Our Team

Lab Director:

Gael Orsmond

Professor, Department of Occupational Therapy, Associate Dean of Academic Affairs

PhD Students:

Mario Crown

Mario Crown is a third-year PhD student working with Gael   Orsmond as his mentor. He received his Bachelor of Science in Psychology from the University of Pittsburgh. His current research focuses on understanding workplace resilience in autistic adults, and how that translates to positive outcomes in and outside of work.

Adriana Ramos

Adriana is a third-year PhD student working with Gael Orsmond as her mentor. She received her Bachelor of Arts   in Special Education with a Concentration in Intellectual Disabilities from the University of Puerto Rico (Rio Piedras Campus) and a Master of Science in Occupational Therapy from the University of Puerto Rico (Medical Sciences Campus). Her research interests focus on understanding how sensory processing differences and sensory experiences interact with environmental contexts to shape participation outcomes for autistic adults.

Yeook Kim

Yeook Kim is a fifth-year PhD student working with Gael Orsmond as her mentor. She received her Bachelor of Science in Occupational Therapy from the University of Yonsei (Mirae), South Korea and her Master’s and Clinical Doctorate in Occupational Therapy from The University of Pittsburgh. Her current research has focused on community participation in autistic young adults and community-engaged research. 

ROAD AHEAD LAB ALUMNI:

Dr. Sharada Krishnan

Sharada Krishnan is a postdoctoral fellow in the T32 training program in intellectual and developmental disabilities at the Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she is part of the Lifespan Family Research Lab. Shar recently received her PhD in Rehabilitation Sciences from Boston University, where she trained with Gael Orsmond in the Families and Autism Research Lab. Shar is an occupational therapist by training, having received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Occupational Therapy from the University of Southern California. Her research focuses on understanding the factors that influence mental health and well-being for autistic individuals and their families across the life course, using community-engaged, neurodiversity-informed frameworks. She is particularly interested in understanding traumatic experiences and their impact on autistic youth and their families.

Dr. Jasin Wong

Dr. Jasin Wong is an associate professor in the Department of Special Education at National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan. She received her PhD in Rehabilitation Sciences from Boston University, where she trained with Gael Orsmond and Wendy Coster in the Families and Autism Research Lab, and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Center for Rehabilitation Outcomes Research at Shirley Ryan AbilityLab. She has clinical experience in school- and community-based occupational therapy. Her research focuses on improving employment, transition, and participation outcomes for youth and young adults with disabilities, particularly autistic individuals and others with neurodevelopmental disabilities, through community-engaged and cross-system approaches.

Dr. Jennifer Chen

Jen Chen is currently an occupational therapist at Stanford Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford. She continues to collaborate on research and publications with the team.

Dr. Elizabeth Schmidt

Elizabeth K. Schmidt is an Associate Professor and the Director of Research at the Lincoln Memorial University Doctorate of Occupational Therapy program. She completed her postdoctoral fellowship in the Families and Autism Research Lab. She received her PhD and Master of Occupational Therapy from The Ohio State University. Her research interests are in promoting sexual and reproductive health of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities through accessible sexual health education.

Dr. Elizabeth Munsell

Dr. Elizabeth Munsell is a Research Director at Pearson Clinical Assessments. She received her masters and PhD at Boston University Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, and completed her post-doctoral fellowship at the Center for Rehabilitation Outcomes Research at Shirley Ryan Ability Lab and the Center for Education in Health Sciences at Feinberg School of Medicine of Northwestern University. Her clinical occupational therapy experience includes public school-based therapy, community life skills programs, and acute rehabilitation. Her research aims to enhance function and community participation of young adults with disabilities, with a particular focus on understanding the needs of youth with neurodevelopmental disabilities entering adulthood and how to assess meaningful transition outcomes to inform clinical intervention.

Jess Bauza de García

Jess Bauza de García is an Occupational Therapist, and was working as the Research Coordinator for the ROAD Ahead Study. They received their Bachelor of Science in Psychology from the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia and their Master of Occupational Therapy from Bay Path University.