Leadership Excellence and Advancement Program (LEAP)
LEAP 2026: January 22-23, 2026
The Leadership Excellence and Advancement Program's (LEAP) objective is to prepare pediatric psychologists for leadership roles in the workplace by building skills and creating pathways for pediatric psychologists to achieve higher leadership level roles in healthcare settings. The target audience for LEAP is SPP members who are mid-career psychologists (10-20 years from doctorate) and have a leadership role currently.
LEAP is a virtual two-day conference that includes both management and leadership topics. The primary focus is on pediatric psychologists' leadership development needs and potential leadership roles.
Each speaker will incorporate diversity, equity, and/of inclusion into their presentation and include active learning activities to enhance retention of new knowledge and practice skills. Speakers will be both nationally-known and/or from our late career members, based on areas of leadership expertise.
A pre-program webinar will be held to assist with attendees getting to know each other, ground attendees in the expectations for attendees, and highlight the purpose/objectives and agenda of the workshop. A post-program event will also be offered to debrief and discuss ongoing support and activities of that year’s cohort.
2025 program topics included:
- Collaborative Leadership
- Project Management
- Financial Infrastructure and Organizational funds flow
- Philanthropy and Foundation Work
- Budgeting and Fiscal Responsibilities
- Personnel Management: DEI for Managers
- Culture Management
Feedback from members of the 2025 Cohort:
"I have been actively prioritizing my leadership development over the past 3-4 years and have participated in many valuable training experiences to that end. I was doing the work of putting together all the pieces of what psychologists need to know and do to be effective leaders, and I have been searching for a group who could connect with the journey I am on. THIS PROGRAM IS IT! It was humbling and rewarding to learn from individuals who are giants within pediatric psychology, but who have also held many other leadership roles within and outside of psychology directly. The program covered a broad range of topics from operations management to broader leadership concepts, in a way that was relatable and approachable for a psychologist. I cannot recommend this program enough!"
"It will take me a while to digest all of the wisdom, conversations, tips, and strategies that came from participating in LEAP. My initial reaction is that this was an intense crash course in leadership skills, so much that they don't teach in graduate school. The LEAP program has broadened my mind to what is possible as a pediatric psychologist and increased my confidence to set my career goals to such leadership positions. One aspect of the program that I think will continue to grow beyond the seminars is the relationships established in the cohort of pediatric psychology leaders. It's been a pleasure getting to spend some time with all of these amazing people, and I hope to have more opportunities to build these relationships over time."
"LEAP did an extraordinary job of curating a curriculum of all the critical topics essential for current and emerging leaders in psychology. The breadth and depth of issues covered by extraordinary leaders in the field made this THE most productive two day conference I have ever attended, and I am still processing all the wisdom that was shared. I came away with concrete, practical advice that I can implement today, strategies I can develop for the future, and inspiration to keep me motivated during uncertain and challenging times."
The LEAP 2026 application is open to pediatric psychologists who are SPP members until Friday, August 1, 2025 at 5:00pm ET. Please email info@pedpsych.org if you did not receive an email to apply.
LEAP is limited to approximately 20 participants. If selected, the cost of the program is $595 per participant. Scholarships will be available to offset the cost for participants experiencing financial barriers.
Dr. Ronald T. Brown is Professor and Dean of the School of Integrated Health Sciences at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He received his baccalaureate degree from Emory University and his doctoral degree from Georgia State University. He also has received training at the Harvard Institutes for Leadership training for Presidents, Senior Level Administrators and in the area of crisis management. Ron has served as a President, Provost and Executive Vice President of Academic Affairs, a Dean and Professor at four research universities for over two decades. He also has served on numerous national committees and task forces including a recent appointment to the Board of Scientific Affairs of the American Psychological Association, Task Force on Promotion and Tenure Guidelines for Minority faculty. He has served as the President of the Society of Pediatric Psychology and the Association of Psychologists of Academic Health Centers. He has published over 300 journal articles and book chapters and 12 books, two of which are second editions. He has raised over 40 million dollars in philanthropy and external grant revenue. Dr. Brown has served as the editor of three major journals in the fields of pediatric and clinical psychology and served on the Behavioral Medicine Interventions and Outcomes study section of the National Institutes of Health. Ron serves on the Council of Representatives of the American Psychological Association.
