Meet Our Fellows

Hello, I'm McKay, and my time in Vermont has been a fulfilling and transformative experience. Growing up surrounded by the natural beauty of Utah, I developed a deep love for the outdoors, spending hours hiking, camping, and fishing. Vermont's woods and lakes have felt like a second home, and I've even discovered a few new hobbies while living here that make each change of season something exciting to look forward to.

My academic path led me to the University of Utah where I pursued both my undergraduate and medical school education. During this time, I had the privilege of volunteering at the children's hospital, working closely with young patients. I volunteered in the music department at the hospital and at various nursing facilities around our city.

As a fellow in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry I get to continue working in areas that I am passionate about while learning new skills to help serve those around me. One of the aspects I love most about this fellowship is the emphasis on holistic wellness as a core component of treatment. It's incredibly fulfilling to have the freedom and encouragement to explore meaningful ways to support patients and families, moving beyond the conventional approach of solely prescribing medications. The Vermont Family-based Approach allows me to take some of my favorite lessons and skills from my work with youth and patients, and make them effective treatment tools to help patients and families.

I appreciate the mentoring I’ve had during my time in Vermont, and look forward to continued collaboration with the talented and compassionate staff at the UVM Medical Center.

Hey all, my name is Lilly (she/her)!

I was raised in Central New York where I grew up skiing in the winter and swimming the Finger Lakes in the summer. I first became interested in psychiatry through my work as a mental health case manager in western Washington State. This is also where I gained an appreciation for the importance of rural medicine. I returned to the East Coast for medical school at SUNY Upstate and completed adult psychiatry residency at the Institute of Living in Hartford, CT. Clinically, I’m interested in psychotherapy, trauma-informed care, LGBTQ+ health and adolescent medicine.

I was drawn to the Child & Adolescent Fellowship program at UVM because of  the department’s focus on holistic and family-centered care through the Vermont Family-Based Approach. I am delighted to learn from such thoughtful, down-to-earth and dedicated clinicians. I’m excited to join the VT community and to live and work near the shores of the beautiful Lake Champlain where access to the outdoors is so accessible!

Hi all, I am Kasania. My undergraduate education was at York University in Toronto, Canada. I completed medical school at Saba University medical school in the Netherland Antilles and clinical rotations stateside. I came to UVMMC for residency as my first choice and completed general psychiatry residency. I loved it so much that I signed up for two more years as a child psychiatry fellow! I enjoy the approach that UVMMC psychiatry and particularly child psychiatry have towards learning, patient care and inclusivity.

I am interested in adolescent psychiatry, Emergency medicine, neurostimulation, effects of social media on child development and holistic approaches to psychiatry. UVMMC allows me to tailor my fellowship experience to fit my interests as well as learning about other aspects of child psychiatry and the mental health care system in Vermont. 

In my free time I enjoy dancing, eating delicious foods, hanging out with family and friends, as well as the outdoors when the weather is nice. Reading a great book and taking a swim are also at the top of my list. Vermont is a great place to do all of the above and I love it here!

Hi everyone!

My name is Amy (she/her) and I’m thrilled to be joining the UVM Child and Adolescent Psychiatry program. I was born and raised in Connecticut, and I first moved to Vermont to attend undergraduate school at Middlebury College. There, I majored in neuroscience and developed a growing interest in psychiatry, with a thesis project investigating a rat model of schizophrenia and an internship abroad at a psychiatric hospital in Zanzibar. Following graduation, I worked as a research coordinator at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai for the Pediatric Mood and Anxiety Disorders Clinic, where I was inspired to pursue a career in child and adolescent psychiatry. I subsequently earned my M.D. from SUNY Downstate College of Medicine in Brooklyn, NY, and completed my adult psychiatry residency training at Brown University in Providence, RI. During my time at Brown, I had the opportunity to train with child psychiatrists at Hasbro Children’s Hospital and Bradley Hospital, the nation’s first child psychiatry hospital. I also completed longitudinal electives at a pediatric gender care clinic and at the Rhode Island School of Design’s College and Psychological Services center. While I loved my time in Providence, I frequently thought of returning to Vermont to finish my training. I was interested in learning more from the Family-Based Approach here, and I missed the incredible access to nature that VT offers. I’m very excited to be here and to continue to grow in my career in child psychiatry at UVM

