Anisa Goforth
Office: Skaggs Bldg. 367
Phone: (406) 243-2917
Email: anisa.goforth@umontana.edu
Current Position:
Assistant Professor of School Psychology
Department of Psychology
Description:
The population of the United States is undergoing a significant transformation in its ethnic, cultural and economic demographics. With this increasing diversity, children from a variety of ethnic and national groups who speak a wide range of languages are being educated in American schools. School psychologists have an important role in understanding and meeting the needs of ethnic minority and/or immigrant groups, particularly as it relates to psychological adjustment and academic achievement (Ortiz & Flanagan, 2006). Children and families from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds have unique characteristics and needs that have not been adequately examined in the field of school psychology.
My research interests encompass the challenges of meeting the needs of culturally and linguistically diverse children through the implementation of evidence-based practices. School psychologists continue to grapple with implementing a program that has been found to be efficacious in a laboratory setting and transporting that program to the “real world,” such as schools and communities. Evidence-based practices that bridge the gap between clinical research and real-world setting becomes a critical part of understanding ways that that interventions can be implemented with diverse populations (Kratochwill & Shernoff, 2004).
Cultural and linguistic diversity can describe many aspects of human behavior, including ethnic identity, values, customs, traditions, sexuality, and political orientation. It is for this reason that my research examines a broad array of cultural characteristics as it affects children's academic and social-emotional well-being.
Currently, my research projects involve examining the effectiveness of the Incredible Years Child Program in rural communities, professional practice and cultural experiences of rural school psychologists, cultural competence of educators and school psychologists, and implementation and acceptability of Response-to-Intervention among general education teachers.
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Note to prospective doctoral students in school psychology:
I will be taking new graduate advisees in Fall 2013. I espectially encourage students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, particularly students who identify as Native American. Please feel free to contact me with questions about my research.
Office Hours:
To view an up-to-date schedule and make appoints: http://www.tungle.me/anisagoforth
Research Interests:
Multicultural issues in School Psychology
Cultural competence training of school psychologists
Children and families from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds
Evidence-based practices
Social-emotional interventions
Culturally-adapted treatments
School-based mental health care
Courses:
Undergraduate Courses
- Summer 2012 PSYX100 Introduction to Psychology
- Fall 2011 PSYX 345 Child & Adolescent Psychological Disorders
Graduate Courses:
- Fall 2012 PSYX524 Tests & Measurements
- Fall 2012 PSYX587 School Psychology Methods (First & Second Year practicum)
- Spring 2012 PSYX583 Educational Assessment & Intervention
- Spring 2012 PSYX587 School Psychology Methods (practicum)
Hobbies:
Hiking, camping, snowboarding, playing softball, reading
Education:
2011 Doctor of Philosophy in School Psychology, Michigan State University
2007 Masters of Arts in School Psychology, Michigan State University
2000 Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, Lewis & Clark College
Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP) License #41285
Educator Licensure, Class 6, State of Montana License #87674
Post-Doctoral Resident, approved by the Montana Board of Psychologists, supervised by Christine Fiore, PhD
Affiliations:
National Association of School Psychologists
American Psychological Association
- Division 16 School Psychology
- Division 45 Society for the Psychological Student of Ethnic Minority Issues
International Experience:
Have lived in:
Yemen
Indonesia
Brazil
Nicaragua
Pakistan
Cambodia
United States
Have traveled to over 45 countries across the world.
Selected Publications:
Segool, N., Carlson, J., Goforth, A.N., Von der Embse, N., & Barterian, J. (in press). Heightened test anxiety among young children: Elementary school students' anxious response to high-stakes testing. Psychology in the Schools.
Plavnick, J.B., Ferreri, S.J., Mannes, T.J., Maupin, A.N., Stewart, L.S., Goforth, A.N., Palmer, D., Sportsman, E.L., Carlson, J.S., & Oka, E.R. (2012). Experimental comparison of brief behavioral and developmental language training for a young child with autism. Journal of Speech and Language Pathology and Applied Behavior Analysis. 5, 35-41.
Other Publications:
Book Chapters
Pham, A., Goforth, A.N., Murray, M.O., & Fine, J. (in preparation). Multicultural neuropsychological assessment of children with learning disabilities. Minority and Cross Cultural Aspects of Neuropsychological Assessment
Beebe-Frankenberger, M. & Goforth, A.N. (in preparation). Best practices in school psychological practice in rural settings. In Best Practices in School Psychology VI.
