Alisa earned a Bachelor’s degree in Speech Language Pathology and Audiology from City University of New York - Brooklyn College with Cum Laude honors and her Master’s degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders from Montclair State University. As a student Alisa was granted a clinical assistantship at St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center where she had the opportunity to work with children with various feeding and swallowing disorders at the Feeding Center and in the Craniofacial and Swallowing department.

Following graduate school, Alisa began her career in speech language pathology, working in skilled nursing facilities with the adult and geriatric population. She diagnosed, evaluated, and treated patients with a variety of disorders.

Alisa volunteered her time at the Adler Aphasia Center providing group therapy to members with Aphasia.  She also coached members in their annual musical production.

Although Alisa enjoyed working with the adult population, when she began a position in the public school system, she realized that she was meant to work with children.  In the school system Alisa gained extensive experience treating children with a wide range of communication disorders and disabilities from the pre-school disabled population up to the high school level. She has treated children with autism, developmental delay, apraxia, cerebral palsy, dysarthria, dysfluency, Down syndrome, intellectual impairment, hearing impairment, multiple disabilities, articulation and phonological disorders, and behavioral and learning disabilities. She has also worked with children with oral motor and sensory feeding difficulties. Alisa has run social skills classes and pre-school apraxia groups. She has evaluated and determined eligibility for pre-school disabled programs.

Alisa believes in a team approach to treatment. She has been a member of child study teams and participated in team evaluations, follow-ups, and IEP meetings. Alisa has collaborated and consulted with teachers, occupational therapists, and other professionals to create individualized comprehensive therapy plans. She worked closely with a behaviorist and classroom teachers in an ABA program for children with autism and developmental delay for two years. At this program she learned behavior modification techniques helpful for working with children with autism.  

Alisa worked with young children from birth to age three in their homes in Early Intervention programs. In this environment she especially enjoyed working closely with families and assisting them with techniques to help foster their child’s language development.

Alisa believes that in life we are constantly learning and there is always more we can learn. She enjoys attending workshops and continuing education programs. She is licensed to practice speech and language pathology by the state of New Jersey and the state of New York. She maintains certification by the New Jersey Department of Education as a Speech-Language Specialist and is certified by the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA).

Alisa is passionate about helping others communicate their feelings, needs, and desires. She feels strongly that everyone should have a voice. She is excited to be part of the team at New Milford School District.