Faculty

Recognition
Dell Med GME Clinical Learning Environment Award
Texas Neurological Society Lifetime Achievement Award 2023
Best Doctors in America
Castle Connolly Top Doctors
Austin Monthly Top Pediatric Neuroscience Doctors
Child Neurology Society Past President
Child Neurology Society Hower Award 2015

Clinical Focus: Pediatric Headache

Sara Pavitt, MD, is a pediatric neurologist and pediatric headache specialist. Pavitt earned a dual bachelor’s degree in physiology and psychology from the University of Colorado, a certificate in neuroscience from the University of Colorado, and her medical degree from Chicago Medical School. She completed a residency in child neurology at Stanford University and her fellowship in pediatric headache at The University of California, San Francisco.

Pavitt is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology with special qualification in child neurology and is certified in headache care by the United Council for Neurologic Subspecialties. She is a member of the American Headache Society and the American Academy of Neurology. She has received numerous awards, including the Arnold P. Gold Humanism and Excellence in Teaching Award and the Christine Wijman Humanism in Medicine Award. She was nominated by Dell Medical School residents for the Dell Children’s 2022 Excellence in Teaching Award and was selected as one of 30 American Academy of Neurology members to participate in the 2022 Palatucci Advocacy Leadership Forum.

Recognition
Austin Monthly Top Pediatric Neuroscience Doctors
Palatucci Advocacy Leadership Forum
Dell Children’s Excellence in Teaching Award, Pediatric Neurosciences
Dell Med GME Clinical Learning Environment Award
American Academy of Neurology’s Enhanced Resident Leadership Program
Consulting Fellow Teacher of the Year, Stanford
Honors Certificate in Medical Education, Stanford

Clinical Focus: Advanced Rehabilitation of Paralytic Diseases in Children

Glendaliz Bosques, MD, specializes in treating children with congenital or acquired physical disabilities. She earned her bachelor’s degree in natural sciences from the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus in Río Piedras, Puerto Rico, where she graduated summa cum laude, and her medical degree from the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine in San Juan, Puerto Rico, where she graduated magna cum laude. She completed an internship in transitional medicine at San Juan City Hospital in San Juan, a residency in physical medicine and rehabilitation at the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Alliance of Baylor College of Medicine and The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, and a fellowship in pediatric rehabilitation medicine at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and the University of Cincinnati.

Bosques is certified by the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation in physical medicine and rehabilitation, pediatric rehabilitation medicine, and brain injury medicine. She is passionate about understanding the concerns of her patients not only as perceived in the medical visit but also as their functional difficulties pertain to home, school, and their social context. Her clinical interests involve advanced rehabilitation of paralytic diseases in children, including traumatic and nontraumatic etiologies, and her academic interests include the integration of disability management into medical education. She serves on the Award Committee with the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and is co-editor of the Journal of Pediatric Rehabilitation Medicine, Acquired Brain Injury Special Issue. She is also an active member of the Association of Academic Physiatrists.

Recognition
Dell Med GME Clinical Learning Environment Award
Austin Monthly Top Pediatric Neuroscience Doctors

Clinical Focus: Pediatric Neuropsychology

Cynthia Austin, PhD, is a pediatric neuropsychologist in both the Traumatic Brain Injury/Concussion Clinic and the Pediatric Neuropsychology Clinic. In the Traumatic Brain Injury/Concussion Clinic, she specializes in providing care to children and adolescents with traumatic brain injury through targeted neuropsychological screenings, education, brief intervention, and individualized treatment planning. In the Pediatric Neuropsychology Clinic, she evaluates patients with a variety of medical conditions that can affect brain/central nervous system development and functioning, including long-term recovery and follow-up for moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury, epilepsy, hydrocephalus, cerebral palsy, prematurity, and stroke, as well as neurometabolic, genetic, and autoimmune disorders.

Austin earned her master’s in program evaluation and her doctorate in school psychology from The University of Texas at Austin. She completed an internship in pediatric neuropsychology at the University of Minnesota Medical School and a fellowship in pediatric neuropsychology from Kennedy Krieger Institute/Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

Austin is certified in both clinical neuropsychology and pediatric clinical neuropsychology by the American Board of Professional Psychology. Her research interests include parent experience and satisfaction with the neuropsychological assessment process. She studies predictors and outcomes of traumatic brain injury, including prolonged recovery from mild traumatic brain injury and family interventions/adjustment following moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury. She is also part of a multisite study incorporating and delivering Teen Online Problems Solving intervention for adolescents and their families following traumatic and acquired brain injuries.

Clinical Focus: Epilepsy

Dave F. Clarke, MD, received his medical degree at the University of the West Indies in Jamaica. He completed his first two years of pediatric training at Overlook Hospital, an affiliate of Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. He completed his pediatric neurology training at the University of Michigan Medical Center and neurophysiology training (epilepsy and sleep) at the Hospital for Sick Children at the University of Toronto in Canada.

Clarke is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology with special qualifications in child neurology, sleep medicine, and epilepsy. He is a fellow of the American Epilepsy Society, secretary/treasurer of the National Associations of Epilepsy Centers Board, president of the Epilepsy Society of the Caribbean, and an active member of the Child Neurology Society, the American Clinical Neurophysiology Society, the American Academy of Neurology, and the International League Against Epilepsy.

