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Cheryl Klaiman, PhD
Program Director, Psychologist
Associate Professor, Emory University School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Cheryl Klaiman, PhD, has been working in the field of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) since 1993. She earned her doctorate from McGill University in 2003 and then completed her pre- and post-doctoral internship at the Yale Child Study Center.
Dr. Klaiman was an associate research scientist at Yale University for six years before becoming a staff psychologist and then the director of the autism and developmental disabilities multidisciplinary team at the Children’s Health Council in California.She was also a clinical researcher at the Stanford University Department of Psychiatry, where she examined the overlap of autism and fragile X syndrome, as well as collaborating on a longitudinal study of fragile X syndrome, Turner syndrome and Williams syndrome.
Dr. Klaiman joined Marcus Autism Center and Emory University in 2012 and was initially responsible for clinical characterization of individuals enrolled in the various research studies, contributing to best estimate diagnoses and training other staff psychologists, postdoctoral fellows, psychology interns, as well as research assistants on diagnostic and other assessment tools.
She is Director for Assessment and Diagnosis Program at Marcus Autism Center, leading a team of 15 clinicians to conduct diagnostic evaluations for clinical and research patients. She is also clinical director of a multisite, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-regulated clinical trial working to translate our research endeavors into a tool for diagnosing autism.
Dr. Klaiman is also Assessment Core Director for the center’s National Institutes of Health (NIH) Center of Excellence grants. Her research interests center around techniques to aid in the differential diagnosis of individuals with autism, such as eye-tracking, ERP and functional MRI, early diagnosis and treatment strategies, and genetic comorbidities, such as fragile X syndrome and Williams syndrome.
Publications
- Beacham, C., Reid, M., Bradshaw, J., Lambha, M., Evans, L., Gillespie, S., Klaiman, C., & Richardson, S. S. (2018). Screening for autism spectrum disorder: Profiles of children who are missed. Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics: JDBP, 39(9), 673-682.
- Bradshaw, J., Gillespie, S., Klaiman, C., Klin, A., & Saulnier, C. (2018). Early emergence of discrepancy in adaptive behavior and cognitive skills in toddlers with autism spectrum disorder. Autism: The International Journal of Research and Practice, doi: 1362361318815662.
- Bradshaw, J., Klaiman, C., Gillespie, S., Brane, N., Lewis, M., & Saulnier, C. (2018). Walking ability is associated with social communication skills in infants at high risk for autism spectrum disorder. Infancy: The Official Journal of the International Society on Infant Studies, 23(5), 674-691.
- Goldstein, F.P., Klaiman, C., & Willliams, S. (2017). Bridging care gaps: Using telehealth to provide care for people with autism spectrum disorder. International Journal of Developmental Disabilities, 63(4), 190-194.
- Klin, A., Wetherby, A.M., Woods, J., Saulnier, C., Stapel-Wax, J., Klaiman, C., Jones, W., Rubin, E., Scahill, L., Call, N., Bearss, K., Gunter, C., Courtemanche, C.J., Lemieux, A., Cox, J.C., Mandell, D.S., Van Decar, J.P., Miller, R.A., & Shireman, C.L. (2015). Toward innovative, cost-effective, and systemic solutions to improve outcomes and well-being of military families affected by autism spectrum disorder. The Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine, 88(1), 73-79.
- Klin, A., Klaiman, C., & Jones, W. (2015). Reducing age of autism diagnosis: Developmental social neuroscience meets public health challenge. Revista de Neurologia, S3-11.
- Okuda, P.M.M., Klaiman, C., Bradshaw, J., Reid, M., & Cogo-Moreira, H. (2017). Assessing risk of bias in randomized controlled trials for autism spectrum disorder. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 8, 265.
- Saulnier, C.A. & Klaiman, C. (2018). Essentials of adaptive behavior assessment of neurodevelopmental disorders. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.
Speaking Engagements
Dr. Klaiman regularly teaches and trains others Marcus Autism Center and Emory University as well as throughout the state, nationally and internationally. She is a certified trainer on the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, 2nd Edition, the gold standard tool used for helping determine if a child has ASD. Dr. Klaiman also co-chairs the Marcus Autism Center Summer Symposium and is a frequent speaker at that forum.
Her speaking engagements include:
- Klaiman, C. (2019, July). ADOS-2 advanced clinical training. Marcus Autism Center, Atlanta, GA.
- Klaiman, C. (2019, July). Clinical presentation and cognitive assessment of ASD. Marcus Autism Center Summer Symposium, Atlanta, GA.
- Klaiman, C. (2019, June). Invited speaker at the International Congress on ASD. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
- Klaiman, C. (2019, May). ADOS-2 training. McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
- Klaiman, C. (2019, May). Various poster and oral presentations. The International Society for Autism Research in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
- Klaiman, C. (2018, September). ADOS-2 clinical training to DeKalb County School District, Dekalb County, GA.
Media Placements
- April 20, 2023: NBC Nightly News: Kids Edition
- Dec. 5, 2018: Television appearance on Fox5 News
- March 10, 2017: Television appearance on 11Alive News
- April 13, 2016: Television appearance on CBS46 Public Affairs on the Peach
- April 20, 2015: Radio appearance on WABE A Closer Look