Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior

Briana J. Williams, Ph.D., NCSP (E.P. Bradley Hospital, 8/12/24-8/11/25) holds a B.S. in psychology from Carnegie Mellon University. She then worked as a research assistant in the Center for Autism and Related Disorders at Kennedy Krieger Institute, focusing on early identification of Autism Spectrum Disorder and evidence-based interventions in outpatient services, community settings, and schools. Dr. Williams earned her M.A. and Ph.D. in school psychology from Michigan State University. Throughout her training, Dr. Williams furthered her interest in program evaluation and quality improvement through her work as a Project Director for two statewide initiatives, Parent Support Partners and Youth Peer Support, in collaboration with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. Her mixed-methods dissertation, supported by the Society for the Study of School Psychology’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Dissertation Grant, explored the utility of an emotion-focused parenting program for Black parents of preschoolers and the role of parental emotion regulation in children’s social-emotional development. She completed her pre-doctoral internship in Pediatric Psychology at Ochsner Children’s in New Orleans, LA and her Early Childhood postdoctoral fellowship in the Clinical Child Psychology Specialty Program at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Dr. Williams thanks the Early Childhood Collaborative for her training in infant and early childhood mental health consultation, especially her supervisors, Drs. Rebecca Newland Kilch, Rebecca Silver, and Christine Low. She also expresses gratitude to her mentors, family, friends, and colleagues for their continued support through this long academic journey.