We currently have therapists in Illinois, Tennessee & California 

Illinois

Cristina Valle M.A.

 
    Ms. Valle received her B.S. at Loyola University, Chicago in Psychology with double minors in Criminal Justice and Women’s Studies.  She received her M.A. in Forensic Psychology from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology.  Ms. Valle will be taking her Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) exam in October of 2007.  She currently holds a professional membership with the Illinois Psychological Association (IPA) and the Association of Behavioral Analysis International (ABA International).  
 
    Early in her career Ms. Valle worked as a caregiver for the elderly.  During her undergraduate studies she also interned at Lakeview High School as a school counselor, and at a domestic violence agency as an educational prevention specialist and as a court advocate.  Upon graduation from Loyola University Ms. Valle worked as a clinician at a nursing home for people with chronic mental illnesses, and a therapeutic respite worker for emotionally disturbed children.  During her free time she also volunteered in the community, taking on such various roles as an intake counselor at a local legal clinic, and as a court advocate for Cook County’s Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA).  For Ms. Valle’s one-year graduate internship, at Juvenile Protective Association, she was part of the Permanency Planning Team, and conducted psychotherapy with adolescents.  She also co-facilitated mom/toddler groups.  
     
    Ms. Valle initially met Ms. Bichell, in October of 2005, while working as an ABA therapist for Ms. Bichell’s son, Louie.  During the early sessions with Ms. Bichell’s son, Ms. Valle worked with Ms. Bichell helped to develop a set of techniques that would later become known as Alphabet Therapy.  Ms. Valle also helped train Louie’s one-on-one aide in the ABC Therapy method in his first grade class at the neighborhood public school.  She has also spent a year and a half conducting ABC Therapy with a 10 year old whose psychological development shows many similar qualities to that of an individual with Angelman syndrome.     

    At present Ms. Valle continues to work with CASA, taking pride in advocating on behalf of children who have been abused and/ or neglected.  She volunteers in the community and enjoys babysitting in her spare time.  Ms. Valle currently works in the Psychiatric department at Northwestern Memorial Hospital and is the lead Chicago therapist for Alphabet Therapy.    

 

 
    Ms. Johnson received her BA from the University of Chicago in Public Policy. During college she was involved in tutoring, working with the local charter school, and volunteering at the local elementary school. She worked in education-related non-profits on curriculum development, event planning, and scholarships. She was one of the first ABC Therapists and has experience working with Louie Bichell and other children, using the method.  She has also helped train several of the therapists listed below.  Ms. Johnson is currently a first grade teacher on the west side of Chicago and she is working on her MAT at National-Louis University. When she is not teaching, you can find her curled up with a book, cooking, or riding her bike.
 
 
Tennessee
 

 
Ms. Rabbitt received her BA from Hope College with a major in Communication and a minor in music with an emphasis in vocal performance. She became interested in working with children after an internship with the Children's Advocacy Center in Holland, Michigan where she worked with children who had been victims of abuse. Ms. Rabbitt worked for a church in West Michigan as a children's ministry and music director before relocating to Tennessee to work for an international non-profit company. She currently resides in Nashville and lives on a little farm! She has been doing Alphabet Therapy since spring, 2007 and has experience with three different children with AS.  When she is not working, Ms. Rabbitt enjoys sampling the music scene in Nashville, practicing yoga, singing in church, cooking, and taking road trips to visit friends. 
 
 

    Laura received her B.S. in Environmental Science in 2004 from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, where she played Division 1 soccer for 3 years.  She is currently pursuing her Masters of the Arts in Early Education at Trevecca Nazarene University in Nashville, Tennessee.  Laura has a strong background in childcare and has been a full-time nanny for the last year and a half for a family with toddler twins.  She is an avid runner and skydiver and enjoys outdoor activities.  She has been doing Alphabet Therapy since June, 2007 and has experience with three different children with AS. 

California
  

 
    Loraine Rossi received her B.A. in Psychology from the University of San Diego in 2001. That same year she began working for the County of San Mateo as a Behavior Specialist. She later became a substitute teacher and teaching assistant in classrooms for students with severe emotional and behavior disorders. A year later, Loraine began teaching at Parkway Heights Middle School in South San Francisco. There she taught 6th-8th grade Special Day Classes, 7th and 8th grade RSP classes, and became the Special Education Department Chairperson in the Fall of 2005. In the spring of that year, she received her Mild to Moderate Teaching Credential and Masters degree in Special Education from Notre Dame de Namur University.  In 2006 she was awarded “Teacher of the Year” for her leadership and hard work in helping to redesign Parkway under the “No Child Left Behind” legislation. After a long struggle to create a more positive and effective learning environment at Parkway, Loraine left to pursue new career opportunities. During the 2006-2007 school year, she developed and implemented a Special Day Class Program for students with emotional and behavioral disorders at Pacific Beach Middle School in San Diego. During this time she became involved with the ABC Therapy Study through Vanderbilt University. She has been working under Terry Jo Bichell to study the effectiveness of the newly designed method in teaching students diagnosed with Angelman syndrome and has extensive experience with two children in the San Diego area.  Currently, she is teaching RSP English and managing a 12th grade caseload at Vista High School in Vista, CA.

 

    Mrs. Freitas recently moved back to the San Jose area from Nashville, Tennessee where she trained under Terry Jo Bichell and worked closely with Ms. Bichell's son Louie. She studied Early Childhood Development at both Belmont University and Middle Tennessee University with an emphasis on Special Needs Education. Before attending school she volunteered at various organizations working with children and youth educating them on unity in diversity and the acceptance of others. She also volunteered at The Susan Gray School-a research-oriented school at the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center which is devoted to young children with developmental disabilities and children whose future development is at risk because of conditions such as poverty. A devoted wife and mother to a 1 year old baby girl, Mrs. Freitas uses sign language in multiple languages with her daughter and is always investigating new and exciting ways to educate children, particularly those deemed "unable to learn" which is why she is very passionate about bringing Alphabet Therapy to the San Francisco area.