Course Instructors

April Christopherson,  OTR/L  has been an Occupational Therapist for almost 20 years and has worked with diverse populations in a variety of settings ““ including home health, private clinic and in-patient rehabilitation. She is the owner of MaxAchieve, Inc. in Colorado Springs, CO where her current clientele range from pediatrics to adults to high performance athletes, both stateside and internationally. She believes in a whole, team approach to the client ““ including various medical professionals and therapists plus the use of functional neurology and metabolic/nutrition counseling. She also works exclusively with the Shandy Clinic in Colorado Springs, CO providing solutions to families with children suffering from Autism, Asperger’s, ADHD, and other diagnoses. April has worked as a legal consultant and as an expert witness throughout the United States. April was granted her degrees in Occupational Therapy and Psychology from St Ambrose University in Davenport, IA in 1991.
Dara Coburn,  MS, CCC-SLP  received her undergraduate and masters degree from the University of Central Arkansas and holds the Certificate of Clinical Competence issued by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Dara served as the National Program Champion for Interactive Metronome within the HealthSouth Corporation. She also serves as Interactive Metronome’s Clinical Support contact person for Life Care Centers of America.  Dara has been teaching IM Certification Courses since 2007 and has contributed to the development of the Adult Best Practice Certification Course and Fall Prevention Protocol. With expertise and experience in the field of neurological disorders, Dara has been able to accept this new treatment tool and successfully integrate it into her practice by modifying it to individually meet her patient’s needs.
Heather Cross,  OTR/L  has been an Occupational Therapist for 17 years. Her scope of practice has included hand therapy, orthopedic rehab, home health, school based therapy, acute care, and pediatrics. She is the co-owner of Performance Advantage, LLC in Colorado Springs, CO. Her current clientele includes a population that ranges from pediatrics to adult. She also works with high performance and pro athletes. She uses a holistic approach with all of her clients; utilizing various medical professions, treatment techniques, functional neurology, and metabolic/nutritional counseling. Heather received her BS in Occupational Therapy from Colorado State University in 1993. Since that time she has been an advocate of continuing education and sponsoring students in their fieldwork assignments at all levels. She has furthered her education through various courses and self study over the last 17 years. Recent courses taken have been chosen to help with her belief that clients can recover neurological functioning at all ages. Some of these programs include: the Listening program, the Alert Program, Sensory integration techniques, and studies in neurology. Heather uses Interactive Metronome as part of an intensive neurological treatment option for qualified clients and as an introductory functional treatment option for pediatrics. She is a huge proponent of the Interactive Metronome following several years of great success using IM with her clientele.
Andrew Dillen Hartley,  OT  graduated from the University of Pretoria, South Africa, school of Occupational Therapy in 1995 and moved to the USA in 1996. He is co-owner of Advanced Therapy Solutions, Inc, an outpatient Physical and Occupational Therapy practice serving clients of all ages in five locations. Mr. Hartley has 14 years of clinical experience and is trained in multiple treatment approaches with both adults and pediatrics. His interests include the treatment of deficits related to stroke, traumatic brain injury, Autism, development disorders, sensory processing disorders, ADHD, ADD and learning disabilities in infants, children and adults. His experience with sensory integration, neuromuscular re-education, brain gym, vision therapy, environmental adaptation, Tai-Chi, yoga and technology based treatment approaches for all ages has served him well as a presenter of certification courses, webinars and professional seminars. Mr. Hartley serves as a clinical advisor for Interactive Metronome and other “Therapy based” companies in research, protocol and practice development areas.
Mary Jones,  OTR/L, LMT, CIMT, C-NDT graduated from St. Loye’s School of OT in the UK in 1986, practicing in the USA since 1993. She earned a degree in Healthcare and Social Welfare from Manchester University in 1992, Massage Therapy Licensure in 1996 and certification NDT techniques in 1994. Mary has worked in a variety of healthcare settings, ranging from specialized neuro-rehab settings to home health, school practice to private practice.     Mary owns and operates her own pediatric practices: Sensational Kids LLC in the US and New Brain Technologies, Ltd in the UK.   She is currently developing a new program: “Brain Focus International”,   dedicated to helping older students who have “fallen through the cracks” and find themselves overwhelmed by academic and socio-emotional pressures. Mary travels extensively as an instructor training Interactive Metronome Certification courses, Advanced IM Pediatric Best Practice courses and advanced IM best practice when working with adults.   Mary authored the Pediatric Best Practice Manual for Interactive Metronome and multiple online webinars. She serves on the IM Scientific Advisory Board and is closely involved in provider support and in preparation of coaching pathways for specialized learning. Mary also provides certification training for Integrated Listening Systems, a   holistic Sound Therapy approach that helps the brain to better function at integrating multi-sensory information.
