- Dr. Katie Hart
Dr. Katie Hart is the Director of Parent Club at FIU, an Associate Professor of Psychology, and a Licensed Clinical Psychologist. She specializes in promoting school readiness and positive mental health in young children. Parent Club is a very special program to Dr. Hart. Not only is it a club for parents and caregivers to come together to learn, share, and connect with each other about strategies that actually work (something she also finds very helpful as a mother of two), it is a club dedicated to strengthening families across the Miami-Dade community and brings together many partners to achieve that goal. Parents are children’s first teachers, but unlike teachers, there is no certification or training you go through before becoming a parent. We are all learning as we go, and one thing is for sure, we can’t do it alone. It takes a village! Come and be part of our village of parents and community partners - we are here for you any time. And if we don’t have the answer, we will help you find it!
- Ericka S. Ruiz
Ericka S. Ruiz is a Program Coordinator and Facilitator of Parent Club at FIU in addition to being a Registered Mental Health Counselor Intern. She leads Spanish and English webinars. Ericka joined the club because she wanted to help parents in the community acquire new parenting skills. She loves Parent Club because it provides new strategies for parents to have in their toolkit as well as share experiences with other parents.
- Lissandra Sotolongo
Lissandra Sotolongo is a Program Coordinator and Facilitator of Parent Club at FIU in addition to being a Registered Mental Health Counselor Intern. She leads English and Spanish workshops. Lissandra joined the club because she wanted to help both new and current parents find support. She loves Parent Club because it allows parents to gain strategies and resources along with meeting other parents who are facing the daily struggles of parenthood.
- Lucia Greco
Lucia Greco is a Facilitator for Parent Club at FIU in addition to being a Registered Clinical Social Work Intern. She leads some of the Spanish and English webinars. She wanted to join Parent Club because it is a community where both parents and facilitators can use their own resources to create a positive environment for their children. She loves Parent Club because she has the opportunity to work with parents and children to help them find their strengths to build positive relationships and successful futures.
- Judina Amazan
Judina Amazan is a Facilitator for Parent Club at FIU. She leads English and Creole webinars. She values being a part of a team that focuses on uplifting parents, emphasizing that it is okay to not have all the answers as parenting does not come with a one size fits all manual. Trial and error are how we learn! She loves the Parent Club as it gives parents and caregivers the space to reflect on and strengthen the environment they are creating for their children.
- Yanier Rodriguez Perez
Yanier Rodriguez Perez is a Facilitator for Parent Club at FIU in addition to being a Registered Mental Health Counselor Intern. He leads Spanish and English webinars. He joined Parent Club because he wanted to be part of an organization that would give parents a place where they could share, connect and learn from each other. He loves the club because it is a great way to help parents learn new strategies and techniques to raise strong, confident and independent children.
- Tracy-ann Brown
Tracy-ann Brown is a Parent Liaison and Facilitator for Parent Club at FIU. She leads English workshops. Her career began loving what she does while working with Miami-Dade County Public Schools full time and supporting parents and their children. Tracy joined the Parent Club because, being a parent herself, she realized the main things she needed were support and learning how to achieve the goals she had for her children and self. She strives to touch the lives of parents by helping them work towards their goals. Families that have gone through the series of workshops and have found them to be helpful gives her confidence in the benefits to how the club supports parents such as herself. Tracy loves the club because it is a great way to help parents like herself learn new strategies and techniques to raise strong, confident and independent children.