Dr. Brenda Bursch received her PhD from Claremont Graduate School in 1990. She is a Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry & Biobehavioral Sciences and Pediatrics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, where she has been on faculty since 1994. Until 2022, she served as Associate Director and then Director of the Consultation Liaison service. Currently, she is Director of the UCLA Pediatric Psychology in Outpatient Subspecialty Pediatrics Program. Dr. Bursch has a long history of breaking glass ceilings, which started for her when she was the first ever girl flag monitor in kindergarten. However, the glass ceiling she is most proud to have shattered occurred in 2008, when (after years of strategizing and effort) she became the first ever psychologist and one of very few women in her department to be allowed to switch faculty tracks to a track that had historically been reserved for male psychiatrists with leadership roles.
Catherine Butz, PhD, is the Senior Associate Chief of Psychology at Nationwide Children's Hospital and a Clinical Professor of Pediatrics at The Ohio State University College of Medicine. Dr. Butz provides leadership oversight focused on program enhancement and expansion for several areas including Pediatric Psychology, Psychiatric Acute Care, Psychiatry Consultation-Liaison Service, the Eating Disorder, and the Gender-Affirming programs. Dr. Butz consults nationally with multiple organizations to expand psychology services in acute psychiatric care areas. She sits on the Finance Advisory Committee for Special Interest Groups of the Society of Pediatric Psychology and previously served as a Product Development Consultant for a health corporation. Dr. Butz provides clinical services through the Neurology, Sports Medicine, and Adult Congenital Cardiology sections.
Lori E. Crosby, PsyD, is a Tenured Professor in the Division of Behavioral Medicine and Clinical Psychology at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center and the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Cincinnati, College of Medicine. Additionally, she serves as the Director of the Cincinnati Center for Clinical and Translational Science (CCTST) Community Engagement Core and Co-Director of Faculty Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. She is also the Co-Director of INNOVATIONS in Community Research and Program Evaluation. Dr. Crosby is an Elected Fellow of the American Psychological Association (APA). She recently obtained a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Certificate from Cornell University. She leads a groundbreaking research program in pediatric sickle cell disease. Her vast expertise encompasses self-management, treatment adherence, the transition to adult care, and the recruitment and retention of diverse and marginalized populations in research.
Ann Davis received her undergraduate degree in Psychology and English from the University of Kansas, her PhD in Clinical Psychology from Western Michigan University, and her Master’s in Public Health from the University of Kansas Medical Center.
Dr. Davis is the Ralph L. Smith Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Kansas Medical Center and also serves as the Vice Chair for Research and the Director of the Division of Developmental and Behavioral Sciences.
She is also the Director of the Center for Children’s Healthy Lifestyles & Nutrition which crosses KUMC and Children’s Mercy. Her primary role is as an NIH funded pediatric health researcher focused on bringing state of the art clinical trials and interventions to rural and other underserved children and their families.
Dr. David Elkin is a Professor in the Department of Psychiatry & Human Behavior and in the Department of Pediatrics and Executive Director of the Center for Advancement of Youth (CAY) at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. He served as the training director of the Psychology Residency and Postdoctoral Training Consortium from 2004-2014 and Chair of the Institutional Review Board at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. He attended Vanderbilt University for his undergraduate degree, Reformed Theological Seminary for his MDiv, and received his PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Memphis, where he focused on working with children with cancer and sickle cell. He completed his residency and fellowship training at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, where he specialized in pediatric psychology. While there, he also completed a year-long training program in child abuse and neglect.
He is a board-certified clinical psychologist, a fellow of the American Psychological Association, past Treasurer and past President of the Society of Pediatric Psychology, and past Treasurer of the Mississippi Psychological Association. He is the author of numerous peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, and along with Rick Steele and Michael Roberts, he is a co-author of the textbook Handbook of Evidence-Based Therapies for Children and Adolescents. He has received more than $7 million in grant funding over his professional career. At CAY, he is currently working on implementing a statewide behavioral health system that is integrated with pediatrics and psychiatry and utilizes technology and telehealth to ensure the delivery of evidence-based and accessible psychological care to all the children of Mississippi. He is the husband of Allie and the father of four daughters.
Dr. Roger Harrison is a licensed clinical psychologist with pediatric specialty and Co-Chief of the Division of Community Care and Wellness within the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (DCAPBS) at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. In his current role, Dr. Harrison builds on his passion for supporting integrated behavioral health care programs in pediatric primary care, schools, and other community-based settings. Across the years, Dr. Harrison has mentored, supervised, and trained many aspiring psychologists and medical professionals. He is a co-founder and co-chair of the DREAM IPC Conference, a national biennial conference hosted in Wilmington, Delaware that focuses on pediatric integrated primary care. Dr. Harrison has been a leader in cultural humility education and training and is co-creator of an experiential cultural humility curriculum that has been utilized by various medical, mental health, and educational professionals.
