Meet the Reviewers

Amy Barry is the Content Manager and Editor at BridgingApps. She has a Bachelors Degree in Elementary Education from the University of North Florida. Amy held a Florida Teaching Certificate from 1998 – 2008 and taught inclusion classes in a public elementary school. Amy just completed her Masters in Education from the University of Florida with a concentration in Educational Technology Leadership.

Friends and family with special needs have inspired Amy to become a researcher in the field of mobile technology, and she is dedicated to advocacy and improving the physical, social, and educational outcomes of children with special needs. Amy’s passion for life, mobile technology in education and previous work experience are an asset to BridgingApps.

Amy’s top five apps: http://bridgingapps.org/list/?id=47458

Kelly Knight is the Parent Night Out (PNO) program coordinator for Easter Seals Greater Houston.  She worked 8 years in the oil and gas industry as a reservoir geologist before transitioning to education.  Kelly holds a MS in Geoscience from Penn State University and a M.Ed. from the University of Houston-Victoria in Curriculum and Instruction.  She is a Texas state-certified instructor in Composite Science (8-12), and served on the Texas Education Agency Proclamation 2014 Review Panel.  Kelly received her M.Ed. in Special Education in 2014 with emphasis on Autism Spectrum Disorders and acts as the focal point for the BridgingApps initiative in Katy, TX.

Kelly’s top five apps: http://bridgingapps.org/list/?id=47453

Cathy is a Registered Dietitian with a variety of both clinical and community-based professional experiences. She received her BS degree in Dietetics from Georgia Southern University and her MS degree in Nutrition with a Public Health emphasis from the University of Tennessee where she was a Maternal and Child Nutrition Traineeship recipient from the US Department of Health and Human Services. She has developed or implemented various nutrition and health related projects including a diet intervention project with breast cancer survivors, a weight loss and general nutrition curriculum for incarcerated adults, a literacy-based life skills training program for sheltered homeless adults, and lipid-lowering clinical drug trials for adults with high cholesterol. She brings her knowledge of food, nutrition, and health into her personal life with her joy for delicious food and her love for physical fitness. She has years of experience coaching children in a variety of team sports and with Odyssey of the Mind. Her work with medically involved children and their families in an Early Childhood Intervention Program and as a full-time caregiver for a cognitively and physically challenged family member sparked her interest in using mobile devices and apps as therapeutic and empowerment tools by increasing self-sufficiency, supporting independence, and helping with caregiver support.

Cathy’s top five apps: http://bridgingapps.org/list/?id=48823

Cristy Gamez-Galka joined Easter Seals to promote their mission of recovery by providing skills and supports to assist people of various abilities to enjoy their lives in the communities of their choice. Cristy graduated from the University of Houston with a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology. After completing her internship at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital, she took a wonderful position in Denver, Colorado offering mental health services in a residential setting to Native Americans before re-locating back to Houston to work with Veterans at the VA hospital. She has provided mental health care to nursing home residents, has a private practice, and is excited to be part of Easter Seals Houston’s BridgingApps program assisting older adults with accessing technology to meet various needs. She lives with her son and daughter in Houston.

Cristy’s top five apps: http://bridgingapps.org/list/?id=49879

Veronica is co-founder and Director of The Music Therapy Center of Houston. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Music Therapy and Master’s degree in Education K-12, Assessment, Curriculum and Instruction. Additionally, Veronica is licensed and certified in several other therapeutic modalities/ teaching methodologies and is a Fellow of the Robert F. Unkefer Academy of Neurologic Music Therapists (NMT). Over the years Veronica has worked with a variety of populations and age groups in and around the Houston area. She currently serves on different boards and holds memberships in advocacy groups to help educate and promote music therapy awareness locally, regionally and nationally. Veronica actively presents locally, regionally and nationally about a music therapy and related topics and was asked to be an adjunct writer for the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. In 2011 Veronica was honored with the Southwestern Music Therapy Association’s award for “Clinical Practice in Music Therapy” and given an honorary membership in the Tau Beta Sigma Sorority Chapter at the University of Houston for her service and work with children and charities work over the years. Aside from her work at The Music Therapy Center of Houston, Veronica has been the music therapist and music therapy internship program director at The Rise School of Houston, a non-profit early intervention preschool for children with and without developmental disabilities ages 6 months to 6 years of age since 2000.

Christopher is totally blind and uses all kinds of computer technology. He recently obtained his CompTIA A+ certification and is seeking a career in Information Technology.

Christopher loves the seemingly endless possibilities technology such as the iPhone can provide when it comes to accessing information or communicating with other people. He is also a strong proponent of smart home technology, as it has the potential to level the playing field in terms of accessing information that most take for granted. He is very excited about future computer technology innovations.

Daryn is a speech language pathologist with a B.A. in English from the University of Texas at Austin and an M.A. in Communication Sciences and Disorders from the University of Houston. She has experience working with children and their families through Early Childhood Intervention, a pediatric clinic, and a school for medically fragile children. She has been a BridgingApps team member since 2013, conducting AAC evaluations and AT or AAC consultations. She also teaches adapted karate for children with special needs.

Top 5 apps: Audible, SNAP + Core First, Make a Scene, Toca Tea Party, Endless ABC’s