As an educator and Positive Psychology coach, Dr. Karen Garman offers systematic training and performance-based solutions to organizations for the development and implementation of innovative training in Positive Psychology. By designing results-based programs and statistically testing the outcomes of these adult learning interventions, using attitude, learning, and behavioral change instruments, she systematically identifies performance gaps, designs and develops cost-effective interventions to close the gaps, implements training and mentorship interventions, and evaluates the human performance results. As Director of Positive Psychology Education for Soaringwords, she assists the CEO & Founder in designing research studies, Positive Psychology interventions, and professional development courses to increase agency and resilience in individuals, families, and organizations. Since 2015, she has been a lead strategist in the SOARING Into Positive Wellbeing Model and has co-presented Soaringwords’ empirical studies at the International Positive Psychology Association World Congress.
Dr. Garman has over 42 years of experience in the delivery of a variety of professional development training programs to public and private health care organizations. She holds a doctorate from the University of Southern California in medical education and certification as a human performance improvement expert. In addition to the large-scale health care systems work that she designs and implements, she is a board-certified coach and professionally coaches health care practitioners to become better leaders and clinicians at the local, state, and national levels. Dr. Garman was one of the first graduates of the Masters in Applied Positive Psychology program at the University of Pennsylvania. She recently had a leadership role in the launch of the Kaiser Permanente School of Medicine integrating positive psychology and health into the medical student curriculum over all four years, and the Rady Children’s Institute for Genomic Medicine pioneering precision health care for infants and children through rapid diagnosis and targeted treatment for newborns. Dr. Garman lives in sunny Coronado, California.

Dr. Ironson is a Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry at the University of Miami and a board-certified psychiatrist. She received her medical degree from the University of Miami, her PhD from the University of Wisconsin, and did her residency training in Psychiatry at Stanford University. She has 280 publications in the field of behavioral medicine and Positive Psychology. She is the immediate past president of the American Psychosomatic Society; past president of the Health Division of IPPA; and past president of the Academy of Behavioral Medicine Research. She is also a past member of the editorial board of five journals. She has directed federally funded research studies investigating psychological factors in long survival with illness (especially HIV), stress management, and treatments for traumatized individuals. She has received four awards for her work, most recently from the International Positive Psychology Association (July, 2021) for her research on Positive Psychology and Health. In 2019, she was awarded the Research Professor Award from the Academy of Consult-Liaison Psychiatry. In 2011, the Society of Behavioral Medicine awarded her the Spirituality and Health Award. And, in 1983, she received the Alumni Professor Award from the University of South Florida. Her current areas of focus include examining positive psychological factors (including positive affect, life satisfaction, meaning, compassion, and spirituality) in health and recovery from trauma. She just directed and completed a Templeton funded grant, which is the six-year follow-up examining the predictive power of spirituality and positive psychological factors for health in a nationwide sample. With over 250 publications, Dr. Ironson has directed federally funded research studies investigating psychological factors in long survival with HIV, stress management, positive psychological factors and coping, spirituality, and treatments for traumatized individuals.

She is currently President of the American Psychosomatic Society and is Past President of the Academy of Behavioral Medicine Research (a senior level organization by invitation only) and Past President of the Health Division of the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA). She has been on the editorial board of 5 journals and has received 4 awards for her work – most recently from the International Positive Psychology Association for her research on Positive Psychology and Health; The Society of Behavioral Medicine for her work on Spirituality and Health; from the Academy of College of Consult-Liaison Psychiatrists; and the Alumni Professor Award from the University of South Florida.

Dr. Ironson set up and currently directs the Trauma Treatment Program at the University of Miami Psychological Services Center (with Dr. Blanche Freund), which trains students and treats residents of the local community on a sliding scale. Her current focus areas include examining positive psychological factors and health, with an emphasis on spirituality and trauma. She is currently the Primary Investigator on a Templeton Foundation funded grant, which is the 6 year follow-up examining the predictive power of positive psychological factors and spirituality for health and survival from a nationwide sample. Gail lives and works in Miami, Florida where she enjoys a beautiful view of the lake outside her home.

