Experts: Mental Health

Dr. Byers is an associate professor with expertise in child welfare systems, child maltreatment prevention, and social determinants of health and well-being. Her research and scholarship focus on structural and systems-level issues that impact children, families, and their communities. She applies community-engaged approaches to research utilizing advanced mixed methods, implementation science, and a translational prevention framework. Her research surfaces and addresses system and community factors that impact child and family well-being.

Katy (Qiuchang) Cao is an assistant professor at the College of Social Work interested in Gerontology. Katy’s scholarship has focused on strengthening social inclusion related to age, abilities, country of origin, race and ethnicity via community-engaged research and secondary data analysis. She is particularly interested in the social mechanism that contributes to health among various groups of older adults. Her recent work examines how childhood and midlife experiences influence cognitive health in later life using data from the Health and Retirement Study and the Occupation Information Network. Her research highlights the importance of the community environment and life course experiences in the physical, mental, and cognitive health of older adults. Katy’s work involves the use of qualitative, quantitative, and network analyses.

Ebener is Professor and Director of Clinical Training in the College of Education’s Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems. Ebener’s research focuses on psychological and social factors that influence an individual’s coping and adaptation to disability and chronic illness, as well as recovery from substance use disorders. Her current research examines positive psychology constructs of humor, spirituality and optimism as coping mechanisms in recovery and adaptation.

Dr. Gerber has been a practicing art psychotherapist, educator, researcher, and innovator for the past 40+ years. Her expertise spans clinical, academic, and research domains.  As a   clinician for over 22 years, her expertise has been in using art psychotherapy to help adolescents and adults facing psychological challenges and trauma.  More recently, Dr. Gerber’s expertise has been in higher education and specifically doctoral education. She created, developed, and directed one of the first doctoral programs in Creative Arts Therapies while also directing and teaching a master’s degree program in art therapy.

Alongside her commitment to doctoral education is her research expertise in the areas of arts-based research and mixed methods research. Aligned with her interest and expertise in ABR, she co-founded the Arts-Based Research (ABR) Global Consortium. The ABR Global Consortium is a group of global arts-based research scholars who are working towards increasing the visibility, accessibility, valuation and aesthetic impact of research that can elucidate and communicate major global issues through aesthetically powerful socially engaged arts-based investigation and dissemination.

Dr. Gomory has over 35 years of experience as a clinician, administrator, and educator in the areas of social work, mental health, and homelessness. He has co-authored an award-winning book on mental health titled Mad Science: Psychiatric Coercion, diagnosis, and drugs along with more than three dozen articles and chapters.”  

Fran Gomory is a teaching professor and has been director of the MSW program at the College of Social Work since 2015. Her areas of expertise in social work practice include group work, clinical practice, social work administration and women’s issues. She teaches courses in these areas both in-person and online.

Ellen Piekalkiewicz is the founding director of Florida State University’s Stoops Center for the Study and Promotion of Communities, Families, & Children (CFC Center) and an adjunct professor at FSU. She has more than 25 years of leadership experience in mental health, substance use, and community-based human services, including serving as Executive Director of the Florida Substance Abuse & Mental Health Corporation; Executive Director of United Partners for Human Services.

Her research and applied work focus on resilience in vulnerable populations, the nonprofit sector’s role in disaster recovery, rural opioid response, and behavioral health services for children and families. She has served as principal investigator and co-investigator on multiple federally and locally funded projects addressing rural resilience, disaster preparedness, and mental health interventions, with support from organizations including SAMHSA, Save the Children, United Way, the Community Foundation of Palm Beach and Martin Counties, and the National Science Foundation.

Piekalkiewicz is a frequent convener of academic, policy, and practitioner forums on behavioral health, resilience, and community well-being. She is also a public voice on human services, having authored a monthly column in the Tallahassee Democrat and organized statewide and local forums on affordable housing, health disparities, criminal justice, and substance use.