Clarke’s clinical and research interests focus on the medical and surgical management of drug-resistant epilepsy. His recent collaborative projects have focused on reducing deficits and disparities in epilepsy care. He was named a 2023 Dell Med visionary and was selected to participate in Dell Medical School’s Courageous Leadership for Health Improvement program. He is widely published and was elected to the board of the Executive Committee of the Epilepsy Leadership Council, a collaborative group representing several major organizations that support epilepsy patients and their families. He is the inaugural Kozmetsky Family Endowed Chair in Pediatric Epilepsy.

Recognition
Arnold P. Gold Foundation Humanism in Medicine Award, Child Neurology Society
J. Kiffin Penry Award for Excellence in Epilepsy Care, American Epilepsy Society
Travis County Medical Society Physician Humanitarian Award
Executive Committee, Epilepsy Leadership Council
American Epilepsy Society Advocacy Task Force
North American Commission of the International League Against Epilepsy
Ambassador for Epilepsy Award, International League Against Epilepsy/International Bureau for Epilepsy
Castle Connolly Top Doctor
Austin Monthly Top Pediatric Neuroscience Doctors
Austin Black Business Journal Top 10 Black Doctors
Patients’ Choice Award
Newcomers Award, NAACP

Clinical Focus: Epilepsy and Genetics

Kristina K. Jülich, MD, earned her medical degree and completed a residency in pediatrics at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin in Germany. She completed a residency in child neurology and a fellowship in neurogenetics, both at Boston Children’s Hospital, and a second residency in pediatrics at Dell Children’s Medical Center.

Jülich is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology with special qualification in child neurology and by the American Board of Clinical Neuropsychology. She is an epilepsy specialist whose clinical and research interests include genetic disorders affecting the nervous system. She serves on the editorial boards of Annals of the Child Neurology Society and Pediatric Neurology.

Recognition
Dell Med GME Clinical Learning Environment Award

Clinical Focus: Neurofibromatosis, Neuroimmunology, Vascular Autonomic Dysfunction

Manikum Moodley, MD, was a senior neurologist at the Cleveland Clinic and a professor at the Lerner College of Medicine in Cleveland, Ohio before joining the Dell Medical School faculty in 2019. He received his medical degree from the University of KwaZulu-Natal Nelson R. Mandela School of Medicine in Durban, South Africa, then completed residency training at the Hospital for Sick Children, Great Ormond Street in London and the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Edinburgh, Scotland, followed by a fellowship in neonatal neurology at British Columbia Children’s Hospital in Vancouver.

Moodley is an active member of the Network of Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis Centers. His clinical interests include immunological disorders of the nervous system, the diagnosis and treatment of neurofibromatosis, and autonomic neurological disorders. He has published widely on these and other topics.

Recognition
Dell Med GME Clinical Learning Environment Award
Dell Children’s Excellence in Teaching Award, Pediatric Neurosciences
Distinguished Alumnus, Nelson R. Mandela School of Medicine
Excellence in Resident Teaching Award, University of Saskatchewan College of Medicine
Neurological Institute Teacher of the Year Award, Department of Neurology, Cleveland Clinic
Pediatrics Institute Teacher of the Year Award, Department of Pediatrics, Cleveland Clinic
Editorial Board, Seminars in Pediatric Neurology
Best Doctors in America, U.S. News & World Report
Castle Connolly Top Doctor
Member, Royal College of Physicians of the United Kingdom
Fellow, Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Edinburgh
Fellow, Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow

Clinical Focus: Epilepsy

Kristen Arredondo, MD, is a pediatric neurologist in the Comprehensive Pediatric Epilepsy Center. She has special interests in medically refractory epilepsy, neurostimulation, and tuberous sclerosis management.

Arredondo earned her medical degree from Baylor College of Medicine and trained in pediatrics at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston before completing her pediatric neurology residency at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, where she was chief resident and where she also completed a clinical neurophysiology fellowship. Before joining the Dell Med faculty, she was a member of the faculty at The Ohio State University College of Medicine and an attending physician at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, where she served as the associate program director of the Epilepsy Surgery Fellowship and the associate director of the Tuberous Sclerosis Complex Clinic.

Arredondo is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology with special qualifications in child neurology and clinical neurophysiology. Her research interests include thalamic electroencephalography and practice trends in epilepsy presurgical evaluation and surgical management in the United States. She is an active member of the American Epilepsy Society, the American Clinical Neurophysiology Society, and the American Academy of Neurology and has conducted research as part of the National Association of Epilepsy Centers (NAEC) Center Director Study Group.

Recognition
Dell Med GME Clinical Learning Environment Award
Pediatric Neurology Chief Resident, UT Southwestern Medical Center
American Academy of Neurology Resident Scholarship
Gold Humanism Honor Society

Clinical Focus: Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders

Audrey Brumback, MD, PhD, is a member of the Department of Neuroscience at The University of Texas at Austin and a member of the Center for Learning and Memory and the Institute for Neuroscience at UT Austin, in addition to appointments in the departments of Neurology and Pediatrics.