Dr. Harrison currently serves as President of the Delaware Psychological Association (DPA) and was previously the DPA’s inaugural diversity committee chair. He is the honored recipient of several awards including the 2023 Association of Psychologists in Academic Health Centers (APAHC) John Robinson Award for Distinguished Contributions to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, the 2021-22 Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers (APPIC) Biennial Award for Excellence in Diversity Training, and the 2019 Society of Pediatric Psychology (SPP) Outstanding Contribution to Diversity Award. Dr. Harrison is happily married to Ayanna and has three remarkable daughters, Anaya, Aliyah, and Amara.
Dr. Heather Huszti is a licensed psychologist and Chief Psychologist at Children’s Hospital of Orange County (CHOC). She is also a Clinical Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of California, Irvine Medical Center. She completed her doctoral degree in clinical psychology with an emphasis in family therapy from Texas Tech University and completed a doctoral internship and postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center (OUHSC). She was on faculty at OUHSC, where she was the director of the Pediatric Psychology Program. She joined CHOC in 2002. She previously served as the Director of Training for the Psychology Internship and Fellowship, which is a nationally recognized training site, offering a unique training opportunity for Spanish speaking psychologists to increase their comfort and competency in providing psychological treatment in Spanish. While at CHOC she has been one of the leaders of the Mental Health Initiative, which included building the 18 bed pediatric inpatient psychiatric unit, developing services in the Emergency Department, providing screening for depression and suicide across the health care system. She is actively engaged in nationally funded research studies to design new interventions to improve the mental health care of children and has co-authored multiple peer reviewed articles.
Anne E. Kazak, PhD, ABPP is the Enterprise Director of the Nemours Center for Healthcare Delivery Science and is based at Nemours Children’s Hospital in Wilmington, DE. She is also the Co-Director of the Center for Pediatric Traumatic Stress, part of the National Child Traumatic Stress Network. Dr. Kazak also is a multiple Principal Investigator for the REACH (Research Expanding Access to Child Health) COBRE grant at NCH-D. She is a licensed Psychologist and a Diplomat of the American Board of Professional Psychology. She is Professor, Department of Pediatrics, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA and also Professor, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pennsylvania (emerita). She also serves as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Delaware in the Dept of Psychological and Brain Sciences and in the College of Health Professions. She is also an accomplished journal editor, having served as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Pediatric Psychology, the Journal of Family Psychology, Health Psychology and American Psychologist.
Dr. Kazak is an internationally recognized expert in pediatric health, known as a thought leader and accomplished investigator in the application of a social ecological approach to children’s health to expand service delivery and improve overall outcomes. Dr. Kazak’s research has shaped a systems-oriented competence-based understanding of the distress of children and their family members over the course of pediatric illness and treatment. She has had consistent federal (National Cancer Institute, National Institute of General Medical Sciences, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Bureau of Maternal and Child Health) and foundation (American Cancer Society, St Baldrick’s Foundation, Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, , Toy Foundation, Caplan Foundation, B+ Foundation) support for her research programs. She received the 2009 Cummings American Psychological Foundation PSYCHE Award for her work integrating psychology into healthcare systems. Dr. Kazak has extensive mentoring experience, including a Senior Mentoring Award from the NCI, and has mentored many national and international early career investigators. She received the 2019 Seema S. Sonnad Mentor of the Year Award from IDEA Delaware. In 2020 she was awarded a Compassionate Champion from the State of Delaware for her work on trauma informed care. Dr. Kazak has 300+ peer reviewed papers and chapters and three books.
William G. Kronenberger, PhD, is the Arthur B. Richter Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM). Dr. Kronenberger received his B.S. from Xavier University. He received his M.A. and PhD in Clinical Psychology (specializing in Pediatric Psychology) from Duke University, where he was a James B. Duke Fellow and Norman Guttman Named Instructor. He served as Chief Psychology Intern at Indiana University School of Medicine. His current leadership roles include Director of the IUSM Division of Psychology, Chair of Indiana University Institutional Review Board (IRB) – 01, and Director of the Riley Pediatric Psychology Testing Clinic. His past leadership roles include Interim Co-Chair of the IUSM Department of Psychiatry, Executive Vice Chair of the IUSM Department of Psychiatry, Vice President of the IUSM Psychiatry Practice Plan, Co-Chief of the Riley ADHD-DBD Specialty Clinic, and Clinical Director of the Riley Hospital Pediatric Psychiatry Consultation-Liaison Service. Dr. Kronenberger’s clinical and research work focuses on executive functioning, language, and learning delays in children in adolescents.
