Dr. Charlotte DiStefano is a Clinical Psychologist and Clinical Instructor in the Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences department at UCLA.Dr. DiStefano began her career as a special education teacher, after completing her B.S. in Special Education at New York University. She then went on to receive an Ed.M. in Mind, Brain and Education from Harvard University, followed by a Ph.D. in Psychological Studies from UCLA. She completed her postdoctoral training at the UCLA Center for Autism Research and under the mentorship of Dr.Shafali Jeste. Clinically, Dr. DiStefano sees patients in the Child and Adult Neurodevelopmental (CAN) Clinic, and the Care and Research in Neurogenetics (CARING) Clinic.She provides assessment and evaluation of children with ASD and related neurodevelopmental disorders, as well as treatment consultations regarding language and communication development.Dr. DiStefano’s primary research interests are language development and minimally verbal children with ASD and syndromic neurodevelopmental disorders.Her research is funded by the National Institute of Deafness and Communication Disorders, Autism Speaks, the Angelman Syndrome Foundation and the Duplication 15q Alliance.