Vindia G. Fernandez, Ph.D. | PSY28365
Founder and Clinical Director
Dr. Fernandez obtained her Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Houston where she studied pediatric neuropsychology and completed research on the neuroanatomical markers of dyslexia. She completed her APA-accredited internship and postdoctoral fellowship at the UCLA Semel Institute. Her specialty training includes working with children, adolescents, and young adults with neurodevelopmental issues including autism, epilepsy, ADHD, and learning disabilities as well as schizophrenia-spectrum disorders. Dr. Fernandez has also worked closely with the UCLA PEERS Program and developed a passion for teaching social skills to neurodiverse youth. In 2017, Dr. Fernandez founded the Center for Pediatric Neuropsychology in part to address the growing need for culturally and linguistically appropriate evaluations for Latino/a children. She is an attending clinician and volunteer clinical faculty member in the UCLA Hispanic Neuropsychiatric Center of Excellence and collaborates with the Los Angeles Department of Mental Health on program development and training.
Elina Veytsman, Ph.D.
School Psychology Associate
Dr. Elina Veytsman is a nationally certified school psychologist who earned her PhD in School Psychology at UC Riverside, where she studied the experience of young adults with developmental disabilities and their parents during their transition into adulthood. Dr. Veytsman is a postdoctoral clinical psychology fellow at the UCLA PEERS Clinic, where she facilitates social skills, career skills, and dating skills programs for adolescents and young adults with autism spectrum disorder and their parents, and trains mental health professionals and educators in the implementation of these programs. In addition, Dr. Veytsman conducts individualized social skills therapy, parent training, and diagnostic evaluations for youth and adults with a range of neurodevelopmental conditions. Dr. Veytsman has over 10 years of experience working with neurodiverse youth and families across school, clinical, and research settings. Her research and clinical interests center around supporting teens, young adults, and their parents, in achieving their social, professional, and independence goals.
Chanel Nettle, B.A.
Social Skills Coach
Chanel is a second-year doctoral student in the School Psychology program at UC Riverside. Chanel previously earned her B.A. in Psychology with a double-minor in Applied Developmental Psychology and Disabilities Studies from UCLA. At UCLA, Chanel was a research assistant at the Childhood Anxiety, OCD, and Tic Disorders program and was a child development intern at UCLA's Early Childcare and Education center. After graduating, Chanel worked at UCLA as the clinic coordinator and research lead for UCLA's Parenting and Children's Friendship program and a therapist for UCLA's Early Childhood Partial Hospitalization program. She is currently a graduate student researcher at the UCR SEARCH Family Autism Resource Center, a free autism assessment clinic for Latino families in the Inland Empire.
Ana Pedreros, B.A.
Administrative Assistant
Ana is a recent UCLA graduate with a B.S. in Psychobiology. During her studies at UCLA, Ana was a research coordinator at the Elegant Mind Collaboration. She analyzed cognitive learning and memory through a neurophysiological approach to understand the perception of color and brightness. Ana was a part of Students in Integrative Medicine, where she shadowed doctors at a Traditional Chinese Medicine clinic and participated in different workshops specialized in complementary and alternative medicines. She is currently a volunteer at Dyslexia Solutions, a non-profit organization that combines music therapy with a reading program to help dyslexic children improve their literacy skills. Ana strives to pursue a Ph.D in child and adolescent development to study proactive therapies that can help neurodiverse children realize their full potential.