Clinician Profiles
Our Clinicians are the heart and soul of the Hallowell Center. They are dedicated to helping people lead happier, more productive lives. Our Clinicians embody the philosophy upon which the Hallowell Center is founded. They bring intelligence, dedication and compassion to their work.
We believe it is important for you to know the educational/professional backgrounds of the people who treat you. Enclosed are descriptions of their education, professional experience and clinical expertise. Please feel free to call us to ask questions about our Clinicians and to determine who might best be suited to address your individual needs.
With all best wishes,
The Staff of the Hallowell Center, Sudbury
• Renee LeWinter Goldberg, Ed.D., C.E.P.
• Anita J. Pliner, Ph.D., J.D.
• Deborah Jillson Russo, Ph.D.
• Rebecca Shafir, M.A., C.C.C.
• Olga Soler - Program Specialist, Dore Program at Hallowell
Edward M. Hallowell, M.D.
Ned Hallowell is a graduate of Harvard College, Tulane Medical School, and a Harvard Residency Program in Adult and Child Psychiatry. He is the author of the national best sellers, Driven to Distraction, Worry, and Connect in addition to many other publications. Dr. Hallowell has been featured on national televisions’ 20/20, Dateline, The Today Show, Good Morning America, and Oprah. He lectures around the country while maintaining a private practice at the Hallowell Center. Dr. Hallowell has just released his latest book, The Childhood Roots of Adult Happiness. It focuses on how to prepare children for a more productive, happy life.
Paul J. Sorgi, M.D.
Paul Sorgi is a graduate of Tufts College, Tufts Medical School and a Harvard Residency Program in Adult Psychiatry. He is board certified in Psychiatry. He has served on the faculties of Harvard and the University of Massachusetts Medical Schools. Dr. Sorgi lectures on a broad range of topics related to cognitive and emotional issues. He is co-founder of the Hallowell Center, where he maintains his private practice. Dr. Sorgi is the author of The 7 Systems of Balance.
Mary Bordes, LICSW
Mary Bordes, LICSW, is a founding member of the Hallowell Center team. In practice for over twenty years including twelve years at Harvard University's McLean Hospital. She is a graduate of Boston College Graduate School of Social Work with extensive experience in dual diagnoses treatment. She specializes in counseling women with ADD/ADHD and couples therapy.
Baird Brightman helps talented people achieve satisfaction and success at work. Trained and experienced in behavioral science, Baird has worked as a health professional, manager/leader and consultant. His main professional interest is in how people and organizations disappoint each other, and how to improve that situation by working with leaders, groups and individuals. Baird has taught at the Harvard Medical School and Harvard University’s executive education program, and has published on the topic of professional and organizational effectiveness.
Brian H. Cohen, L.I.C.S.W.
Brian Cohen is a graduate of Boston University School of Social Work. He is certified in Family Therapy and enjoys working with children, adolescents and families. Mr. Cohen develops solution oriented, strength-focused plans in collaboration with family members. He has worked in a variety of settings including Riverside Community Care, The Family Center and Westwood Lodge Hospital. Mr. Cohen is experienced in crisis intervention, domestic violence, A.D.H.D. He is a strong advocate for families and children.
Linda M. Forsythe, M.D.
Linda Forsythe is a graduate of Oberlin College, Columbia University School of General Studies, and the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. She is board certified in Adult and Child Psychiatry. Dr. Forsythe is an instructor in Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, a member of the New England Council of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Dr. Forsythe is very active in the adoption field. She is co-founder of Archway, an organization of professionals who investigate and collaborate on issues of adoption and related studies. Besides her affiliation with the Hallowell Center, Dr. Forsythe is on staff at Massachusetts General Hospital and has a private practice in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Theresa Garvin, L.I.C.S.W.
Theresa Garvin is a graduate of Columbia University, School of Social Work. She has eighteen years of experience counseling children, teens and parents in a variety of settings, including outpatient, inpatient, residential, school and community. Theresa enjoys doing play therapy and social skills groups with children, as well as individual therapy with teens and consulting with parents. Theresa has experience working with many childhood disorders as well as peer and self esteem issues.
Marvin Goldberg, M.S.W.