Travis Millman is a serial entrepreneur and business leader who has worked extensively in digital and behavioral health, educational technology, and digital media. He currently serves as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence (EIR) at the University of Connecticut’s Technology Incubation Program, where he has helped dozens of startup CEOs and their teams to plan and
execute their go-to-market efforts. Travis was previously VP of Growth for Deliberate.ai, a seed-stage deep tech company using AI/ML to assess mental and neurological health. Prior to this, he was COO of Neuvotion, a pioneer in Functional Electric Stimulation for the rehabilitation of stroke and trauma, a Business Development Advisor to Samsung NEXT’s digital health venture portfolio, and a consultant with Philips Healthcare’s IntelliSpace Cognition venture, where he helped architect a solution for more accurately diagnosing cognitive impairment. Previously, Travis was VP of New Business and Innovation for Pearson’s renowned Clinical Assessment division, where he was responsible for a team of more than 40 professionals and several growth businesses, as well as a wide range of innovation projects and M&A activity. Earlier in his career, he was the founding VP of Business Development at Audible.com. Travis graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts from Harvard College, and subsequently earned a Masters in Applied Positive Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. Travis lives on the Upper West Side of Manhattan and in Ithaca, New York, where he loves to run, cycle, kayak, hike, and ski.

Caren has more than 16 years of experience in Structured Trade Finance with a strong focus on International Trade. She has been the President of Corporate Funding Partners since its inception in 2000.Corporate Funding does approximately $200 million in sales arranging Port to Port financing on letter of credit transactions for clients who import product. CFP caters to high-level apparel groups; as well as commodities such as food, petroleum, and steel. Caren has developed a number of marketing, sales and management tools that have become the basis of the company’s continued success and growth over the years. Currently she oversees the development of a global network of representatives in Europe, Africa, Asia, Middle East, South America, Central America and North America.

Before Caren began her foray into Finance in 1999, she worked in the art world for fifteen years, as a prolific artist selling her artwork in galleries, as well as teaching art to children and adults. Caren worked for the Montclair Art Museum, where she taught adult painting and drawing classes as well as the children’s classes. She developed projects for school and local community programs, incorporating the visual content of the Museums’ main exhibits. In addition, Caren worked for a few years with the Studio in the Schools program in New York City where she provided art education to thousands of students in over 100 NYC public schools. Caren also spent a few years teaching and developing the art program for Manhattan High School for Girls. She is the proud mother of two children and lives in Manhattan with her husband and kids.

Christine Reilly, Ph.D., RN, is a leading authority on cognitive therapy. She has lectured extensively to a broad array of professionals both nationally and internationally on the advanced practice of cognitive therapy. Her publications and research interests revolve around the training of professionals in the techniques of cognitive therapy and using them in clinical practice.

In addition, Dr. Reilly has decades of experience helping people overcome obstacles that prevent them from reaching their full potential and enjoying life. Dr. Reilly is a Founding Fellow in the Academy of Cognitive Therapy, and a member of AABT, APA, ANA and ACT.

She also has over fourteen years of experience as Associate Professor in the University of Delaware College of Health and Nursing Sciences in the Department of Nursing with a joint appointment in the Department of Psychology.

Her family includes husband, Kurt, 3 teenage children and 3 step-children. Her home is in Chester County, Pennsylvania.

Dr. Pninit Russo-Netzer, Ph.D., is a senior lecturer and researcher, the head of the Education Department and the head of the Resilience and Optimal Development Lab at Achva Academic College. She is also the head of the ‘Compass’ Institute for the Study and Application of Meaning in life; founder and head of the Academic Training Program for Logotherapy (meaning-oriented psychotherapy) at Tel-Aviv University. She is the recipient of the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA) Spirituality and Meaning Researcher Award.

She has published academic articles and chapters and is the co-author and co-editor of several books on the topics of meaning in life, positive psychology, existential psychology, positive change, and growth. Dr. Russo-Netzer serves as academic advisor and consultant to both academic and non-academic institutions worldwide. Pninit is a member of Soaringwords Board of Directors. She and her husband live with their three daughters in Israel.

Dr. Ellen Cole is a member of Soaringwords’ Advisory Board and a professor of Psychology at the Sage Colleges in Albany and Troy, New York. She is past president of the Society for the Psychology of Women, a division of the American Psychological Association and the Alaska Psychological Association. For 13 years she co-edited the journal Women & Therapy and currently serves as book review editor for Psychology of Women Quarterly. At age 70, she received a Master of Applied Positive Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania. For several years, she has been working on numerous fronts to change perceptions of aging from one that is medically and negatively driven to one that focuses on quality of life and celebration. To that end, she and Jane Giddan launched the blog 70Candles.com and published a book, 70 Candles: Women Thriving in their Eighth Decade. Ellen and Dr. Mary Gergen co-edited Retiring but Not Shy: Feminist Psychologists Create Their Post-Careers and Positive Aging: What Feminist Therapists Need to Know, four special issues of the journal Women & Therapy, in 2016.

