Our Team
Carrie Bearden, Ph.D.
Carrie E. Bearden, Ph.D., is a Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, Psychology, and the Brain Research Institute at UCLA. Her research focuses on identifying underlying genetic and biological vulnerability markers for serious mental illness, using converging methodologies to study clinical high-risk samples and highly penetrant ‘genetic subtypes’ of these conditions. She joined the UCLA faculty in 2003 and then obtained a K23 Career Development Award to obtain specialized training in genetic methodologies. She is the Director of the UCLA Center for the Assessment and Prevention of Prodromal States (CAPPS) and the Adolescent Serious Mental Illness internship and externship tracks for clinical students. With Roel Ophoff, she also co-directs the Neurogenetics T32 Predoctoral Training Program and the Neurogenetics track within the Neuroscience Interdepartmental Ph.D. program .
Gil Hoftman, MD PhD
Dr. Gil Hoftman is a Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist and the CAPPS Medical Co-Director at our clinic. He earned a PhD from the University of Pittsburgh/Carnegie Mellon University and an MD from the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Hoftman completed his psychiatry residency and child & adolescent psychiatry fellowship training at Western Psychiatric Hospital in Pittsburgh and UCLA, and he is board certified both in General Adult Psychiatry and Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. Dr. Hoftman has received prestigious research awards including the National Institute of Mental Health K23 Career Development Award, Burroughs Wellcome Fund Career Award for Medical Scientists, and Brain and Behavior Research Foundation NARSAD young investigator award. Driven by a passion for developing innovative approaches to understand and treat psychosis risk states, Dr. Hoftman remains deeply connected with his patients and their families. He is dedicated to educating the next generation of behavioral health professionals and is recognized as an esteemed lecturer on medications for treating psychosis risk and comorbidities. What sets Dr. Hoftman apart in his approach to patient care is his integration of holistic and compassionate personalized care. He appreciates the significance of developmental and neurobiological principles while also acknowledging the impact of environmental and psychological factors on distressing symptoms and experiences. This comprehensive approach ensures that each patient receives tailored care that addresses their unique needs.
Leila Kushan-Wells
Leila Kushan-Wells is the study coordinator for the UCLA 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome Study. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Neuroscience from UCLA and her Master’s degree in Neuroscience and Cognition from the University of Utrecht in Holland. She has worked as part of research teams investigating brain function in various patient populations. Leila is the main contact for participants and their families and she’d be happy to provide you with more information about our study.
Hoki Fung
Hoki is a Ph.D. student in the Neuroscience Interdepartmental Program at UCLA with a keen research interest in the neural mechanisms underlying higher-order executive functions in healthy and clinical populations. She completed her B.A. in Psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, M.Res. in Cognitive Neuroscience at University College London, and M.Comp. in Artificial Intelligence at the National University of Singapore. She is experienced in collecting and analyzing behavioral and multimodal neuroimaging data, and had held multiple academic and non-academic research positions prior to joining UCLA. In the Bearden Lab, Hoki studies the 22q11.2 gene dosage effects on cerebellar phenotypes and their association with cognition. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, cafe hopping, and playing basketball.
Kathleen O’Hora
Kathleen is a Ph.D. student in the Neuroscience Interdepartmental program. After graduating with a BS in Cognitive and Behavioral Neuroscience at Villanova University, she joined the Computational Psychiatry, Neuroimaging, and Sleep lab at Stanford School of Medicine. At Stanford, she worked with Dr. Andrea Goldstein-Piekarski to study the role of sleep in the maintenance and treatment of neuropsychiatric symptoms. In the Bearden lab, Kathleen studies the relationship between sleep and developmental psychiatric disorders using neuroimaging and genomic approaches.
Carolyn Amir
Carolyn is a Ph.D. student in the UCLA Neuroscience Interdepartmental Program. Before coming to UCLA, she studied Psychological and Brain Sciences at Boston University. Upon graduation, Carolyn completed a two-year fellowship at the National Institutes of Health with Dr. Lauren Atlas, where she studied neural and psychological mechanisms of pain, medication, and expectancy. In Dr. Bearden's laboratory, Carolyn is interested in using brain imaging, behavior, immunology, and genetics approaches to study substance use and psychiatric disorders.
