Lisa M. Brown, PhD, ABPP, FGSA, a clinical psychologist at Palo Alto University has co-authored a new interactive tool called "Decision Aid" developed by the Gerontological Society of America (GSA) to help people make more informed decisions when considering interacting with other people or taking part in activities outside their homes during the pandemic.

Robert Friedberg, Ph.D., ABPP, is a full professor at Palo Alto University. He’s the Head of the Pediatric Behavioral Health Emphasis Area in the Ph.D. program, as well as Director and Research Group Advisor, Center for the Study and Treatment of Anxious Youth. Dr. Friedberg co-edited "Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in Youth: Tradition and Innovation" with Brad Nakamura, Ph.D.

This year’s presidential election is unlike any other in history and it’s taking a toll on the mental health of people across the country. Feelings of stress are compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic, fears of long polling lines and contracting the virus.     “If you think in terms of Maslow’s hierarchy, many people are at the bottom,” says Donya Wallace, Ph.D., a visiting assistant professor in the Master’s in Counseling program at Palo Alto University.

A Message from Palo Alto University President Maureen O'Connor

This year’s World Mental Health Day arrives amid a global pandemic that brings unprecedented challenges to individuals, families, and our communities. In our own California community, the fallout of COVID-19 is compounded by the devastating impact of the state’s wildfires. People see injustice and inequity and fear for their health and safety, their children's education, their economic well-being, their homes and their future.

In 2015, about a year before Lorna Chiu started graduate school, she learned about the tragic suicide cluster at Gunn High School in Palo Alto. Many of the suicides involved Asian-American teens. Lorna was distraught by the fact that this was happening to youth in the Bay Area where she grew up, and she wanted to help.

A recent study of suicide deaths in Northern California conducted by researchers at Palo Alto University, the County of Santa Clara Behavioral Health Services Department, and the County of Santa Clara Office of the Medical Examiner / Coroner, could have important implications for culturally-informed suicide prevention strategies, assessment, and risk management.     The study published in the journal of Death Studies analyzed 1,145 suicide deaths by method and l

Megan Frank was attending high school in Berkeley, CA when she learned that her grandmother, who was raising her, had Alzheimer’s (AD). With limited knowledge of the disease, Megan began to research its causes and treatments and in so doing learned about other neurodegenerative diseases like frontotemporal dementia and atypical Parkinson’s disease which sparked her interest in an academic career in neuropsychology.

Palo Alto University is pleased to welcome five new faculty members this fall. Each brings unique perspectives and research areas to the Counseling and Psychology Departments, as well as a strong commitment to student-centered education.   Alayna Park

Dear Students:

Welcome to (and back to for most of you) the 2020-21 academic year at PAU.  In times like no other in modern history, we are so grateful that you have continued your education as part of the PAU community.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) has named Ricardo F.