Brumback received her bachelor’s degree in biochemistry from The University of Texas at Austin, then completed her MD and PhD degrees at the University of Colorado. During this time, she helped establish the scientific basis for a novel treatment for neonatal seizures. Brumback completed her pediatric neurology residency through the Neuroscience Pathway at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). Her research is supported by a $500,000 R01 grant from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) entitled “High-Throughput Interrogation of Autism Risk Genes: From Molecules to Behavior” and a $1.5 million NIMH grant entitled “Functional Architecture of the Mediodorsal Thalamus.”

Brumback is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology with special qualification in child neurology. Her clinical interests include autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders. Her current research focuses on developing brain-circuit-based therapies for the developmental neuropsychiatric disorders she treats in her clinical practice.

Recognition
Dell Med GME Clinical Learning Environment Award
Editorial Board, Annals of the Child Neurology Society, Frontiers in Neuroanatomy, Pediatric Neurology, Progress in Neurobiology, and Seminars in Pediatric Neurology
Philip R. Dodge Young Investigator Award, Child Neurology Society, 2017
Stroup Family Award in Pediatric Epilepsy Research (Johns Hopkins University), 2016
Executive Committee, Child Neurology Society (2020-2022)

Clinical Focus: Epilepsy

Clifford “Cliff” Calley, MD, is the medical director of the Dell Children’s Magnetoencephalography (MEG) Laboratory. He received his undergraduate degree from The University of Texas at Dallas and his medical degree from The University of Texas at San Antonio. He completed his pediatric and child neurology residencies and his epilepsy fellowship at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. Calley is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology with special qualification in child neurology. He has done research on topics ranging from pediatric depression to Gulf War syndrome using electroencephalography, functional magnetic resonance imaging, and transcranial magnetic stimulation. His clinical interests include the use of magnetoencephalography to identify children who would benefit from epilepsy surgery.

Recognition
Dell Med GME Clinical Learning Environment Award
Education Chief, Child Neurology Residency, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital
Pellock Fellowship Award, Child Neurology Society/Child Neurology Foundation/American Epilepsy Society

Clinical Focus: General Child Neurology

Sireesha Chinthaparthi, MD, received her undergraduate degree from Mississippi College and her medical degree from the University of Mississippi Medical Center. Before joining the Dell Med faculty in 2019, she completed her pediatric and child neurology residencies at the University of Mississippi. She is currently a fellow in the Pediatric Epilepsy Fellowship program at Dell Medical School.

Chinthaparthi is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics in pediatrics and the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology with special qualification in child neurology. She has presented research at numerous conferences and is a peer reviewer for Annals of the Child Neurology Society and Pediatric Neurology. In 2024, she was nominated by Dell Med residents for the Dell Children’s Excellence in Teaching Award. Her clinical interests include epilepsy, movement disorders, and attention deficit disorders.

Recognition
Dell Med GME Clinical Learning Environment Award
Dell Children’s Excellence in Teaching Award

Clinical Focus: Pediatric Movement Disorders

Stephen R. Deputy, MD, is a pediatric neurologist and program director of the Child Neurology Residency. Deputy earned his bachelor’s in biochemistry and cell biology from the University of California, San Diego and his medical degree from the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. He completed a residency in pediatric neurology at the University of California, San Francisco.

Deputy formerly served as the clerkship director for neurology at the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans, where he practiced for 24 years. He is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in neurology with special qualification in child neurology. His clinical and research interests include most disorders of the central and peripheral nervous system, though he has a special interest in pediatric movement disorders. He enjoys teaching medical students, neurology residents, pediatrics residents, and child neurology residents about basic neurosciences, neuroanatomy, and clinical pediatric neurology.

Recognition
Dell Med GME Clinical Learning Environment Award
Senior Associate Editor, Pediatric Neurology
Dr. Allen Copping Award for Excellence in Teaching, Louisiana State University School of Medicine
Nicholas Gagliano Pediatrics Outstanding Faculty Award, Louisiana State University School of Medicine
Top Physician, Consumers’ Research Council of America

Clinical Focus: Neurodevelopmental Disabilities

Leah Ferrante, MD, received her bachelor’s degree in biology with an option in neuroscience from The Pennsylvania State University and her medical degree from West Virginia University School of Medicine. She then completed a pediatrics residency and a neurodevelopmental disabilities residency at Baylor College of Medicine and a fetal and neonatal neurology fellowship at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. She is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in neurology with special qualifications in child neurology and neurodevelopmental disabilities. She is a member of the Texas Neurological Society, Newborn Brain Society, American Academy of Pediatrics, and American Academy of Neurology. She is co-director of the NeuroNICU program at Dell Children’s.

Recognition
Mountaineer Medical Scholarship, West Virginia University School of Medicine

Clinical Focus: Epilepsy

Daniel A. Freedman, DO, received his undergraduate degree from Duke University and his medical degree from the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine. He completed his pediatric and child neurology residencies at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, where he also completed a fellowship in pediatric epilepsy management. Freedman joined the Dell Med faculty in 2020. He is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in neurology. His clinical interests include epilepsy in children and psychogenic nonepileptic events (PNEE).