Jonathan P. McKee,  OTR/L  earned a Bachelor’s degree in Occupational Therapy from the Medical College of Georgia and a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Central Florida. He is the proprietor of Life Cycle Therapy providing specialized evidence based treatments focusing on the child’s individual potential to improve. In his practice he uses specific sensory-based approaches to make neurological changes. Jonathan earned the RIMC designation from IM in 2006 and has successfully implemented the IM Home programs with children and adults for the past several years. He has been interviewed for both the Birmingham News and TalkAutism about the success his clients have experienced with IM. He has earned various certifications and licenses and received the Achiever’s Award for Dedicated Service to Children from the Atlanta Public Schools. Jonathan is an active member on the Advisory Board for Aurora Schools. He focuses on bringing the IM conveniently to his clients’ homes and is experienced in adapting the IM for clients ranging from limited to accelerated abilities.
Lisa Poe,  OTR/L  graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Occupational Therapy from the University of Mississippi Medical Center in 1994. She is the owner of A Focused Brain, LLC, an outpatient Occupational Therapy practice serving pediatrics to geriatrics in Madison, MS. In her private practice, she specializes in treating neurological clients with a variety of diagnosis such as ADHD, Asperger’s, Developmental Delays, Learning Disabilities, Sensory Integration, TBI and CVA. Lisa is also an IM Home Provider. Lisa is trained in multiple treatment approaches such as Constraint Induced Therapy, NDT, Bioness, iLs, Saebo ,Hippotherapy, vision therapy and is SIPT certified.   Lisa has been an IM Instructor for the Certification Course as well as the Adult Best Practice course since August, 2010. She is also a co-author of the Fall Prevention Manual and has shared her clinical expertise with other IM providers through webinars.
Dr. Lorraine Sgarlato,  Au.D. CCCA  received her doctorate degree in Audiology from the Pennsylvania College of Optometry’s School of Audiology. She has been an audiologist for 27 years. She has held the Certificate of Clinical Competence issued by American Speech Hearing Language Association since 1984. Dr. Inducci is considered an expert in the field of auditory processing disorder and children with language based learning disabilites. Dr. Inducci is on staff at Robert Wood Johnson Hospital in Hamilton New Jersey where she works with a broad population of infants through adult. She performs audiological evaluations, auditory processing testing and therapy, hearing aid fittings, and vestibular testing. Dr. Inducci has had a private practice in Yardley Pennsylvania since 1996. She employs teachers and therapists to evaluate and treat children with auditory processing, A.D.H.D., P.D.D., and language learning disabilities. Her practice concentrates on evidence-based therapies and practices which Dr. Inducci is certified in providing. These therapies include Fast ForWord Language programs, The Listening Program, Interactive Metronome, Lindamood-Bell programs, as well as other multisensory reading programs. Dr. Inducci serves the community as an advocate and expert witness for children with various learning disabilities, including those in the autism spectrum. She often lectures to the community and to professionals on Brain Fitness, APD, Autism, ADHD, and vestibular rehabilitation. Dr. Inducci became an IM provider soon after the company went public. She is proud to be a member of the Interactive Metronome family and looks forward to educating the professional community on IM therapy and best practices.
Shelley Thomas,  MPT  received her physical therapy degree from the Mayo Clinic in 1999 and is currently the Director of Rehabilitation at Idaho Elks Rehabilitation Hospital in Boise, Idaho. She has worked primarily adults with neurological and general medical issues and has embraced incorporating Interactive Metronome and Gait Mate into treatment sessions. She serves as the lead therapist at her facility working with physical, occupational, speech, and recreational therapists to educate them about how to incorporate IM and Gait Mate into their treatments to improve functional outcomes. Shelley has been teaching IM Certification Courses since 2008 and has contributed to the development of the Gait Mate Certification Course.
Leonard G. Trujillo, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA,  is currently professor, and Chair of the Department of Occupational Therapy at the College of Allied Health Sciences, East Carolina University. He has been at ECU for 13 yrs and he has been an occupational therapist for over 39 years, with the majority of his clinical experience in the United States Air Force. He  received his PhD from Texas A&M and BS in OT from  Colorado State University. He has presented numerous research projects and outcomes on the Interactive Metronome at AOTA and  other international forums. He  specializes in working with aging adults and has therapeutic group that meets weekly at a local assisted living center.
Amy Vega,  MS, CCC-SLP  received her master’s degree in speech-language pathology from the University of South Florida in 1994 and holds the Certificate of Clinical Competency from the American Speech Language & Hearing Association (ASHA). She specializes in adolescent and adult rehabilitation for patients diagnosed with traumatic brain injury, stroke, epilepsy, brain tumor & and other disease processes that affect communication, cognition, and behavior. She currently serves as Director of both the Clinical Education Department and the Clinical Advisory Board for Interactive Metronome, Inc. and is their Continuing Education Administrator. She provides clinical support to IM providers globally, serves as Editor in Chief for IM’s clinical publications and website FAQ/Best Practices search engine, develops IM certification materials, and is the master-trainer for IM certification instructors.