Mary Ann McCabe, PhD, ABPP is a clinical psychologist in independent practice, board certified in child and adolescent clinical /pediatric psychology. She currently serves as Member-at-Large on the Board of Directors, American Psychological Association and American Psychological Association Services, Inc. She is an APA Fellow (Divisions 37, 42, 53, 54; Member of 31, 38) and serves on the Editorial Boards of Clinical Practice in Pediatric Psychology and Advances in Child and Family Policy and Practice. Her previous leadership roles within APA include serving as: Co-Chair, APA Rapid Expert Advisory Panel/ Presidential Task Force on Adolescents and Social Media Use; Member, Council of Representatives, Chair, Child, Adolescent and Family Caucus; Chair, Interdivisional Task Force on Child and Adolescent Mental Health; Chair, Board of Professional Affairs; Member, Board of Educational Affairs; Member, Workgroup on Expanded Advocacy; Chair, Committee for Professional Practice and Standards; and President, Society for Child and Family Policy and Practice (Division 37).
In other professional organizations, Dr. McCabe has held leadership roles spanning science, practice, education/training, public policy, and communications. Currently, she is a member of the National Advisory Committee for HealthySteps, and National Prevention Science Coalition. Previously, she served as: Member, National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine Forum on Children’s Wellbeing; Director, Office for Policy and Communications, Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD); Member, Executive Committee, Consortium of Social Science Associations (COSSA); founding Member, Collaborative to Enhance Diversity in Science; Chair, Selection Committee, Congressional Fellowship Program, American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS); Director of Training and Director of Health Psychology, Children’s National Medical Center; and Associate Professor of Pediatrics (followed by Associate Clinical Professor of Pediatrics) at George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences.
Dr. McCabe has published and presented extensively in the areas of mental health promotion and prevention; public policy; pediatric psychology; and minors and health care decision-making. The first in her family to attend college, Dr. McCabe completed her BA at Clark University, doctorate at Catholic University of America, and internship and advanced fellowships through Harvard Medical School at Children’s Hospital of Boston, Judge Baker Children’s Center, and Dana Farber Cancer Institute.
Dr. Monica Mitchell - As a Professor and Pediatric Psychologist at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center (CCHMC), I serve in leadership roles that include administrative responsibilities while integrating clinical care and translating research to community populations. I am the Co-Director of the Integrating Special Populations and Community Engagement Cores of the Center for Clinical and Translational Science and Training (CCTST). In these roles I oversee special grants programs to advance research in community, special, and underrepresented populations. I assist in coordinating the speaker series seminars and community advisory boards. I also coordinate graduate and undergraduate interns who work on various projects to improve child and community health locally, regionally, and nationally. I serve as Assistant Vice President (AVP) of Community Relations, a role in which I lead institutional projects, including community benefit reporting, community health needs assessment, pipeline, and workforce programs, and develop partnerships between internal departments and community partners. I lead translational research projects and pediatric health initiatives. I have significant experience working in diverse communities with participatory and community-engaged research and implementing focus groups and other qualitative research designs. In my work, In my role as Co-Director of INNOVATIONS of Community Research and Program Evaluation, I further ensure community collaboration with patients and families, community-based organizations, government agencies, industry, and other community-based clinicians and health care delivery systems. My community and patient engagement efforts integrate informatics, quality and team science, workforce, and development. It’s also important to include special populations, including underrepresented minority populations, children, older adults, and those with chronic health conditions. Finally, I integrate teaching into my work as I have a joint appointment at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine where I teach and mentor students on dissertations and qualifying exams. I also serve on committees at CCHMC and the university to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion and to increase the number of underrepresented minority students and faculty so that science, research, and medicine are more representative of the diversity of the general population. I have been an active mentor in Biomedical Research Internship for Medical Students (BRIMS) and the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship summer internship programs, mentoring three to five underrepresented minority students per year over the past 20 years.
Jennifer Shroff Pendley, PhD received her PhD in Clinical Psychology at Indiana University. She completed her internship and fellowship at Texas Children’s Hospital and Baylor College of Medicine. Dr. Pendley worked at Nemours Children’s Health, Wilmington, DE for over 28 years. While at Nemours, she served as Internship Training Director and subsequently Division Chief of Psychology for over 15 years. She was also appointed Associate Vice-Chair of Faculty Development in the Department of Pediatrics. Dr. Pendley is Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics at the Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University.
