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Melissa D. Idelson, OTR/L
Founder and Director, CHILD SUCCESS CENTER™
Co-founder, CHILD SUCCESS TOYS™
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Throughout a career that spans a decade and a half, Melissa’s devotion to supporting child development--through early detection, intervention of high quality services, and community outreach and education--is nothing short of a mission.
Melissa’s warm, professional style reflects her Western Australian roots, where she attained a Bachelors Degree in Occupational Therapy from prestigious Curtain University (1990). Sensory Integration trained and certified at Pediatric Therapy Network (formerly The Ayres Center), Melissa has also received advanced training in Therapeutic Listening and is a trained Interactive Metronome (I.M.) provider.
As a young woman embarking on her career in Perth, WA, Melissa probably had little idea of the impact she would have in Pacific Palisades and the surrounding communities, a world away. Those who have had the pleasure of working with Melissa since 1999, when she opened her private practice, will attest to her dedication to improving the lives of children.
Melissa’s exciting concept in early learning, CHILD SUCCESS CENTER™, along with CHILD SUCCESS TOYS™ is the culmination of her years of experience, professional training and passion to provide programs that support the whole child. |
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Elisabeth Finnerty, OTR/L
Pediatric Occupational Therapist
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Elisabeth graduated from the University of Scranton in 1998 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Occupational Therapy. She worked in New York City, with both adults and children, in hospitals and school systems. Her strong focus in pediatrics brought her to California to specialize in Sensory Integration. Elisabeth worked at Pediatric Therapy Network, one of the nation's top training facilities for Sensory Integration. Through the Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy at the University of Southern California, she completed Advanced Training in Sensory Integration, a 4-month intensive course, led by nationally recognized clinicians. She furthered her education through certification in the Sensory Integration and Praxis Tests (SIPT), the most widely used instrument for assessing sensory integration dysfunction. Elisabeth is an Advanced Therapeutic Listening® provider, and attends numerous courses that offer the latest research and tools to support children with special needs.
Elisabeth is a valued CHILD SUCCESS CENTER™ team member, playing an integral role in the Play Together Kids program, Write On Kids! program, and enrichment programs. |
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Rebekah Tolin, OTR/L
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Rebekah S. Tolin, OTR/L is new to Los Angeles. For the past several years, she has been practicing in New York City, including opening and building a private practice there. She is licensed in both California and New York and registered with the National Board of Certification in Occupational Therapy. She has been practicing for 10 years and has diverse work experience (mostly in Pediatrics). She is an independent, dynamic, and fun therapist. She works with children with concerns in:
- Sensory Integration difficulties
- Handwriting and Fine Motor concerns
- Self-esteem building and social difficulties
- Floortime/DIR (Developmental, Individual Difference, Relationship-Based Model)
- Motor Planning
- Visual/Perceptual difficulties
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Sarah Cairns, OTR/L
Pediatric Occupational Therapist
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Sarah graduated from Eastern Michigan University in 2002 with a Bachelor’s degree in Occupational Therapy. Since the completion of her degree, she has devoted her skills to providing quality therapy for the pediatric population. For the past four years, she worked for Progressus Therapy, one of the leading nationwide providers of school based therapy. She has had the opportunity to work directly with children and teachers in classrooms, as well as provide therapy for children in a clinical setting.
Sarah is a trained and certified Sensory Integration (SI) therapist, earning her Sensory Integration and Praxis Test (SIPT) certification through an intensive course provided by lead clinicians and researchers in the field of SI. She is experienced in the treatment of dysgraphia (handwriting difficulties), and in the provision of handwriting programs such as Handwriting Without Tears. She continues to further her knowledge by attending courses with the most recent and evidenced based information on child development and therapeutic programs to support the success of children with special needs.
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Gabriella Bova
Educational Therapist
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Coming soon. |
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Christine Lopez
Educational Therapist
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Christine Lopez has practiced Educational Therapy for the last 10 years, both in the U.S. and Europe. After graduating from California Baptist University in 1997 with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and English, Mrs. Lopez immediately began working with one of the country’s most prestigious Educational Therapy trainers, Jill Stowell. At the Stowell Learning Center, Mrs. Lopez quickly moved up to a Clinical Supervisor position, displaying strengths in evaluating the unique needs of each child and preparing detailed individual therapy plans focusing on using a child’s strengths to improve his/her weaknesses.
Later, Ms. Lopez began working with the Kaiser Watts Counseling and Learning Center where she provided services to the community through individual therapy, assessments and parent/teacher trainings. During this time, she also did extensive research on the symptoms and remediation of dyslexia and compiled a manual to aid in attention and memory training. After several years, Mrs. Lopez and her family moved to Istanbul, Turkey where she explored the connection between art (including drawing, music and dance) and the remediation of learning disabilities. She also collaborated with a Turkish university and researched the symptoms of ADD/ADHD across the two cultures.
Finally, Mrs. Lopez returned to Los Angeles and began training educational therapists, teachers and other educators in attention and memory techniques. Mrs. Lopez feels extremely privileged to join the team at The Child Success Center, a group of professionals who genuinely care about the unique needs of each child and who lovingly implement therapy on a daily basis. |
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Kristin Graves, M.S., CCC-SLP
Licensed Speech Language Pathologist
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Kristin holds a Master of Science in Speech Language Pathology from the University of Nevada, Reno (2001) and a Bachelor of Science in Human Development from the University of California, Davis (1995). She has extensive experience in pediatric speech and language remediation within the clinical setting. In addition, she has taught language-based special education programs. Her unique background and love of child development provide a fresh approach to the therapeutic process. Through continuing education and multidisciplinary collaboration, Kristin is able to utilize the most current research, therapeutic techniques and theory to best assist her clients. She holds a Certificate of Clinical Competence from the American Speech and Hearing Association and maintains the highest professional standards while offering a warm and nurturing perspective. |
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Sharon Heritage, M.S., CCC-SLP
Licensed Speech Language Pathologist
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Sharon holds a Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology from California State University Northridge (1992), and a Master of Science in Special Education from Syracuse University (1974). She holds a Certificate of Clinical Competence from the American Speech and Hearing Association, and is licensed by the State of California. Throughout her career, she has been fortunate to have the opportunity to hold a variety of professional positions. She has worked as a teacher, speech-language pathologist, and consultant in school and clinical settings.
Children and their families have always been the primary focus of her long and varied career. As a speech-language pathologist, for twelve years she taught a special day class for children with severe speech and language-based learning disabilities, including children with autism and traumatic brain injury. As a Speech-Language Pathology Clinical Fellow, she spent a year at the UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute, in both inpatient and outpatient settings, evaluating and treating children with a wide range of communication disorders. It was at UCLA where Sharon developed the invaluable skills of working collaboratively on a multidisciplinary team.
Throughout her career, her passion has always been to meet the individual needs of each child while instilling in them a sense of pride and a love of learning. Along with her focus on the needs of the child is a strong commitment to working together with families, helping them to acquire the tools to become a strong member of their child's learning and therapy team. Sharon continues to refine her skills as a speech-language pathologist by regularly attending conferences, workshops, as well as supervising speech-language pathology graduate student clinicians in the Speech, Language, and Hearing Clinic at California State University at Northridge.
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