Hello, I’m Liv and I am happy to be continuing my training in this department. I completed my undergrad at the University of Rhode Island, then moved to Vermont for med school and stuck around for residency. I love it here! My areas of academic interest include team-based practices such as inpatient and PHP/IOP models, lifestyle health and medicine, community psychiatry, rural psychiatry, substance use and addiction, complementary and alternative medicine, and approaching mental illness with a holistic biopsychosocial and societal view. I also am proud to have been involved in the establishment of our resident and fellow union. My personal interests include reading, art, comedy, TV, food, and cats

Hi I’m Nat, I am originally from Tulsa Oklahoma and graduated from Hendrix College with a degree in psychology. From there I went to medical school at Boston University with the goal of going into psychiatry and eventually continuing my work with youth. Years later I am  thrilled to have completed my adult training at UVM and to be fast tracking into the child and adolescent fellowship. I love this community and value this departments goal of building and sustaining relationships with those we work and collaborate with. I love most everything in psychiatry especially community work and learning about systems of care. Clinically I am most interested in the topics of self harm, suicide, and autism. I also have a particular interest in working with queer and trans youth. Outside of work you can find me ideally outside recreating as much as possible!

Jonathan (he/him) here! I am originally from North Dakota and have moved around the US throughout my life. Before coming to VT, I went to college at The Ohio State University where I double majored in biology and psychology. While in college, I completed an honors research thesis focused on better understanding Theory of Mind. After college, I moved to Winooski, VT as an AmeriCorps member, whereI worked within the city’s Parks & Rec department to provide affordable and accessible programming for the community. I completed Medical School and my Adult Psychiatry Residency training at UVMMC and am excited to continue my training now as part of the Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Family. I chose to train at UVMMC because of our departments focus on providing holistic patient centered care, which is embodied by the Vermont Family Based Approach.

Clinically, I have interests in forensic, lifestyle, and perinatal psychiatry. Academically, my research focuses on medical education, specifically, understanding how current recruitment and selection systems impact the diversity of those chosen within medicine. In my free time, I enjoy trying new restaurants, doing yoga, and being outside with friends and family.

I'm very excited to join the UVM Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Program! I was born in Florida, but my heart lies in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, where I grew up and fostered a fondness for the outdoors.

It was a long and winding trek before I discovered Amy desire to work in child and adolescent psychiatry. Unknowingly, at the time, working summers in college as a camp counselor in Brevard, NC, served as the catalyst that led me here. My educational background includes a bachelor's in health science from TheUniversity of Central Florida, a Master of Public Health in epidemiology from East Carolina University, and my medical school training at Campbell University School of Osteopathic Medicine. I stayed down east for my psychiatry residency training at Cape Fear Valley Medical Center in Fayetteville, NC, a demographically diverse, underserved, and clinically high acuity region of the state.

I was drawn to the UVM Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Fellowship Program for its innovative family-based approach, holistic patient care, and advocacy, not to mention the people! And I'd be remise not to mention the work-life balance with plentiful outdoor activities in a stunning area. My clinical interests are widespread and everchanging but include transitional-age youth, psychotherapy, environmental psychology, wilderness medicine, public health, and advocacy.

Although I'm green to The Green Mountain State, Vermont is already reminiscent of home for me. I'm joined here in Burlington by my lovely partner, Melissa, and our two Brittany Spaniels, Spruce and Elm. When I'm not working, you can find us on a trail, at a brewery, or finishing second in trivia (actively seeking someone knowledgeable with movies/actors).