Dr. Pendley served as President of the Society of Pediatric Psychology. She was the recipient of the Society of Pediatric Psychology’s Wright Ross Salk Award for Distinguished Service to the field of Pediatric Psychology and is an elected Fellow of the American Psychological Association. Dr. Pendley also served as Inaugural Co-Editor of Clinical Practice in Pediatric Psychology. Dr. Pendley received over 10 years of NIDDK funding for longitudinal research in Type 1 diabetes. Her primary clinical work focuses youth with medical complexities, child and adolescent anxiety and early childhood concerns. Dr. Pendley is passionate about serving the community, addressing health disparities, broadening professional pathways for diverse individuals and raising the voices of those from marginalized communities.
Dr. Terry Stancin is Professor Emerita of Pediatrics at Case Western Reserve University. She is a board-certified Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychologist and a Fellow of the American Psychological Association Divisions 53 (Society for Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology) and 54 (Society of Pediatric Psychology, SPP). In 2022, after 36 years at MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland, Ohio, she retired as Chief of Psychology, the Director of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology, and the Vice-Chair for Research in Psychiatry.
Dr. Stancin’s commitment to pediatric mental health issues in primary care began in 1986 as a preceptor for pediatric residents during their continuity clinics, and she has advocated for pediatric and behavioral health training ever since. Today, the MetroHealth Program for Pediatric Integrated Primary Care serves as a model for integrated behavioral health service delivery and workforce development. Dr. Stancin and her psychology team launched numerous programs serving diverse, vulnerable youth in Cleveland including one of the first multidisciplinary clinics serving transgender youth in this country, an integrated clinic for children in foster care, a school health clinic, and a team-based center for youth with autism spectrum and developmental disorders.
Among her awards, Dr. Stancin is most pleased to have received the 2018 National Compassionate Caregiver of the Year Award from the Schwartz Center for Compassionate Healthcare, the 2019 Joseph D. Matarazzo Award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychology in Academic Health Centers by the Association of Psychologists in Academic Health Centers (APAHC), the Lee Salk Distinguished Service Award from the Society of Pediatric Psychology, the Public Sector Psychologist of the Year Award by the Ohio Psychological Association, the inaugural Faculty Mentor of the Year for Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, and a Presidential Citation by APA Division 44. The Terry Stancin Mentorship Award has been established in the Department of Psychiatry at MetroHealth in her honor, and in 2022 she was inducted into the MetroHealth Hall of Honor.
Dr. Stancin has been recognized as a leader in national pediatric and psychology organizations and served as President of the Society for Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics in 2014-15. Although “retired,” she currently serves on the Board of the Society of Pediatric Psychology and on the Council of Representatives of the American Psychological Association and is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee of Psychosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health (COPACFH). Dr. Stancin served on the editorial board of four major scientific journals and is an Editor for the 5th edition of Developmental- Behavioral Pediatrics. She has authored more than 150 peer-reviewed scientific publications, 24 book chapters, and is a frequent invited speaker about pediatric integrated primary care.
Wendy L. Ward, PhD, ACC, ABPP, is a Professor with tenure at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences College of Medicine. She is also an APA Fellow with 30 years of professional experience. Dr. Ward serves in two institution-level positions (across 13 campuses and five colleges and the Graduate School at UAMS) as the Associate Provost for Faculty and Director of Interprofessional Faculty Development. Her career began in collaborative, team-based care initially with obese youth, leading to her overseeing a program integrating psychology services into 38 subspecialty clinics at Arkansas Children’s Hospital. She later developed and/or supported a variety of faculty affairs/development programs at the departmental, college, and now institutional level including recruitment, onboarding, faculty development, mentoring, promotion, professional wellness, leadership development, retirement transitioning, and emeriti engagement. Her research interests are in the following areas: faculty development, faculty affairs, professional wellness, integrated behavioral health, executive coaching, interprofessional education, pediatric obesity, and pediatric sleep disorders.
Jennifer Wisdom PhD, MPH, ABPP, is a licensed clinical psychologist and board-certified organizational psychologist. She is principal of Wisdom Consulting, Senior Organization Development Psychologist in the Veterans Health Administration National Center for Organization Development, and Affiliated Professor at the Oregon Health and Science University. She has published and taught extensively on health services research and leadership in public mental health, including authoring the Millennials’ Guides series.
Speakers reported no conflicts of interest.
The Society of Pediatric Psychology (Division 54 of the American Psychological Association) is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The Society of Pediatric Psychology maintains responsibility for this program and its content.