Jee Won
Jee Won is a Ph.D. student in the UCLA Clinical Psychology program. After graduating with a B.A. in Psychology at Brown University, she worked at the Fetal-Neonatal Neuroimaging Developmental Science Center at Boston Children's Hospital, where she studied changes in brain structure among individuals with severe congenital heart disease under the supervision of Dr. Ai Wern Chung. In Dr. Bearden's lab, Jee Won is interested in using multimodal neuroimaging methods to study neurobiological mechanisms that drive atypical development in brain structure and function throughout childhood and adolescence in psychiatric disorders.
Bernalyn Ruiz-Yu, Ph.D.
Dr. Bernalyn Ruiz-Yu currently serves as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the clinic, passionately working towards advancing mental health treatment and care for adolescents. Her educational background boasts an M.A. in Clinical Psychology and Research Methods and a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology. Dr. Ruiz-Yu's professional accomplishments have been recognized through the NIH Loan Repayment Award and the Early Career Award from the Schizophrenia International Research Society (SIRS). In her role at the clinic, she brings a unique approach to patient care. Her experiences as an elementary school teacher, and her involvement in various social issues, contribute to her holistic and intersectional perspective when working with patients and their families.
Elizabeth Bondy
Elizabeth Bondy brings a focused expertise in autism spectrum disorders and sleep to her role as a Project Policy Analyst I with the Bearden team. With a B.A. in Psychology and Disability Studies from UCLA, Elizabeth has cultivated a rich professional background through extensive clinical work with children with autism in both home and hospital settings. Before transitioning to a staff position, she dedicated 1.5 years as a volunteer in the lab, enriching her understanding and commitment to research. Her research interests span autism spectrum disorders, social cognitive neuroscience, and sleep, reflecting her broader academic and professional journey. Elizabeth is passionate about the intersection of neuroscience and clinical practice, aspiring to advance in her career as a neuropsychologist. Outside the lab, Elizabeth cherishes spending time outdoors with her loved ones.
Vanessa Calderon, Ph.D., MPH
Dr. Vanessa Calderon is a Postdoctoral Fellow at CAPPS. Originally from East Los Angeles, she completed her undergraduate studies at Yale University (B.A. in Psychology, with distinction) and went on to receive her doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology from the University of Southern California where she also completed a Master of Public Health degree in Community Health Promotion. Dr. Calderon first joined CAPPS in 2021 as a Clinical Psychology Intern in the Adolescent Serious Mental Illness track at the UCLA Semel Institute. Dr. Calderon is dedicated to providing culturally-informed care in English and Spanish and enjoys working with youth and families from diverse backgrounds. Her current research examines pathways to care and the role of the family on mental health treatment use, which she aims to translate into interventions for Latinx Spanish-speaking families. Dr. Calderon has been funded by the APA Minority Fellowship Program, UCLA ALACRITY Center pilot study funds, and a NIMH-funded T32 postdoctoral fellowship. She was recently honored with the Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology (JCCAP) Future Directions Launch Award.
Rui Ma
Rui Ma serves as a Staff Research Associate at the clinic. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Pennsylvania State University. Prior to her affiliation with CAPPS, Rui spent two pivotal years in a psychiatric hospital in Beijing, concentrating her efforts on first-episode psychosis and those at clinical high risk. Further broadening her expertise, she collaborated with Dr. Jason Schiffman's lab at UCI, primarily contributing to ProNET and other multisite studies. What truly drives Rui's passion is a profound interest in understanding social cognition, social functioning, and family dynamics within diverse populations at clinical high risk.
Rune Boen, PhD
Rune Boen, PhD, is a postdoctoral scholar at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, UCLA. He holds a CertHE from the School of Psychology at the University of Liverpool, a BA and MPhil from the Department of Psychology at the University of Oslo, and a PhD from the Institute of Clinical Medicine at the University of Oslo. Dr. Boen's research focuses on the effects of pathogenic copy number variants on brain structure, using advanced neuroimaging techniques to explore how rare recurrent genetic variations influence brain morphology. His work aims to identify altered neurobiological mechanisms in copy number variant carriers, with the ultimate goal of contributing to personalized medicine, improving genetic counseling, and enhancing clinical outcomes and quality of life for affected individuals. Dr. Boen's recent publications include studies on the brain phenotypic profiles of copy number variant carriers, published in leading journals such as Biological Psychiatry and Translational Psychiatry.
Lab Alumni
Charles Schleifer, Ph.D. Learn More
Sarah Chang, Ph.D. Learn More
Christopher Ching, Ph.D. Postdoctoral Scholar Learn More
Maria Jalbrzikowski, Ph.D. Learn More
Jen Forsyth, Ph.D. Learn More