Our Team Leaders
OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY
Melissa Idelson, OTR/L is CSC’s Director and directs our Occupational Therapy program. Melissa understands first-hand the learning struggles children may have. As a child she experienced difficulties learning to read and spell, and now she is guiding her own two children through the development and learning journey. Her unique perspective of having been the struggling child and now a concerned parent, gives her the understanding and compassion which compels her to help other children be successful in dealing with life’s challenges.
Melissa began her career as a pediatric Occupational Therapist in 1990. Originally from Perth, Western Australia, where she was first introduced to sensory integration in college, she moved to California in 1995 to complete graduate studies in Ayres Sensory Integration* (ASI) theory and practice at the University of Southern California.
>Meet our Occupational Therapy team
SPEECH & LANGUAGE THERAPY
Jeni – M.S., CCC-SLP, is a licensed Speech-Language Pathologist who is passionate about helping children communicate. She is a member of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and holds a Certificate of Clinical Competency. After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Speech and Hearing Sciences and a minor in Psychology from Indiana University, Jeni earned a Master of Science degree in Speech-Language Pathology from Rush University in Chicago, Illinois.
She has experience working with children and adults in a variety of settings, including schools, private practice, Early Intervention, and hospital settings. She especially finds value in working in the multidisciplinary clinic setting, due to the frequent opportunities to collaborate with therapists from other disciplines to best support her clients.
She has experience and expertise in the assessment treatment of children with a variety of diagnoses, including autism spectrum disorder, receptive- expressive language delays/ disorders, ADHD, genetic disorders, articulation/ phonology disorders, hearing loss, and selective mutism. Jeni has a particular interest in working with individuals who use augmentative and alternative means of communication (AAC). Her continuing education experiences include: training in the Greenspan DIR/ Floortime Approach, Social Thinking, Neurodevelopmental Treatment (NDT), Language Acquisition through Motor Planning (LAMP), Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS), and WordPower Vocabulary training.
Jeni is an organized and creative therapist who strives to make therapy sessions fun while simultaneously targeting each client’s goals. She is passionate about family centered practice, and believes family priorities and participation are an essential part of the therapy process.
>Meet our Speech and Language Therapy team
EDUCATIONAL THERAPY
>Meet our Educational Therapy team
BEHAVIORAL THERAPY
Patty, M.A., LMFT MFC 99030 has been working with children and families at the Child Success Center since 2012 as a behavior consultant and Friendship Club Coordinator. She received her BA in Psychology from UC Irvine, and her training in Behavior Therapy and Cognitive Behavior Therapy at UC Irvine’s Child Development School- a school for students with ADHD, on the Autism Spectrum, ODD, and other behavioral difficulties that prevent students from accessing academic services. Patty currently works at the UC Irvine Child Development School as the Community Health Manager, provides therapeutic support to families and students, creates and implements social skills curriculum, and assists in IEP and 504 plan meetings. She has worked in schools as a 1:1 behavior aide, and as a preschool teacher, and continues to consult with schools in the community in order to help with teacher training in classroom management.
Patty specializes in working with children ages 5-14 that are having challenges with attention, difficulty being flexible with changes in routine, managing their emotions, reading verbal and non-verbal social cues, following directions and/or expected social rules, difficulty with accepting responsibility for their actions or consequences, and/or are experiencing anxiety in social circumstances. She helps children and their families identify difficulties in communication, manage realistic expectations, and create a therapeutic home behavior program that supports family’s goals for growth. Patty has training in Mindfulness in the Classroom, has attended Social Thinking conferences, and uses Social Thinking curriculum in therapeutic sessions.
>Meet our Behavioral Therapy Team
For further information please call (310) 899-9597.
