Staff Members
- Dr. Ari Goldstein, Director
- Dr. Sam Effarah
- Dr. Steven Hadesman
- James Gottschalk, M.A.
- Hyacintha Thomas, M.Ed.
- Jessica Laven, M.Ed.
- Jennifer Boumenot, M.Ed.
Dr. Ari Goldstein, Director
The Cognitive Solutions approach was developed by founder Dr. Ari
Goldstein during the past decade of teaching and assessing children with
special needs in both the private and public sectors. Dr. Goldstein
holds a Master's degree in Learning Disabilities and a Ph.D. in
Educational Psychology from the University of Illinois. He has conducted
research in the areas of learning disabilities, cognitive development,
executive functioning, and meta-cognition. Dr. Goldstein has also
completed post-graduate training in psychological and educational
assessment, and is a certified Illinois Learning Specialist. He holds
memberships in the National Association of School Psychologists, the
Council for Exceptional Children, the Learning Disabilities Association
of Illinois, the Association of Educational Therapists, and the American
Psychological Association, and has been awarded the CEC's Certificate as
a Professionally Recognized Special Educator. Dr. Goldstein has appeared on WGN, NBC, and CBS as an educational contributor.
Dr. Sam Effarah
Sam Effarah, Psy.D. is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist and graduate of the Illinois School of Professional Psychology, Chicago Campus. In addition to his academic training, Dr. Effarah has worked with child, adolescent, adult and geriatric populations in group, individual, and family settings. He has also worked in outpatient, inpatient, crisis center, emergency room, learning center, and therapeutic day school settings. Prior to his relocation to Chicago, Dr. Effarah was employed by the St. Louis Hills Learning Center and volunteered in an Anxiety Disorders Lab at St. Louis University Medical Center. Since moving to Chicago, he has been employed by the University of Chicago, Evanston Northwestern Healthcare, and Northwestern Neuropsychological Associates. Dr. Effarah has also worked at Rush Behavioral Health and at the Jewish Children's Bureau of Chicago. His most recent awards include receiving the CARE Leadership Award and a Letter of Commendation from Evanston Northwestern Healthcare for his work after the September 11th attacks. His specialty skills include Neurofeedback, Quantitative EEGs (Topographical Brain-Mapping), Nonviolent Crisis Intervention, and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. Dr. Effarah holds membership in the American Psychological Association and International Society for Neuronal Regulation.
Dr. Steven Hadesman
Steven M. Hadesman, Ph.D. is a licensed clinical psychologist, and has provided psycho-educational testing, evaluation and diagnosis for children and adults with special needs for over 10 years. Dr. Hadesman has worked in both the private and public school sector and helps develop behavioral specific educational curriculum aimed at maximizing the learning environment for children diagnosed with special needs. Dr. Hadesman also maintains a private individual practice for adults.
James Gottschalk, M.A.
James Gottschalk is a graduate of Michigan State University, and has completed a Masters degree in Developmental Psychology with a focus on learning disabilities. His research centered on the development of comprehension skills for struggling readers. In addition to his work at Cognitive Solutions, James worked for five years in a therapeutic day school, primarily with children who had both social emotional problems and learning disabilities. Currently, James works for Cognitive Solutions as an Educational Therapist, developing individualized intervention programs which cover a wide array of needs for each student. He is also involved in curriculum development and modification for students with learning disabilities, both in the traditional and home school environments. James is trained and certified in the Instrumental Enrichment program of cognitive restructuring, has completed training in the Orton-Gillingham multi-sensory reading program, and is a specialist in the use of visualization for the development of reading and verbal skills.
Hyacintha Thomas, M.Ed.
Hyacintha Thomas is a graduate of McGill University (Montreal, Canada), where she pursued a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology, with a focus on child development. Both in Canada and the U.S., she has spent the last 10 years working with children in a variety of settings. While in Chicago, she has worked with children having both social-emotional problems and learning disabilities, as a childcare counselor for the Sonia Shankman Orthogenic School, at the University of Chicago, and at a therapeutic day school. Recently, Hyacintha has completed a Master's degree in Curriculum and Instruction at Loyola University, Chicago. Hyacintha is certified to teach Kindergarten through 9th grade, and she also holds Illinois State Board of Education endorsements to teach middle school math and social studies. She currently works at Cognitive Solutions as an Educational Therapist, specializing in developing interventions for students with mathematics related disabilities. She also holds a position as Middle School math teacher at Sacred Heart Academy in Chicago. Hyacintha is a member of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, is fluent in French, and has a working knowledge of both Spanish and Mandarin.
Jessica Laven, M.Ed.
Jessica Laven received her Masters Degree in Special Education from DePaul University in 2004. She attended a dual certification program, and received a type 10 certificate with an LBS1 endorsement as well as a type 3 Regular Education certificate-Kindergarten through 9th grade. Jessica received her undergraduate degree in Rehabilitation Psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2002. She has spent the past 3 years teaching Special Education for both the Chicago Public Schools and the Lincolnwood School District. Jessica is a trained reading specialist in both the Wilson Program and the Rewards Program. She has been employed at Cognitive Solutions as an educational therapist for the past three years, working with a broad range of students to help develop their organizational skills. test taking and study skills, and overall academic abilities.
Jennifer Boumenot, M.Ed.
Jennifer Boumenot received her Undergraduate Degree in Elementary Education with an endorsement in Mental Retardation from Saint Louis University in 1996. She received her Masters in Education from DePaul University in Reading and Learning Disabilities with endorsements in Reading and Behavior Disorders, and received a type 10 certificate with an LBS1 endorsement. Additionally, she holds a type 3 Regular Education certificate-Kindergarten through 9th grade. Jennifer has taught in both the public and private school systems in Chicago for the past 12 years, and is a trained reading specialist. She has been employed at Cognitive Solutions as an educational therapist , working with a broad range of students to help develop their organizational skills, test taking and study skills, and overall academic abilities.