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National Emergency Assistance Team (NEAT)

Applications are now being accepted for one opening on NASP’s National Emergency Assistance Team (NEAT) and the PREPaRE Workgroup. You must be PREPaRE trained and a NASP member to apply. The application deadline is April 13, 2012.

The National Emergency Assistance Team (NEAT) is part of the National Association of School Psychologists' (NASP) effort to help schools, families and communities cope with crisis situations. While every school ideally should have the internal capacity to respond effectively in a crisis, some traumatic events require outside assistance from professionals with specific expertise in school crisis intervention.

NEAT is comprised of nationally certified school psychologists who have had formal training in and direct experience involving crises that affect children and schools. All NEAT team members are trained in the PREPaRE School Crisis Prevention and Intervention model.

NEAT's role varies according to the needs of each situation. NEAT provides:

  • Phone and email consultation with crisis team members in the aftermath of a crisis
  • Direct aid and assistance on the ground to school crisis teams and communities, when invited by the school district
  • Adaptable resources for schools to use with students, staff and families

Contacting NEAT

To request support from the NEAT team in the event of crisis, contact the:

  • NASP office via Kathy Cowan, NASP Director of Communications, (301-347-1665, kcowan@naspweb.org) or Susan Gorin, NASP Executive Director (301-347-1640, sgorin@naspweb.org).
  • NEAT Chair and/or Cochair directly at the contact information listed below. If none of the four primary contacts are available, you may contact one of the other team members directly

For information on crisis prevention and response or team training, contact the PREPaRE program.

Cathy Kennedy-Paine, Cochair
School Psychologist
Springfield Public Schools
Springfield, OR
Telephone: 541-747-8241
Cell phone (emergencies only): 541-729-5242
E-mail: cpaine19@gmail.com

Stephen E. Brock
Professor & School Psychology Program Coordinator
California State University, Sacramento
Telephone: 916-278-5919
E-mail: brock@csus.esd

J. Douglas DiRaddo
School Psychologist
Brandywine School District
Wilmington, Delaware
Telephone: 302-762-7120 ext. 1110
Cell phone (emergencies only): 302-383-5152
james.diraddo@bsd.k12.de.us

Richard Lieberman
School Psychologist
Los Angeles Unified School District
Telephone: 818-705-7326

Bill Pfohl, Chair
Professor
Western Kentucky University
Bowling Green, Kentucky
Telephone: 270-745-4419
Cell phone (emergencies only): 270-535-4915
billnasp@aol.com

Cynthia Dickinson
Manager, Crisis Intervention and Dropout Prevention
Fairfax County Schools
Fairfax, VA 22030
Telephone (w): 571-423-4315
Telephone ((h) emergencies only): 703-912-4348
E-mail: cindy.dickinson@fcps.edu

Philip Lazarus
Associate Professor
School Psychology Training Program
Florida International University
Miami, Florida
Cell phone: 954-830-7271
E-mail: Philaz1@aol.com

Shirley A. Pitts
School Psychologist
Cell phone: 847-354-2316
E-mail: shirley.pitts19@yahoo.com