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Biographies

Dan Siegel, M.D., Executive Director
Dan Siegel received his medical degree from Harvard University and completed his postgraduate medical education at UCLA with training in pediatrics and child, adolescent and adult psychiatry.  He served as a National Institute of Mental Health Research Fellow at UCLA, studying family interactions with an emphasis on how attachment experiences influence emotions, behavior, autobiographical memory and narrative. An award-winning educator, Dan Siegel is currently an associate clinical professor of psychiatry at the UCLA School of Medicine where he is a Co-Investigator at the Center for Culture, Brain, and Development (cbd.ucla.edu) and is Co-Director of the Mindful Awareness Research Center (marc.ucla.edu). Dan Siegel is the Executive Director of the Mindsight Institute, an educational organization that focuses on how the development of insight, compassion and empathy in individuals, families and communities can be enhanced by examining the interface of human relationships and basic biological processes. Dan Siegel is the author of the internationally acclaimed text, The Developing Mind:  Toward a Neurobiology of Interpersonal Experience (1999).  He serves as the Founding Editor for the Norton Series on Interpersonal Neurobiology.  His book with Mary Hartzell, M.Ed., Parenting from the Inside Out:  How a Deeper Self-Understanding Can Help You Raise Children Who Thrive (2003) explores the application of this newly emerging view of the mind, the brain, and human relationships.  His latest book is The Mindful Brain: Reflection and Attunement in the Cultivation of Well-Being (2007).

Tina Payne Bryson, Ph.D., Director of Parenting Education and Development
Tina Payne Bryson is a lecturer, parent-educator, and mom.  Dr. Bryson is the Director of Parenting Education and the contact person for inquiries regarding Parenting from the Inside Out. .  She is an expert contributor for eHarmony’s parenting website, and she frequently speaks to parents, teachers, and professionals about how to understand relationships in the context of the changing brain.  Dr. Bryson has her Ph.D. from the University of Southern California, where her research explored attachment science, childrearing theory, and interpersonal neurobiology.  But, Dr. Bryson emphasizes that before she’s an educator or researcher or writer, she’s a mom.  She says that along with her husband, Scott, parenting her three boys is what makes her happiest. By visiting TinaBryson.com, you can read her articles, hear her podcasts, and learn more about Tina’s brain-centered approach to parenting and other relationships. You can contact Dr. Bryson directly at parenting@TinaBryson.com.

Erica Ellis, Psy.D., Director of Professional Education and Training
Erica Ellis earned her Doctorate of Psychology from the California School of Professional Psychology, where her work focused on the intersection between psychological and physiological well-being.  Trained in several somatic modalities including massage therapy, yoga, mindfulness meditation and Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, Erica specializes in the integration of mind, body and spirit.  Dr. Ellis is the Director of Professional Education and Training at the Mindsight Institute and the primary contact for people interested in finding out more about the Mindsight Institute or for reaching Dan Siegel for speaking engagements. 

Aubrey Henderson Siegel, Director of Multimedia Communications
Aubrey comes to the Mindsight Institute from the field of entertainment. She was an agent to writers and directors at International Creative Management, a Vice President at Mandate Films, and a co-producer and executive producer of various feature films. Drawn to psychology, mindfulness, and the study of the brain, Aubrey is currently earning her Master of Arts in Psychology at Antioch University Los Angeles, and begins her clinical traineeship at The Maple Counseling Center in June of 2008.