Recognition
Dell Med GME Clinical Learning Environment Award
Dell Children’s Excellence in Teaching Award, Pediatric Neurosciences
Dell Medical School Child Neurology Faculty Resident Teaching Award
Austin Monthly Top Pediatric Neuroscience Doctors
Education Chief, Child Neurology Residency, Nationwide Children’s Hospital
Academic Achievement Award, Child Neurology Residency, Nationwide Children’s Hospital

Clinical Focus: Neuroimmunology

Duriel Hardy, MD, is a pediatric neuroimmunologist and an adult neurologist in UT Health Austin’s Multiple Sclerosis and Neuroimmunology Center within the Mulva Clinic for the Neurosciences. He is a graduate of Brown University (Bachelor of Science in neuroscience) and Duke University School of Medicine. In addition to residencies in pediatrics and child neurology at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, he completed a fellowship in multiple sclerosis and neuroimmunology disorders at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.

Hardy is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in neurology with special qualification in child neurology. His research and clinical interests are in multiple sclerosis and neuroimmunology as well as ensuring a coordinated continuum of care as pediatric patients with neuroimmunological disease age into adulthood. He serves on the editorial boards of Pediatric Neurology and Annals of the Child Neurology Society.

Recognition
Dell Med GME Clinical Learning Environment Award
Austin Black Business Journal Top 10 Central Texas Most Influential Doctors
Americas Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ACTRIMS)
Jessica Panzer Good Catch Award Recipient, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Minority Research Scholars Program, Child Neurology Society
Minority Scholars Award, American Academy of Neurology
Zeritsky Clinical Research Award, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia

Clinical Focus: Headache

Samantha “Sam” Irwin, MB BCh, MSc, is a pediatric neurologist who specializes in caring for children with headache disorders and migraine. In addition, she treats pediatric patients with concussions and post-traumatic headaches.

Irwin earned a bachelor’s degree in neuroscience at Dalhousie University, a master’s in neuropsychology at Maastricht University, and her medical degree at the School of Medicine Trinity College Dublin. She completed a residency in pediatric neurology at the University of Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children, where she was chief resident, followed by a fellowship in headache neurology at the University of California, San Francisco. Prior to Dell Med, she served as an assistant professor of neurology at UCSF.

Irwin is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in neurology with special qualification in child neurology. Her research focuses on clinical trials evaluating potential new treatments for headache disorders in children and adolescents. In addition, she is investigating the role of structured exercise as part of a collaborative, multidisciplinary approach to treating pediatric headache. Irwin is a member of the American Academy of Neurology, Child Neurology Society, American Headache Society, Canadian Headache Society, International Headache Academy, and International Child Neurology Association and is co-chair of the Pediatric and Adolescent Special Interest Section of the American Headache Society. She serves on the editorial boards of Annals of the Child Neurology Society and Pediatric Neurology.

Recognition
Dell Med GME Clinical Learning Environment Award
Pediatric Neurology Chief Resident, University of Toronto
Residency Research Day Award, University of Toronto

Clinical Focus: General Child Neurology

Louisa G. Keith, MD, received her undergraduate degree from Harvard University and her medical degree from Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia. She completed her pediatric residency at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and her child neurology residency at Boston Children’s Hospital.

Keith is a member of the American Academy of Neurology and the Child Neurology Society and serves on multiple committees dedicated to medical education. She is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in neurology with special qualification in child neurology. Her clinical interests include the neurodevelopmental outcomes of children with congenital heart disease, and she oversees the cardiac neurodevelopmental follow-up program.

Recognition
Palatucci Advocacy Leadership Forum
Castle Connolly Top Doctors
Castle Connolly Rising Star
Austin Monthly Top Pediatric Neuroscience Doctors

Clinical Focus: Epilepsy

Chelsey Ortman, MD, earned a Bachelor of Science in biochemistry and cell biology and a Bachelor of Arts in Asian Studies at Rice University in Houston. She completed her medical degree at Mercer University School of Medicine in Macon, Georgia. After her pediatrics and child neurology training at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, she completed fellowships in pediatric epilepsy and advanced clinical neurophysiology at Baylor College of Medicine/Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston.

Ortman is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in neurology with special qualification in child neurology and is a member of the American Clinical Neurophysiology Society, American Epilepsy Society, Child Neurology Society, and American Academy of Neurology. Her clinical and research interests include pediatric epilepsy and surgical treatment of epilepsy, pediatric neurocritical care, tuberous sclerosis, global medicine, quality improvement, and medical education.

Clinical Focus: Epilepsy, Neurogenetics

Emily Ramirez, DO, is a pediatric epileptologist in the Dell Children’s Comprehensive Pediatric Epilepsy Center. She earned her Bachelor of Science in biology at St. Edward’s University in Austin and her medical degree at The University of North Texas Health Science Center’s Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine in Fort Worth. She completed residencies in pediatrics and child neurology as well as a fellowship in pediatric epilepsy at Dell Medical School.

Ramirez is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in neurology with special qualification in child neurology. She has special interests in complex pediatric epilepsy, neurogenetics, and adolescent transition of care. She is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Neurology, the Child Neurology Society, the American Epilepsy Society, and the American Clinical Neurophysiology Society and serves as a peer reviewer for Annals of the Child Neurology Society.

