Dr. Kuschner's program of research at the Center for Autism Research at CHOP is aimed at understanding food selectivity in children, adolescents, and adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). She developed the BUFFET Program (Building Up Food Flexibility and Exposure Treatment), a group treatment targeting improved food selectivity. Dr. Kuschner's additional projects examine the best ways to measure food selectivity and the relationship between food selectivity and nutrition profiles in children with ASD. As a psychologist in the Lurie Family Foundations Magnetoencephalography Center, Dr. Kuschner supervises and conducts clinical and diagnostic evaluations for research participants. She also works closely with Timothy Roberts, PhD, and his team to develop clinical support protocols to help children participate in research studies involving MEG or MRI imaging visits, regardless of age (infancy through adolescence) or cognitive and language levels (nonverbal or minimally verbal through verbally adept).

BA, Vassar College (Psychology), 2002

MA, University of Rochester (Clinical Psychology), 2005

PhD, University of Rochester (Clinical Psychology), 2009

Scientist

Assistant Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry

International Society for Autism Research, 2002-

Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies, 2016-

Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities Fellowship, Department of Pediatrics, University of Rochester Medical Center, 2004

Helen and Vincent Nowlis Award for Excellence in Teaching, Department of Clinical & Social Sciences in Psychology, University of Rochester, 2007

Postdoctoral Fellow Achievement Award, Department of Psychiatry, University of Rochester Medical Center, 2010

Fellow, Institute on Randomized Clinical Trials, NIH Office of the NIH RCT Institute of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, 2017