Dr. Tanya Paparella is a specialist in the field of autism with more than 20 years of intervention and research with children on the autism spectrum. She is a Health Sciences Clinical Professor in the Division of Child Psychiatry at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), a licensed clinical psychologist, and Co-Director of UCLA’s KidsConnect Child AutismTreatment Program which is an internationally recognized treatment program for young children with autism.

Dr. Paparella’s formative years in autism intervention were at the Douglas Developmental Disabilities Center at Rutgers University from 1990 to 1996, where she designed, implemented, and evaluated educational programs for children on the autism spectrum. Dr. Paparella received her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from UCLA and completed a two-year National Institute of Mental Health postdoctoral fellowship in the UCLA Division of Child Psychiatry.

Dr. Paparella oversees the daily activities of KidsConnect staff and is actively involved in the comprehensive evaluation and treatment of children with autism from two to four years of age. She works closely with parents to support and educate them in all aspects of their child’s treatment. Dr. Paparella provides ongoing clinical instruction for students, interns, and M.D. fellows from different specialties. Her clinical and research interests relate to the effectiveness of early intervention –particularly with respect to predictors of best outcome for young children on the autism spectrum. She has authored many scientific publications as well as the book “More Than Hope for Young Children on the Autism Spectrum.”