Goforth, A.N. (under review). Cultural adaptation. In K. Keith (Ed.), The Encyclopedia of Cross-Cultural Psychology.
Goforth, A.N. (under review). Cultural affiliation hypothesis. In K. Keith (Ed.), The Encyclopedia of Cross-Cultural Psychology.
Non Peer-reviewed Publications
Jacobs, D. & Goforth, A.N. (2012). Promoting social competence through parent training programs. The Michigan Psych Report, 39(3), 15-20.
Fish, H., Mannes, T., Maupin, A., Palmer, D., Plavnick, J., Sportsman, E., Goforth, A., Ferreri, S. J., Oka, E. R., & Carlson, J. S. (2011). [Review of the book How to write a lot: A practical guide to productive academic writing, P. Silvia]. The School Psychologist, 65 (2), 32-33.
Goforth, A. N. (2011). Considerations for school psychologists working with Arab American children and families. Communiqué, 39(6), 28-30.
Goforth, A., & Hayter, C. (2010). Ethical dilemmas during clinical training: Students' perspectives. Communiqué, 38 (7), 35.
Goforth, A. N. (2010). Developmental dyslexia—universal or language-specific? Evidence from neuroimaging research. School Psychology: From Science to Practice, 2(1).
Segool, N. K., Goforth, A. N., & Carlson, J. (2010). Test Anxiety and High-Stakes Testing. Michigan Psych Report.
Wolvin, M., Goforth, A.N., Stewart, L., & Zabel, J. (2010). Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children, Second Edition. Online supplemental test review for J. Salvia, J. Ysseldyke, & S. Bolt’s Assessment in Special and Inclusive Education (11th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage.
Goforth, A. N. (2009). Defining and working within culture. School Psychology: From Science to Practice, 1(1), 21.
Goforth, A. N., Sportsman, E. L., Palmer, D., Maupin, A. N., Plavnick, J. B., Wolvin, M., Stewart, L. S., Austin, A. E., Oka, E. R., Ferreri, S., & Carlson, J.S. (2009). Exploring our career options: Introducing graduate students to the professoriate through a Faculty Seminar Series. Trainers Forum, 28(3), 43-55.
Recent Conference Presentations
Goforth, A. N., Oka, E. R., Lindquist, L., Jacobs, D., Del Salto, R. & Boddapati, S. (2012, February). Developing Cultural Competence Skills with Diverse Populations: An Interactive Workshop. Mini-skills session presented at the annual convention of the National Association of School Psychologists, Philadelphia, PA.
Goforth, A. N. & Oka, E. R. (2011, August). Acculturation and psychological adjustment among Arab American adolescents. Poster presentation presented at the annual convention of the American Psychological Association, Washington, D.C.
Goforth, A. N., Oka, E. R., & Hayter, C. (2011, February). Negotiating cultures: Acculturation and mental health among Arab American youth. Poster presentation presented at the annual convention of the National Association of School Psychologists, San Francisco, CA.
Segool, N., Goforth, A. N, & Carlson, J. (2011, February). Test anxiety associated with high-stakes testing: Prevalence, predictors, and relationship to student performance. Paper presented at the annual convention of the National Association of School Psychologists, San Francisco, CA.
Oka, E. R., Sportsman, E., Goforth, A. N., & Palmer, D. R. (2010, March). Strategies to develop empathy and cultural competence with diverse populations. Mini-skills session presented at the annual convention of the National Association of Psychologists, Chicago, IL.
Oka, E. R., Ingraham, C., Goforth, A. N., Fis, F., Palmer, D. R., & Jacobs, D. (2009, August). Developing cultural competence with online communities: Collaborations across programs. Poster presented at the annual convention of the American Psychological Association, Toronto, Canada.
Oka, E. R., Busman, R., Goforth, A. N., Palmer, D. R., Smith, J., Benson, L., Stevens, R., Jacobs, D., Hall, A., & Hayter, C. (2009, August). Implementing evidence-based interventions: A tale of two settings. Poster presented at the annual convention of the American Psychological Association, Toronto, Canada.