Ellen earned a PhD in Counseling Psychology from Union Institute, a Master in Education Counseling from Harvard University, and a BA in Psychology from Boston University. Ellen and her husband, Dr. Douglas North, relocated from Anchorage, Alaska to Albany, New York. They are the proud parents of four adult children and ten grandchildren.

Chris is a clinical and counseling psychologist and Fellow of the Australian Psychological Society with 40 years’ psychotherapy experience. He is the principal psychologist at Chris Mackey and Associates, his private psychology practice in Geelong, Australia. Chris is the resident psychologist for Destination Happiness, a wellbeing TV show aired nationally across Australia. Chris contributes a monthly opinion column for The Geelong Advertiser. Chris has presented at numerous national and international scientific conferences over the past 25 years on such topics as the assessment and treatment of psychological trauma, the evaluation of effectiveness of psychological therapy for anxiety and depression and the wellbeing benefits of synchronicity. He has a particular interest in promoting more optimistic approaches to mental health, including positive Psychology. Chris and Lisa Buksbaum met at the International Positive Psychology World Congress in 2013 and he featured this meeting in his first book Synchronicity. He has been a guest on the SOARING Into Positive Wellbeing Initiative.

Pamela Núñez del Prado Chaves is the Research Director at Soaringwords. She is also the Founding Director of the “Peruvian Positive Psychology Research Centre” at Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú. She is the Founder of the Peruvian Positive Education Initiative and one of the founding members of Mami Linda, a non-profit organization that promotes mental health and well-being for vulnerable populations groups in Perú.She is a founder of Pinda, a virtual therapy solution for a Spanish-speaking audience. Pamela is a registered clinical psychologist and full member of the Peruvian Psychological Society (Colegio de Psicólogos del Perú or CPP). As a qualified clinical psychologist and researcher, Pamela has worked across government and health, not-for-profit welfare, education, and business sectors, such as the Peruvian Health Department, the Peruvian Education Department, the National Institute of Mental Health and Peruvian Institute of Children’s Health (Children’s Hospital). Pamela graduated with honors from Pontificia Universidad Católica de Perú and she holds a Master in Applied Positive Psychology, from the University of Melbourne. Pamela discovered Soaringwords at the European Conference on Positive Psychology when she attended a workshop Lisa Buksbaum was leading. She joined Soaringwords and has led the global Soaringwords empirical research study in Latin America. Since then, the two of them have presented the study findings at several international scientific conferences together.

Professor of Nursing & an Attending Physician, University of Virginia Department of Pediatrics

Julie Haizlip is a clinical professor of nursing and holds a joint appointment as associate professor of Pediatrics at the University of Virginia Schools of Medicine and Nursing. She serves as co-director of the University of Virginia Center for ASPIRE (Academic Strategic Partnership for Inter-professional Research and Education) and is director of the UVA Center for Appreciative Practice.

Ricky Lin is a psychology intern at Soaringwords, with a primary role of working on the collaborations team to establish relationships with community partners. Ricky attends Stony Brook University, pursuing a bachelor of arts in psychology with the intention of continuing his education in graduate school to pursue a career in counseling. Ricky enjoys exercising, playing games, and expanding his mind through learning interesting new skills in his free time.

Emily Wong joined Soaringwords as an intern after graduating from Stony Brook University with a bachelor of arts degree in psychology with a minor in music and linguistics. Throughout her undergraduate career, she was actively involved as social media coordinator, secretary, and president of The Play It Forward Project, a music therapy advocacy group; and Pre-OT Society, an organization dedicated to helping students interested in pursuing occupational therapy. She has also served as a Japanese language tutor, Peer Career Coach at her university’s Career Center, and a violist in the University Orchestra. Emily has also enjoyed varied experiences working in daycare centers with children who have special needs and at a sensory gym alongside occupational therapists and speech language pathologists. Emily is passionate about promoting wellness and wishes to pursue a career where she is able to actively help others lead happier and more fulfilling lives. Outside of school, Emily enjoys playing the piano and viola, music composition, studying Japanese, reading, and bullet journaling.