Recognition
Child Neurology Chief Resident, Dell Medical School
Lisa and Steve Roach Award for Resident Publication
J. Kiffin Penry Pediatric Epilepsy Education Program

Clinical Focus: Pediatric Neuromuscular Disease

Ashley Stanley-Copeland, MD, is a pediatric neurologist who specializes in the assessment and treatment of neuromuscular disorders in children. She earned bachelor’s degrees in biological sciences and Spanish from Louisiana State University and a master’s degree in cell and molecular biology from Tulane University. She then earned her medical degree from Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center New Orleans, completed a residency in pediatrics and child neurology at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, and completed a fellowship in pediatric neuromuscular medicine at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. Prior to joining the Dell Med faculty, she was on faculty at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.

Stanley-Copeland is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in neurology with special qualification in child neurology. She is a member of the American Academy of Neurology and the American Association of Neuromuscular and Electrodiagnostic Medicine.

Recognition
Dell Med GME Clinical Learning Environment Award
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Department of Pediatrics Chairman’s Scholar Program

Clinical Focus: General Child Neurology

Vandana Vedanarayanan, MD, received her Bachelor of Arts in English with minors in history and chemistry, summa cum laude, at Millsaps College and her medical degree from the University of Mississippi School of Medicine. She completed her pediatric residency at the University of Mississippi Medical Center and her anesthesiology residency at the University of Buffalo, SUNY.

Vedanarayanan is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in neurology with special qualification in child neurology. She has published articles and abstracts and has given many presentations. She has certifications in pediatric advance life support as well as basic life support. Her honor society inductions include Phi Beta Kappa, Sigma Tau Delta, and Alpha Epsilon Delta (pre-health honorary).

Recognition
Dell Med GME Clinical Learning Environment Award
Dell Medical School Child Neurology Faculty Medical Student Teaching Award

Clinical Focus: Pediatric Neuromuscular Disease

Vettaikorumakankav “Veda” V. Vedanarayanan, MD, was previously professor of pediatrics and neurology at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, where he also served as director of the Division of Neuromuscular Medicine and oversaw the Electromyography and Autonomic Laboratory. Veda received his medical education at Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research in India. After finishing his child neurology residency at Duke University, he went on to complete a neuromuscular disease fellowship at Johns Hopkins University.

Veda is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in clinical neurophysiology and in neurology with special qualification in child neurology. He is also certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in neuromuscular medicine. His clinical focus includes muscle and nerve disorders as well as dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system. He oversees the Dell Children’s Autonomic Program.

Recognition
Dell Med GME Clinical Learning Environment Award
Austin Monthly Top Pediatric Neuroscience Doctors

Clinical Focus: Pediatric Neuro-ophthalmology

Jane C. Edmond, MD, is the director of the Mitchel and Shannon Wong Eye Institute and a professor and founding chair in the Department of Ophthalmology. She is also an adjunct professor in the Department of Ophthalmology at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. Her practice focus is on pediatric and adult strabismus, medical and surgical management (50 percent of her surgery cases were adult strabismus), and pediatric neuro-ophthalmology (one of about 30 in the country).

Edmond earned her undergraduate degree at The University of Texas at Austin with honors (1981), Phi Beta Kappa, and graduated from Baylor College of Medicine (1985), Alpha Omega Alpha. She completed her residency in ophthalmology at Cullen Eye Institute/Baylor College of Medicine, a fellowship in pediatric ophthalmology and strabismus at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, and a second fellowship in neuro-ophthalmology at Baylor College of Medicine.

Edmond is certified by the American Board of Ophthalmology. She was a member of the faculty from 1991 to 1997 at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston. From 1997 to 2003, she was a faculty member at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Scheie Eye Institute, and Wills Eye Hospital, all in Philadelphia. From 2003 to 2017, she resumed her faculty appointment at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s. She is widely published, lectures internationally, and has trained over 200 residents and over 50 pediatric and neuro-ophthalmology fellows.

Recognition
President, American Academy of Ophthalmology (2024-2025)
Achievement Award, American Academy of Ophthalmology
Honor Award, American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus
Outstanding Female Leader in Ophthalmology Award, MillenialEYE
Senior Achievement Award, American Academy of Ophthalmology
Senior Honor Award, American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus
Marshall M. Parks Medal, American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus
Castle Connolly Top Doctors
Austin Monthly Top Pediatric Neuroscience Doctors

Clinical Focus: Neuromuscular Disorders, Electrodiagnostic Medicine, Spasticity Management

Allan Lara, MD, is a pediatric physical medicine and rehabilitation specialist. He received his undergraduate degree at UT Austin, completed his medical school degree and physical medicine and rehabilitation residency at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, and completed his pediatric rehabilitation medicine fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine/Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston. He is certified by the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

Lara is a member of the American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine. His clinical interests include neuromuscular disorders, electrodiagnostic medicine, spasticity management, brachial plexus injuries, developmental pediatrics, and ultrasound-/EMG-guided procedures. His research interests include mental health screening methods in the pediatric rehab population and botulinum injections for sialorrhea management. He is highly involved in community service and expanding pediatric rehabilitation care to underserved communities.

Clinical Focus: Management of Neuropathic Pain

Faheem Mahomed, MD, received his medical degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine in 2016. He completed his physical medicine and rehabilitation residency at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio and a two-year pediatric rehabilitation fellowship at the University of California Davis Health Center and Shriners Hospitals for Children. He is certified by the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, with a subspecialty certification in pediatric rehabilitation medicine. His academic interests include management of neuropathic pain in children and facilitation of adaptive sports participation.

