Meet the team
The mother of 3 teen boys, Mya has a passion for the cognitive development of children and young adults. Realizing firsthand that there was little to no support for parents of teenagers, Mya turned to the blossoming field of adolescent neurological research for help. Despite adolescence being the 2nd most important phase of neurological development, Mya discovered this period of growth is virtually unaddressed and valuable new scientific discoveries are not being taken advantage of. She experienced multiple breakthroughs in her own parenting through applying her knowledge of adolescent development and realized she had found the key to eliminating a massive chunk of parental angst.
With a background in connecting learning specialists, child psychologists, and education professionals through EdTech, along with her life-coaching practice, Mya is making it her newfound mission to empower parents, and professionals engaged in interacting with teens, to approach the development of adolescence through digestible, relatable and actionable guidance rooted in neuroscience.
Mya and the Teen Brain Trust team are resolute in growing a community of people passionate about empowering teens and changing the conversation around what it feels like to be a teenager in today’s rapidly evolving society.
As the Co-Creator of Teen Brain Trust, Robin gets to focus on all of the fun, and not so fun, things about building courses from the ground up. He’s the lead researcher and curriculum developer for all of TBT’s programs and loves getting to metaphorically dig his hands into the human brain. With over 10 years of experience in writing and program development, Robin has a talent for taking complicated, abstract, and difficult to understand material, and making it simple, relatable, and digestible for others. He’s been working hand in hand with our advisory board and cross-referencing hundreds of peer-reviewed neuroscientific studies and papers to make sure TBT’s courses are as correct, up to date, interesting, and actionable as possible. He also has a background in education and live-performance and delivers highly engaging live workshops and classes.
He’s also the Founding Owner of Algorithmics NY, a local company that partners with schools and community organizations in NYC to offer computer science programs to kids and teens.
Meet the brain trust
Dr. Dana Dorfman has over 25 years of clinical experience treating children, adolescents, parents and adults. She earned her MSW and Ph.D. in Clinical Social Work from the Silver School of Social Work at NYU. She believes that a flexible, eclectic and integrated approach to therapy reflects her patient’s individual needs and brings the greatest results. Her work combines extensive training in psychodynamic and cognitive-behavioral therapy with an in-depth knowledge of interpersonal, object relations, and self-psychology theory.
Dr. Dorfman is a lecturer, workshop facilitator, and consultant who has worked with mental health agencies, parenting centers, private schools, and organizations including The Dalton School, NYU Child Study Center, Soho Parenting, Freedom Institute and JCC Manhattan. She is currently writing a book, The Parenting Paradox, a guide to help parents align values with achievement. She also co-hosts the 2 Moms on The Couch podcast alongside comedian Amy Veltman.
Dr. Alice Mangan holds a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from CUNY Graduate Center and a master’s degree in special education from Bank Street College of Education. Formerly a member of the graduate faculty at Bank Street College of Education, Dr. Mangan has a private practice in New York City where she works clinically with adults, adolescents, and children as well as parents and families to provide consultation, assessment and evaluation, and psychotherapy services. Dr. Mangan is also a consulting psychologist at schools, companies and start-ups, and advises authors and editors of children’s books.
Dr. Mangan’s research interests center on the relationships between schools and families and the influence of learning disabilities on the psychological and relational life of the child, parent, and family system. Dr. Mangan has a strong commitment to sensitively addressing concerns related to learning and learning disability, autism spectrum disorders, the interplay between disability and social, emotional and psychological development, parenting and family life, and other crucial and intersecting dimensions of identity such as gender, sexuality, race and ethnicity.
Barbara’s career has focused on serving the academic and social needs of the most vulnerable students in both private and public-school settings. She earned her Bachelors in Anthropology from Rutgers University, Masters in Communication Disorders from the University of Vermont, a Doctorate in Educational Leadership, Management and Policy from Seton Hall University and is an ASHA certified Speech/Language Pathologist.
She has written and been featured in numerous articles and has spoken extensively both nationally and internationally on topics in education including improving school culture, school turn-around, aspiring leadership, building relational trust and integrating restorative practices. She has held adjunct professorships at Pace, Brooklyn College and the University of Vermont.
Barbara recently appeared on CBS This Morning discussing the struggles parents and students face during remote learning. She co-founded in-SPIRE for families who are struggling to manage the work-life imbalance created by remote learning.
Dr. Janine Pollack’s career has centered around the developing brain. She holds a Ph.D. in psychology from Columbia University with a specialization in Developmental Neuropsychology and, for the last 15 years, has been running a private practice as a neuro-psych evaluator where she works with children and teens.
She has worked as a part-time staff psychologist for the Rose F. Kennedy Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, served as the supervising psychologist for the Stanley S. Lamm Institute of Pediatric Neurology, Long Island College Hospital, taught as a professor for Bank Street College and Touro College, and served as an instructor for the Department of Neurology / School of Medicine, State University of New York.
Dr. Pollack has a strong commitment to supporting the health and well being of developing brains.