As part of the Teaching and Learning Counseling Consortium (TLCC), the Berke Assessment Clinic and Library has served as an assessment resource for students and faculty in the Michael D. Eisner College of Education. The Berke Assessment Clinic serves as a training site for school psychology students under the supervision of a school psychology professor. Services to the community provided by the Berke Assessment Clinic include psychoeducational and strength-based assessments and consultation to parents of children and youths ages 3-18 who have learning, emotional, and behavioral difficulties.
Psychoeducational and strength-based assessments and consultations are conducted by graduate students in the school psychology program under the supervision of a professor in school psychology. The psychoeducational and strength-based assessments may be composed of cognitive, processing, achievement, and social-emotional measures to determine a child’s/youth’s individual strengths and weaknesses. After the administration of these tests, a report is written and is provided to the parents with appropriate intervention recommendations based on the child’s strengths and weaknesses. A meeting between examiner and parent to explain the assessment also takes place. Consultation is also provided to assist parents in understanding their child’s needs in order to determine what type of interventions may be necessary to promote the development, adjustment, and progress of the student.
Time frames for psychoeducational assessments vary depending on the referral question, the child’s characteristics (attention, motivation, patience, etc.), and availability of parents and graduate students. This testing may take between 4-9 hours, approximately. Assessments are conducted throughout the year depending on the availability of school psychology graduate students. However, there may be a wait list, depending on the number of school psychology students available. There is a fee for these services. For additional information, please contact Dr. Wilda Laija-Rodriguez at wilda.laija@csun.edu.