Recognition
Resident Teaching Award, The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation
Student Community Service Award, University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine

Clinical Focus: Pediatric Neurosurgery, Pediatric Spine and Epilepsy

M. Omar Iqbal, MD, is a pediatric neurosurgeon with a special interest in pediatric spine and epilepsy. He received his Bachelor of Science in psychobiology from the University of California in Los Angeles and earned his medical degree from St. George’s University School of Medicine. He completed neurosurgery residency training at Rutgers University and Great Ormond Street Hospital in London, England, and fellowships in both pediatric neurosurgery at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and spine deformity at Shriners Hospitals for Children in Philadelphia.

Iqbal is certified by the American Board of Neurological Surgery and the American Board of Pediatric Neurological Surgery. His research interest is in the growing pediatric spine and developing growth-modulating technologies and approaches that allow surgeons to avoid fusion in a pre-pubescent spine. He has published multiple articles and teaches residents through his faculty position at Dell Med.

Clinical Focus: Functional Neurosurgery

Elizabeth Tyler-Kabara, MD, PhD, specializes in functional neurosurgery and minimally invasive skull base surgery. She pioneered the use of expanded endonasal surgery of the skull base in extremely young children, providing them with a minimally invasive alternative for the treatment of a variety of conditions.

Tyler-Kabara earned her medical degree and PhD from Vanderbilt University, where her graduate research investigated the neurophysiology of the corticostriatal synapse. She earned her bachelor’s from Duke University, double majoring in biomedical and electrical engineering. After leaving Duke, she worked at the National Institutes of Health as a biomedical engineer, where she developed and tested molecular biology software, developed a strategic plan for implementing computer networking, and recruited a head for the newly formed Computational Biology Group. She completed an internship in general surgery at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, a residency in neurological surgery at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and Pittsburgh VA Medical Center, and a fellowship in pediatric neurosurgery at Children’s Hospital of Alabama. She is certified by the American Board of Neurological Surgery and the American Board of Pediatric Neurological Surgery.

Tyler-Kabara’s ongoing research is supported by the National Institutes of Health, DARPA, the Craig Nielsen and Margot Anderson Foundations, The Copeland Fund, and Pedal with Pete. She served as principal investigator on five grants and as co-investigator on 13 grants. She also was the co-principal investigator on the grant that initiated the brain-computer interface human trials at the University of Pittsburgh. Her research focuses on restoring function using brain computer interfaces with microelectrode recording and stimulation techniques to control neural prosthetics. These studies are conducted with the Rehab Neural Engineering Laboratory to combine expertise in engineering, neuroscience, and rehabilitation medicine.

Tyler-Kabara’s work has been featured on CBS-TV’s 60 Minutes. She has authored over 90 publications in peer-reviewed journals, 16 book chapters, and over 80 published abstracts and has given more than 70 lectures. She is on the editorial board of Pediatric Neurology.

Clinical Focus: Pediatric Brain and Spine Tumors

Kevin Kumar, MD, PhD, is a pediatric neurosurgeon who specializes in the treatment of pediatric brain and spine tumors, vascular malformations, developmental anomalies, and epilepsy. He launched a research laboratory at Dell Med to develop novel cellular-based therapeutics for pediatric neurological disorders.

Kumar graduated cum laude with distinction in research from Cornell University and received his MD and PhD from Vanderbilt University’s National Institutes of Health–funded Medical Scientist Training Program. His dissertation focused on investigating neuronal manganese regulation in Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease using high-throughput screening, induced pluripotent stem cells, and chemical biology approaches. He was a member of Aaron Bowman’s laboratory in the Vanderbilt Brain Institute.

Kumar completed his neurosurgery residency at Stanford University, where he served as chief resident. He completed an NIH NINDS R25-funded research fellowship in the laboratory of Marius Wernig in the Stanford Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, where he developed a platform to replace microglia in the brain as a novel therapy for neurodevelopmental disorders. He completed his pediatric neurosurgery fellowship at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford. He is certified by the American Board of Neurological Surgery and American Board of Pediatric Neurological Surgery.

Kumar has published more than 35 peer-reviewed scientific articles, given over 30 presentations at national and international meetings, and received multiple awards for his research. He is a member of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, the Congress of Neurological Surgeons, the American Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery, the North American Neuromodulation Society, and the Society for Neuroscience.

Recognition
Donald O. Quest Medical Student Basic Science Award, American Association of Neurological Surgeons
Elaine Sanders-Bush Neuroscience Research Prize, Vanderbilt Brain Institute
John G. Coniglio Prize in Biochemistry, Vanderbilt University
Edwin Boldrey Young Investigator Award, San Francisco Neurological Society
Philip L. Gildenberg Resident Award, American Association of Neurological Surgeons
Resident Basic Science Research Award, Stanford University

Clinical Focus: Pediatric Neuropsychology

Rachel Bridges, PhD, is a licensed pediatric neuropsychologist who specializes in neuropsychological evaluations for patients with complex medical and neurological disorders, including neuro-oncology, leukemia, sickle cell disease, and rare genetic/degenerative disorders. She also has expertise in the assessment of oncology/hematology patients with stroke, posterior fossa syndrome, and other neurological injuries post-neurosurgical intervention.

