Lisa R. Hale, Ph.D., KCCAT Founder and Director

Dr. Hale received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology with a subspecialty in Health Psychology from Finch University of Health Sciences/The Chicago Medical School, a leading program in the research and treatment of anxiety disorders, and completed an APA accredited internship in Clinical and Health Psychology at Charleston Area Medical Center/West Virginia University School of Medicine. She has extensive research and clinical training in cognitive-behavioral theories and treatments for anxiety across all age groups – early childhood to elderly populations – including intensive exposure/response prevention protocols for severe anxiety disorders and experience training other professionals in these techniques. Dr. Hale completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Hoglund Brain Imaging Center, University of Kansas Medical Center, funded in part by a T-32 Training Grant from the National Institute of Health. She remains on faculty at HBIC/KUMC as a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurology. Her scholarly interests and peer-reviewed publications have focused on the identification of cognitive risk factors for anxiety disorders. She is a professional member of several national organizations including the Anxiety Disorders Association, the Obsessive Compulsive Foundation and the Association for Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies, for which she serves as a current appointee of the Professional Issues Committee.


Ashley J. Smith, Ph.D., Staff Psychologist

Dr. Smith received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, with an emphasis in child/family psychology. Her research has focused predominantly on social anxiety/phobia in adolescents, with a secondary interest in treating the overlap between anxiety and eating disorder symptoms. She completed an APA accredited internship in Clinical Child and Pediatric Psychology at Children's Mercy Hospital. Prior to joining the KCCAT team in 2009, Dr. Smith completed a supervised postdoctoral experience and served as a staff psychologist at the Anxiety Disorders Specialty Clinic at Omaha Children's Hospital. Dr. Smith has extensive training and experience in CBT for anxiety disorders across the life span, and provides clinical services for all ages. She is a member of and regularly presents at the national conferences of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies and the Anxiety Disorders Association of America.


Amy M. (Brown) Jacobsen, Ph.D., Staff Psychologist

Dr. Jacobsen received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Georgia, with a specialty emphasis in child psychology and in the study and treatment of anxiety disorders. She completed an APA accredited internship in Clinical Psychology at SUNY Upstate Medical University and an APA accredited postdoctoral fellowship in Clinical Child Psychology at Mayo Clinic. She has served as an Assistant Professor in the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and currently holds appointment at HBIC/KUMC as a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurology. She has extensive clinical training in cognitive-behavioral treatments for anxiety across all age groups, including intensive exposure/response prevention protocols for severe anxiety disorders. Dr. Jacobsen has published several research articles on developmental anxiety and presents at state and national organizations. Her research interests include the role of the family environment in anxiety disorders and the development of intervention programs for children and families affected by anxiety. She is a member of several national organizations, including the Association for Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies and the Anxiety Disorders Association of America.


Caroline Elder Danda, Ph.D., Staff Psychologist

Dr. Danda received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Florida Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, with a specialty emphasis in pediatric and child psychology. She completed an APA accredited internship at Children's Mercy Hospital and a postdoctoral fellowship in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Kansas Medical Center. Prior to joining KCCAT in 2006, she served as an Assistant Professor in the Divisions of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Behavioral Pediatrics. Dr. Danda has extensive training and experience in providing cognitive-behavioral treatments for anxiety, stress, and obsessive-compulsive disorder across all age groups, and also has particular expertise in the assessment and treatment of functional gastrointestinal disorders (e.g., abdominal pain and Irritable Bowel Syndrome) and collaborates with pediatric gastroenterologists in the area. Dr. Danda is a member of the Association for Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies, Anxiety Disorders Association of America, and the Society of Pediatric Psychology.


Amy Barnes, B.A.

Amy Barnes is currently a graduate student earning her PH.D. in Clinical Health Psychology at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. She received her Bachelor's degree from the University of Illinois-Springfield in Psychology. Her current research interests include community psychology, serious mental illness, and ADHD.


Thao Bui, M.A.