Marvin Goldberg received his bachelor’s degree from Ohio University and his master’s degree in social work from the University of Pennsylvania. Marvin began his professional career working with teens. His areas of interest range from working with troubled teens as well as providing advice about college and university selection. He has the ability to bring a student and parent together to discuss the future and move forward. He joined Educational Options, LLC after a successful senior management career in the not-for-profit world. Marvin brings a combination of skill, patience, and sense of humor to the field of educational consulting. The Goldbergs travel extensively through the United States visiting schools, colleges and programs to provide the most up-to-date information for Hallowell Center clients.
Renee LeWinter Goldberg, Ed.D., C.E.P.(Certified Educational Planner)
Renee LeWinter Goldberg is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and received her doctorate from Clark University. She has taught public school and was a faculty member at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center. Renee was recently the assistant director of Disability Services at the University of Massachusetts-Boston. At Clark University, she established and created support services for students with learning disabilities. In addition, Dr. Goldberg has lectured throughout the country on services for students with learning disabilities and AD/HD. Renee also collaborates with her husband, Marvin, in their private practice, Educational Options, LLC in Newton and Worcester, MA. She has a special interest in students with learning disabilities and AD/HD.
David James Keevil, Psy.D.
David Keevil received his doctorate in psychology from the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology. Before coming to the Hallowell Center, Dr. Keevil worked with children, adolescents, and adults at a group practice in Brockton. He has also worked at the Brookline Community Mental Health Center, at the Federal E.A.P. in Boston, and with a market research consulting group. Dr. Keevil enjoys working with children, adolescents and adults, as well as with couples and families. He was trained at the Cambridge Hospital and at the Brookline Center, where he was a member of the “family team.” Prior to becoming a psychologist, Dr. Keevil worked as a teacher and administrator in a university writing program and as a professional artist.
Linda J. Kreisel, M.A.
Linda Kreisel received her Masters Degree from Teachers College, Columbia University. For more than 30 years, she has worked with young children and adolescents struggling with a variety of learning issues including reading, written expression and those difficulties associated with A.D.H.D. Ms. Kreisel has worked in both the public and private school settings and taught at the Rivers School for 17 years prior to joining the Hallowell Center. In recent years, she has also been doing diagnostic testing of children, adolescents and adults with learning difficulties.
Amy Lister, M.D.
Amy Lister, M.D. is a graduate of Bryn Mawr College and the University of Virginia School of Medicine. She completed a combined residency in Pediatrics, General Psychiatry and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City. Prior to joining the Hallowell Center, Dr. Lister practiced in New York and Vermont. She is a member of the American Psychiatric Association, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and the American Diabetes Association. She enjoys working with children and adults of all ages. Her particular areas of interest include ADHD, mood disorders, anxiety disorders, and chronic medical illness.
Caroline Maguire, ACG
Caroline Maguire is a personal coach specializing in individuals and children with ADD and the families who support them. Caroline received her undergraduate degree from Trinity College and she is currently pursuing a Masters Degree in Industrial Psychology. She is also pursuing a Masters in Special Education at Lesley University. Caroline is a graduate of the ADD Coach Academy for a certification in ADD Coaching. She understands the unique challenges of ADD to create customized systems to accommodate individual clients' learning styles. Caroline coaches children ages 10 and up. She is also a writer for ADDA's newsletter Focus.
Anita J. Pliner, Ph.D., J.D.
Anita Pliner, pediatric neuropsychologist and attorney, is director of the Cogmed Program at the Hallowell Center. Dr. Pliner received her doctorate in psychology from Boston University and her law degree from Syracuse University. She completed a two year post doctoral NIMH fellowship is psychology and law and a one year fellowship in pediatric neuropsychology at North Shore Children's Hospital, where she remained as a staff neuropsychologist for 10 years on a multidisciplinary assessment team. Prior to turning to clinical work, Dr. Pliner was on the faculty of both Green Mountain College and American International College, teaching both graduate undergraduate courses in both psychology and law.
Kimberly Rawlins, M.D.
Kimberly Rawlins is a graduate of Harvard Medical School and a Harvard Residency Program in Adult and Adolescent Psychiatry. She is board certified in Psychiatry and enjoys working with adults and adolescents who experience A.D.H.D., anxiety disorders, affective disorders as well as chronic medical illnesses. Besides her practice at the Hallowell Center, Dr. Rawlins also has a private practice in Brookline, Massachusetts.
Robin Roman Wright, M.A.