Bridges earned her master’s degree and her doctorate in school psychology with a concentration in neuropsychology from the University of South Carolina. She completed a predoctoral internship in pediatric neuropsychology at Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital of Johns Hopkins Medicine and the University of Maryland Medical System, followed by a two-year postdoctoral fellowship at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Bridges’ research focuses on outcomes following childhood cancer treatment, neurocognitive monitoring during CNS-directed therapy, and assessment measures for the neurocognitive screening of patients with cancer. She is a member of the American Academy of Clinical Neuropsychology, the International Neuropsychological Society oncology special interest group, and the National Academy of Neuropsychology.

Clinical Focus: Pediatric Neuropsychology

Rosalia Costello, PsyD, is a licensed pediatric neuropsychologist in the Comprehensive Pediatric Epilepsy Center. She completes comprehensive neuropsychological evaluations for children with drug-resistant epilepsy who may be candidates for neurosurgery. She also conducts assessments for youth with other medical conditions, including spina bifida, autoimmune encephalopathy, and genetic conditions.

Costello received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Loyola University in Chicago, where she minored in Spanish language, Italian language, and communications. She earned both her Master of Arts and Doctor of Psychology in clinical psychology with a specialization in neuropsychology from Adler University. She completed a predoctoral internship in pediatric neuropsychology at the University of Minnesota Medical Center and a two-year postdoctoral fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine/Texas Children’s Hospital.

Costello’s research focuses on health disparities and bilingual brain development in pediatric medical populations. She has presented locally, nationally, and internationally and is active in several neuropsychology organizations with the aim of fostering equity and inclusion for patients, students, and providers.

Recognition
Member at Large, Hispanic Neuropsychological Society Board of Directors
Dell Med Teaching Health Equity Award

Clinical Focus: Pediatric Neuropsychology

Rosario DeLeon, PhD, is a licensed pediatric neuropsychologist who has an extensive background in neuropsychological evaluation of children with neurocognitive disorders from toddlerhood through late adolescence.

DeLeon completed her doctorate in clinical psychology at the University of Houston, a clinical psychology internship through the Children’s Assessment Center in Houston, and a postdoctoral fellowship in neuropsychology at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, Department of Pediatrics, Center for Clinical Neurosciences.

DeLeon evaluates children through the Children’s Blood and Cancer Center of Dell Children’s Medical Center, the Texas Child Study Center, and the Dell Children’s Comprehensive Epilepsy Center. Through these clinics, DeLeon has the unique opportunity to complete bilingual neuropsychological evaluations in Spanish and English.

Recognition
Committee Chair, Hispanic Neuropsychological Society
Dell Med Teaching Health Equity Award

Clinical Focus: Pediatric Neuropsychology

Emily Greenspahn, PhD, is a licensed pediatric neuropsychologist who specializes in assessing and treating children who have medical issues that affect neurocognitive functioning, including brain tumors and other types of cancer, central nervous system infections, traumatic brain injuries, neurofibromatosis, blood disorders, and stroke.

Greenspahn received her Bachelor of Science in psychology from Tulane University. She then earned both her master’s and doctorate in educational psychology from The University of Texas at Austin. She completed an internship at Virginia Beach City Public Schools and a fellowship in clinical neuropsychology at Baylor College of Medicine.

Greenspahn served as the director of Neuropsychological Services at the Texas Child Study Center for nine years. She developed the Embedded Behavioral Clinic in the Children’s Blood & Cancer Center at Dell Children’s and continues to lead the neuropsychological services in that clinic. Her research interests include examining neurocognitive outcomes for children with brain tumors and blood disorders and children who have undergone cancer treatment. She is a past treasurer and current member of the Austin Neuropsychological Society and a member of the International Neuropsychological Society. She trains doctoral students, interns, and fellows in clinical neuropsychology and has served as a dissertation supervisor.

Clinical Focus: Pediatric Neuropsychology

Jessica A. Pliego, PhD, is a licensed pediatric neuropsychologist who specializes in neuropsychological and neurodevelopmental care for children following perinatal complications and congenital heart disease. She earned her bachelor’s in psychology, her master’s in educational psychology, and her doctorate in school psychology with an emphasis on neuropsychology from Texas A&M University. She completed an internship in school psychology with an emphasis on pediatric neuropsychology at Virginia Beach City Public Schools and a postdoctoral fellowship in pediatric neuropsychology at Children’s Hospital Colorado.

Pliego’s research interests include examining cognitive outcomes in children with congenital heart disease or a history of strokes. Her clinical goal is to identify neurodevelopmental challenges early so that appropriate interventions can be implemented to improve long-term outcomes.

Clinical Focus: Pediatric Neuropsychology

Amanda Winter-Greenberg, PhD, is a licensed pediatric neuropsychologist. She specializes in treating children with complex medical presentations, such as an injury or illness that has affected their brain. These populations often include children born extremely prematurely and those with congenital heart disease or genetic disorders.