Thao Bui is an advanced doctoral student earning her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at the University of Kansas. Thao enjoys teaching and has taught multiple Psychology courses at the University of Kansas. While Thao's prior research included the study of communication in sexual consent, her current interests and dissertation focus has developed from her clinical work with cognitive behavioral theories and treatments for anxiety disorders. Thao is developing her dissertation project on telemedicine assessment of OCD in adolescents.


Liz Duval, M.A.

Liz Duval is a graduate student earning her Ph.D. in Clinical Health Psychology at the University of Missouri- Kansas City. She earned her Bachelor's degree at the University of Delaware in Psychology and Biology and completed a Master's degree at the University of Missouri- Kansas City. Her research involves the use of physiological and neurological measures to investigate cognitive and emotional processing in healthy adults and people with anxiety disorders.


Jessica Hamilton, B.A.

Jessica Hamilton is a graduate student earning her Ph.D. in Clinical Health Psychology at the University of Missouri- Kansas City. She completed her Bachelor's degree at the Park University. Her research involves the use of a physiological measure to investigate emotional regulation in children who have experienced some type of trauma. She is currently completing a clinical practicum at KCCAT.


David A. Martinez, B.A.

David A. Martinez is a third year student earning his Ph.D. in Clinical Health Psychology at the University of Missouri- Kansas City. David completed his Bachelor's degree at San Diego State University in Psychology. His research involves HIV prevention and HIV medication adherence. David is completing his clinical practicum at KCCAT.


Christy Olson, M.A.

Christy Olson is an advanced doctoral student earning her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at the University of Kansas. Prior to starting her doctoral work, Christy held a research position at the Mayo Clinic and was involved in studies targeting anxiety disorders, obesity, sleep apnea, and cardiovascular disease. Her research interests include cognitive factors related to anxiety disorders and the neurophysiology of anxiety disorders, particularly obsessive-compulsive disorder. Christy also serves as our Research Assistant for the Anxiety Program through Hoglund Brain Imaging Center in addition to her role as Clinical Staff.


Lindsey Owen, B.A.

Lindsey Owen is a graduate student earning her Master's degree in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in Child & Families at Roosevelt University in Chicago. She completed her B.A. in Journalism & Strategic Communications at the University of Kansas along with a focus in Psychology. Lindsey's prior research and focus was in evaluating the efficacy of a transitional living program for adolescents with emotional and behavior disorders, and she also worked in the partial hospitalization program at Chicago's Children's Memorial Hospital. Lindsey is completing her internship this year at KCCAT, with a particular interest in treating children and adolescents with anxiety disorders.


Michael Parrish, B.S.

Michael Parrish is a graduate student earning his Master's degree in Clinical Psychology at Washburn University. He completed his B.S. in Psychology at Kansas State University along with a minor in Geography. Michael's prior research and focus at KSU was in behavioral psychology, specifically research examining the neurobiological basis of drug abuse. He is currently focusing his training and research on working with children and adults with pervasive anxiety disorders, examining the use of modern technology in combination with CBT. Michael is completeing his internship this next year at KCCAT and serves as Clinic Coordinator in addition to assisting staff with clinical and research activities.


Faculty Research Partner
Cary R. Savage, Ph.D., Director of Functional MRI Research, HBIC/KUMC

Dr. Savage serves as research faculty for the Anxiety Research Program of HBIC/KUMC/KCCAT. He received his Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Oklahoma State University and completed his clinical internship and postdoctoral training in neuropsychology and functional neuroimaging at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH)/Harvard Medical School. He remained on the faculty of MGH as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and the Director of Cognitive Neuroscience. He was the founding Director of the Neuropsychology track in the APA-accredited Internship in Clinical Psychology at MGH and has been awarded research support from multiple federal agencies and private foundations, including an NIMH Scientist Development Award. The author of over 60 original research and review articles, his interest focuses on the role of prefrontal cortex in memory, and how these processes are disrupted in anxiety disorders and other neurological conditions. Dr. Savage serves as an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at KUMC.