Chapman University’s Vice President for Research, Thomas Piechota, hosts the next Ask the Experts Virtual Town Hall – COVID-19 and Impacts on Mental Health on Tuesday, October 27, 2020, Noon – 1:00 p.m. The event will be moderated by Crean College of Health and Behavioral Sciences Dean Janeen Hill, and feature panelists: Dr. Heather Huszti, CHOC; Dr. Naveen Jonathan, Chapman – Marriage and Family Therapy; Dr. Andrew Kami, Chapman University – Student Psychological Counseling Services; and Dr. Richard Afable – MindOC/Be Well OC.

Join us to learn more about this timely topic and how COVID-19 has impacted the mental health of children, families, college age students, and the homeless.  Q & A will follow.

Join here

Expert Biographies

Janeen Hill, Ph. D. is the Founding Dean of Crean College of Health and Behavioral Sciences and Professor of Health Sciences, Chapman University.    Her research career has focused primarily on understanding the spinal neuromodulation of cardiovascular and respiratory reflexes induced by muscle contraction  As Dean of Crean College she oversees undergraduate majors in psychology, applied human physiology, and health science, a neuroscience minor, and graduate programs in physical therapy, physician assistant studies, communication sciences and disorders, and marriage and family therapy.  She has been extensively involved in university-wide task forces with the most recent devoted to understanding the status of mental and behavioral health at Chapman University and among the Chapman family,  and the community resources available to support mental and behavioral health of our community.

Dr. Andrew Kami Ph. D., MFT is the director of the Psychological Counseling Services at Chapman University. Dr. Kami is a licensed clinical psychologist and brings a wealth of experience and qualifications to his role, including his experience serving in the United States Marine Corps.  In addition to being a military veteran, Dr. Kami has also served as a facility director working with Schizophrenia Spectrum Illnesses, and also conducted cognitive, psychological, and personality assessments for the Los Angeles Department of Mental Health and Children and Family Services. He currently teaches as core faculty/professor of psychology teaching on trauma, psychopharmacology, and clinical practicum at Chapman University.

Naveen Jonathan, Ph.D., MFT is a Clinical Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Marriage & Family Therapy at Chapman University. Dr. Jonathan, a licensed Marriage & Family Therapist in the State of California, has a private practice – Santa Ana Community Counseling, where he works with a diverse population of families, couples, and individuals in therapy. He has worked extensively with issues pertaining to the LGBTQ community, immigration/acculturation issues and with other marginalized populations. Dr. Jonathan is very actively involved in leadership and service on both the national and state levels of the American Association of Marriage & Family Therapy (AAMFT). Locally, Dr. Jonathan currently represents Crean College at meetings of Be Well Orange County as well serves as a member of the Santa Ana Youth Mental Health Taskforce.

Heather Huszti, Ph. D. is a licensed psychologist and chief psychologist at CHOC Children’s as well as the section chief for pediatric psychology. She also is the director of training for the Psychology Training Program at CHOC Children’s. She completed her doctoral degree in clinical psychology with an emphasis in family therapy from Texas Tech University and completed an internship and fellowship at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center (OUHSC). She was on faculty at OUHSC, where she was the director of the Pediatric Psychology Program. She joined CHOC Children’s in 2002. Dr. Huszti has served as a principal investigator on a number of federally funded research projects with a focus on adherence.

Richard Afable, MD, MPH  is currently the President and Board Chair of BeWellOC, a public-private partnership working to improve the mental health for all residents of Orange County and seeking to be a national leader in mental health.  Dr. Afable is the retired President and CEO of St. Joseph Hoag Health, an Orange County-based integrated delivery system created by the affiliation of Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian and the Southern California region of St. Joseph Health.   With over 20 years of medical practice experience, he has also served as President and CEO of Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach, Associate Professor of Medicine at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, and Clinical Assistant Professor at Northwestern School of Medicine. He is board certified in internal medicine and has had added qualifications in Geriatric Medicine. Dr. Afable obtained his MD from the Loyola Stritch School of Medicine, a Master of Public Health from the University of Illinois, and a Certificate in Business Administration from Villanova. He currently serves as adjunct professor at the University of California, Irvine Merage School of Business. Dr. Afable also serves as a Chapman University Trustee.

For more information, visit www.chapman.edu/asktheexperts.