling Psychology at the University of British Columbia. I am completing a speciality placement with Dr. Alexandra to build skills in conducting psychoeducational and autism assessments with children and youth. I have previously worked as a Child and Youth Mental Health Clinician through the Ministry of Children and Family Development, where I worked with families to provide the assessment and treatment of severe mental health concerns. I use strength-based and culturally appropriate approaches to understanding young people’s concerns and support them to reach their therapeutic goals. I have experience providing individual, parent-child, and group therapy using Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy and Dialectical Behavioural Therapy, with a particular focus on disorders of anxiety, depression, emotional dysregulation, self-harm, and suicidal behaviour. I acknowledge the importance of a comprehensive approach to assessment and treatment and am committed to consulting and liaising with community agencies, schools, and hospitals to support families. I completed my Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology, and my Bachelor of Arts in Psychology at the University of British Columbia.

Hi! I’m Bethany Ee, a school and applied child psychology PhD student at UBC. I have experience conducting assessments and interventions for children and adolescents with developmental, learning, attention, behavioural, and mental health challenges. I am completing a year long practicum in 2021-2022 with Dr. Alexandra to provide comprehensive diagnostic evaluations, with a focus on psychoeducational and autism assessments. I take on a strengths-based approach in my work with families and have worked with students, families, and school teams across a variety of settings, including schools and private- and university-based clinics. I completed my Master of Science in School and Applied Child Psychology at the University of Calgary and my undergraduate degree with a major in Psychology and minor in Family Studies at UBC.  I currently complete psycho-educational, ADHD, and autism evaluations for children under her supervision.

Hello! I’m Erika Thauberger, a Certified School Psychologist and School and Applied Child Psychology Ph.D. student at UBC. In 2015, I completed my Bachelor’s of Science, with a specialization in Psychology and a minor in Biology from the University of Toronto. I received my Master’s of Arts in School Psychology from UBC in 2018, and worked for a public school district before returning to school for my Ph.D. in 2020. Working in schools, I gained valuable knowledge of the Public School System and other community services in British Columbia. I have experience working with school teams, parents, and children and youth with learning disabilities, ADHD, and Autism. I am gaining specialized training in the field of Autism Assessment under Dr. Alexandra’s supervision. I completed a full-year practicum 2021-2022 and currently complete psycho-educational, ADHD, and autism evaluations for children under her supervision.

Hi! I am a practising Certified School Psychologist and Behaviour Consultant. I am fluent in Mandarin and Cantonese. I have a Masters of Applied Science from the University of Waterloo and a Bachelor of Arts in Honours Psychology from the University of British Columbia. My passion is in child development and I have always enjoyed working with children, especially supporting children with needs. That’s why I entered the field of Behaviour Consulting more than 20 years ago. I have worked with families who have preschoolers, children and youths with a variety of special needs and am on the Registry of Autism Service Providers (RASP) list providing behaviour intervention and support to families. At the same time, I am also a School Psychologist employed by a local school district. In schools (Kindergarten to  Grade 12), I specialize in psychoeducational assessments, behaviour assessments, providing consults to teachers and school teams to address children’s learning, behaviour, and mental health needs. I recently started working with Dr. Carter in private practice and with her supervision, I plan to expand my assessment skill sets to work with more neurologically diverse populations.