2024 Forensic Psychology Newsletter
Message from the Program Director
In Memoriam: Richard Cooter
Program Spotlights
Meet Our New Faculty Members
Alumni Class Notes
Message from the Program Director
Greetings to all of our alumni from the George Washington University Forensic Psychology Master’s Program in beautiful Alexandria! I’m finishing off my second year as program director and remain deeply impressed with our terrific students, the quality of the program and our dedicated and talented permanent and adjunct faculty. On that note, we were pleased to welcome four new adjunct faculty members into our program in 2023. You can learn more about them in this newsletter.
Sadly, 2023 brought not only additions to our program but a profound loss. My predecessor, Richard Cooter, who founded this program along with Associate Professor Rocio Lopez-Sharifi, passed away last year. He will be greatly missed.
You’ll also read in this newsletter about a few of the exciting things happening here, including the achievements of our community of alumni, faculty and students.
Sincerely,
Andrew Moskowitz
Program Director
In Memoriam: Richard Cooter
In August of 2023, we sadly lost the Founding Director of GW’s Forensic Psychology Program and Professor Emeritus Richard Cooter. As many of you know, Dr. Cooter was instrumental in creating the Forensic Psychology Program at GW and led the program for more than 10 years. After news of his passing, many of our alumni kindly reached out with messages of condolence and heartfelt anecdotes about Dr. Cooter. We heard from many of you about the deep impact he had as a leader and mentor, not to mention his spirit and sense of humor! He will always be remembered for his successful leadership, relentless dedication and his immeasurable contributions to what the program is today.
Program Spotlights
Career Paths in Forensic Psychology
The Forensic Psychology Program’s Career Paths in Forensic Psychology workshop series hosted by Dr. Rocio Lopez-Sharifi entered its second year and was proud to feature several of our distinguished alumni discussing their career paths.
In the spring, alumna Ashley Smolinski, MA ’16, who works as a supervisory social science research specialist in the U.S. Secret Service, discussed her work and the mission of the National Threat Assessment Center.
For our fall workshop, alumni working as special agents with the Department of the Air Force, including Special Agent Morgan Cebula, MA ’18, shared their experiences in the Office of Special Investigations and discussed the value of the MA degree in forensic psychology within the Department of Defense and the federal government in general.
We were thrilled to welcome back these alumni and have them share their knowledge and experiences with current students!
New Book Chapter on Aggression
Dr. Matt Bruce and program alumna Veronica Rosenberger, MA ’19, collaborated on a book chapter exploring theories and typologies of human aggression. They also examined the assessment, prediction and management of aggression in forensic inpatient settings and described a new risk assessment tool. This instrument incorporates the essential elements of assessment, formulation, intervention and reflective practice to mitigate aggressive acts among inpatients and staff.
Meet Our New Faculty Members
- Melissa Ricke, JD, MA, is a defense attorney and trainer at the Maryland Public Defender’s Office, with experience in juvenile justice, trial strategies and national training. Professor Ricke is teaching some of the program’s legal courses.
- Laura Rose, JD, LLM, is a seasoned attorney with extensive experience at the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia, specializing in mental health issues within the trial division, and offering expertise in competency assessments and expert witness retention, among others. Professor Rose is also teaching one of the program’s legal courses.
- Linda McGhee, JD, PsyD, is a former attorney and current clinical psychologist specializing in culturally sensitive testing and assessment for diverse populations and is teaching the introductory assessment course.
- Pamela Blackwell, PsyD, is a clinical psychologist specializing in reproductive psychology with substantial experience conducting forensic evaluations and assessments and is teaching the Victimology course.
Alumni Class Notes
- David Montague, MA ’96, was a senior investigator for the U.S. Assassination Records Review Board, and then a professor of criminal justice at University of Arkansas at Little Rock. He is now associate vice chancellor for academic affairs, student success and has published two books.
- Daniella Scott, PhD ’04, has been busy with her private practice in Washington, D.C. She continues to engage in clinical work and joined the Professional Psychology Program as an adjunct professor and staff psychologist in August.
- Karla Steingraber, PhD ’05, has been involved in a variety of pursuits, including her clinical and sport/performance practice, Everest String Coaching, serving on the Illinois Board of Psychology, and serving as president of the Generation Next Project foundation.
- Katherine Marshall Woods, PhD ’04, is the director of clinical training at the GW Professional Psychology Program. She performs research with students in the Psychodynamic Film and Media Set, a collaboration with PsychMinded Media.