Robin Roman Wright, M.A., career and ADHD coach. Robin is a graduate of the University of Chicago and received her master's degree from the University Of Chicago School Of Social Service Administration. She has presented workshops at the American Society for Training and Development's National Conference and Exposition, The First Annual Massachusetts School to Work Conference and the National Leadership Conference - Jobs for the Future. She is a member of the International Coaching Federation and the National Association of Social Workers. She uses an empowerment model in her career coaching, helping clients identify what they have to offer the marketplace and where in the world of work they might be most valued and satisfied. She enjoys working with teens who are seeking direction for their future, as well as with adults who are interested in career change or facing a job transition.
Deborah Jillson Russo, Ph.D.
Deborah Russo is a graduate of Smith College. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Virginia. She is a senior psychologist at the Hallowell Center, where she has worked since 1995. Dr. Russo has worked in a number of settings including Judge Baker Children’s Center, Harvard Medical School, and the Learning Disabilities Research Institute. Dr. Russo specializes in mind-body modalities, including eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (E.M.D.R.), along with more traditional techniques using cognitive behavioral therapy, individual therapy of adults, adolescents and children. Dr. Russo has consulted to numerous school systems on behavior management and has developed groups focusing on parent-child interaction and education. Dr. Russo has conducted numerous presentations including, The Quest of A.D.D. Management.
Rebecca Shafir, M.A., C.C.C.
Rebecca Shafir is a speech/language pathologist, voice coach and author of the award-winning book The Zen of Listening: Mindful Communication in the Age of Distraction (Quest Books 2000). Formerly of the Lahey Clinic, Ms. Shafir has over twenty years of clinical experience in the diagnosis and treatment of children and adults with speech, language, and voice disorders. Her advice has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Boston Globe, Washington Post and other major national publications. Her specialties include quantitative electroencephalography (QEEG) and LENS neurofeedback for children and adults, professional voice coaching, interview coaching for kids applying to private schools and voice feminization training.
Saumya G. Sharma, Ph.D.
Saumya Sharma received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Boston University. Her internship training in neuropsychology was completed at the VA Boston Healthcare System and has completed a neuropsychology post doctoral fellowship at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Harvard Medical School. Dr. Sharma has experience with a wide variety of neurological and psychiatric disorders and enjoys working with both adolescents and adults.
Walter Sherburne, LICSW
Walter Sherburne is a 1983 graduate of Simmons College, Graduate School of Social Work and is a Licensed Independent Certified Social Worker (LICSW). Walter is a psychotherapist, providing individual, couples, family and group therapy at the Hallowell Center where he also contributes to the marriage blog. Walter consults to a variety of child welfare agencies and is a former graduate instructor at Salem State College. Walter has over twenty-five years of experience as a clinician, educator, consultant, and lecturer, and has been retained as an expert witness and regularly consultants to organizations about complex case situations. A speaker with appearances on television and radio, Walter has traveled throughout the US and Canada to share his thoughts on a number of topics, including, Adult ADHD, The Impact of Technology on Today’s Youth, Strength-Based Practice, and Cultural Awareness.
Olga Soler - Program Specialist, Dore Program at Hallowell
Olga acquired the experience she needed to become a Dore Program Specialist from a varied background. She was in the professional theater where she received movement training at the Herbert Berghof Studio, the Martha Graham Dance studio and the Lee Strasberg theater institute in New York. She received a BS in Education with psychology minor at Southwestern University in Texas and a BA in Communications at Atlantic Union College in MA. She taught K to middle school for several years and also worked extensively with the early childhood population in many creative venues. The fusion of psychology, movement and education enabled her to put together two program of her own, "Dance Alive" and "Trauma Drama" which have been featured at many wellness conferences across the country and in UK. Dore Centers were a natural progression from that since Dore uses exercise to stimulate the cerebellum with remarkable results for those with ADD and ADHD difficulties.
Thomas J. Weigel, M.D.
Thomas specializes in the treatment of eating disorders, depression, anxiety and ADHD. Dr. Weigel attended the University of Wisconsin, graduating with honors and distinction in philosophy and biology. As a Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, he has 10 years of special training. This includes four years of medical school at the University of Wisconsin; a one-year general medical internship at Saint Luke's Medical Center, Milwaukee; a three-year general psychiatry residency at Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School; and a two-year child and adolescent psychiatry fellowship at Children's Hospital/Harvard Medical School in Boston. In addition to his private practice, Dr. Weigel is a Clinical Instructor in Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. He is a diplomate of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and has training in psychoanalysis through the Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute.