Winter-Greenberg is the neuropsychologist at the Dell Children’s Medical Center’s Children’s Comprehensive Care Clinic. She also conducts outpatient neuropsychological evaluations at the Texas Child Study Center. She supervises the Dell Medical School/Dell Children’s Medical Center Psychology Internship program’s neuropsychology rotation and is the Texas Child Study Center’s neuropsychology track supervisor for their APPIC member internship. Winter-Greenberg is certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in clinical neuropsychology. Her research interests include neurocognitive functioning in children born extremely prematurely and in children with tuberous sclerosis complex.

Clinical Focus: Speech and Language Processing

Liberty Hamilton, PhD, is jointly appointed by the Department of Neurology at Dell Med and the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders in the Moody College of Communication. She received her Bachelor of Arts from Scripps College in Claremont, California, and her doctorate in neuroscience from the University of California, Berkeley, under Shaowen Bao. As an NIH National Research Service Award–funded postdoctoral fellow at the University of California, San Francisco, she worked with Edward Chang to study speech perception using intracranial recordings in adults. She is a co-director of the NeuroComm laboratory within the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at UT Austin.

Funded by the NIH, the Hamilton Lab investigates how the human brain processes speech and other natural sounds, and how sound representations change during development and as a result of learning and plasticity. Her translational neuroscience research is performed in a unique clinical setting in collaboration with clinicians at Dell Children’s Comprehensive Epilepsy Center. Her lab works with patients with refractory epilepsy who undergo surgical resection guided by electrocorticography (ECoG). It also uses electroencephalography (EEG) in healthy children to understand how the brain represents acoustic and linguistic information during speech production and perception in natural environments. 

Recognition
Member, Society for Neuroscience
Recipient, National Institute of Health F32 Ruth L. Kirschstein Postdoctoral National Research Service Award (NRSA), National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders
Recipient, NVIDIA GPU Grant, Academic Programs Team (Co-PI)
Ripple Innovation in Research Competition Finalist, Society for Neuroscience

Clinical Focus: Cognitive Dysfunction in Epilepsy and Neurodevelopmental Disorders

MacKenzie A. Howard, PhD, received his bachelor’s degree in biology from Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon, and his PhD in physiology and biophysics from the University of Washington. He completed two postdoctoral fellowships at the University of California, San Francisco that focused on the cellular and circuit mechanisms of synaptic plasticity and connectivity in epilepsy and neurodevelopmental disease. He joined the UT faculty in 2017.

Howard’s research areas include clinical neuroscience and pathology; ion channels, neurotransmitter receptors, and molecular signaling; learning and memory; neural development and plasticity; synaptic biology and small circuits; and systems and integrative neuroscience. In the Howard Neuro Lab, he uses his extensive background in cellular neurophysiology to understand mechanisms of genetic epilepsies. He serves on the editorial board of Annals of the Child Neurology Society.

Clinical Focus: Magnetoencephalography Hardware and Software

Tao Song, PhD, is the technical director of the Dell Children’s Magnetoencephalography (MEG) Laboratory. With specialized expertise in MEG hardware and software, Song applies his knowledge to both clinical and research applications, overseeing all technical and research activities in the MEG lab.

Song earned his BSc in optical engineering from Zhejiang University in China and his PhD in electrical engineering from the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. Following his postdoctoral research in the Radiology Imaging Lab at the University of California, San Diego, he joined Elekta Inc., where he led MEG customer support operations. During his extensive career in industry, he remained dedicated to advancing MEG applications in clinical and research settings, actively collaborating with academic institutions.

Before joining Dell Medical School, Song served as the director of operations for MEGIN in both the United States and China. His current research focuses on functional brain mapping and innovations in MEG technology. His work is widely published in leading neuroscience and biomedical engineering journals.

Clinical Focus: Pediatric Neuropsychology in Epilepsy

Jeffrey B. Titus, PhD, is a pediatric neuropsychologist who specializes in pediatric epilepsy. Prior to coming to Austin in 2011, Titus was an assistant professor of clinical neurology at Washington University School of Medicine and program lead of neuropsychology at St. Louis Children’s Hospital.

Titus completed his bachelor’s degree in biology at The University of Texas at Austin and his PhD at Ball State University. Throughout his career, Titus has been devoted to a scientist-practitioner model that focuses on the integration of scientific study with clinical care delivery. Much of his research has investigated emotional and behavioral concerns in pediatric epilepsy, with particular emphasis on cognitive and disease-specific features that may reflect brain-based predispositions for psychopathology. With health-related quality of life (HRQOL) as an end-point variable, Titus has also sought to quantify the relative contribution of cognitive, emotional, socioeconomic, and family coping factors on health outcomes in epilepsy above and beyond seizure variables. He is working to combine this information with medical factors to develop metrics for early identification of risk so that prevention and intervention efforts can be implemented. He is also developing methods to integrate real-time measurement of risk factors into interdisciplinary clinics to monitor the social and economic impact of pediatric epilepsy and promote health and wellness initiatives at the primary, secondary, and tertiary care levels.

Titus is a fellow of the American Epilepsy Society, and his recent research has been published in Epilepsy and Behavior, the Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, the Journal of Pediatric Epilepsy, the Journal of Attention Disorders, and the Journal of Child Neurology. He serves as a clinical supervisor for doctoral-level neuropsychology students at The University of Texas at Austin, and he is active in the strategic planning and organization of clinical neuroscience programs at Dell Children’s Medical Center.