Dr. Femia-Hou has been working directly with children, adolescents, families, and schools her entire career. She began her own life-long learning process in becoming an expert in this field during her undergraduate time. During her undergraduate years and immediately after, Dr. Femia-Hou worked in early intervention programs for children with complex learning and medical needs, including students diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder.  She was trained in Applied Behavioral Analysis and provided direct services to students.  Additionally, she worked with administrative leadership to develop an in-home service-based model for students attending their day school. It was during this time Dr. Femia-Hou began to acquire a deep understanding of the importance of providing support and resources to students across all their environments.  In addition, she was able to observe and begin learning about the complexities of developing sustainable, successful programs. 

Dr. Femia-Hou continued her educational career by attending Boston University, where she graduated with her master’s in psychology and co-authored an article on the relationship between sleep and Autism Spectrum Disorders.  Following attainment of her master’s degree, Dr. Femia-Hou pursued additional training and experience at the McLean Imaging Center at McLean Hospital/Harvard Medical School in the area of child and adolescent psychiatric disorders.  During her time at McLean, Dr. Femia-Hou co-authored several articles and a book chapter related to the field of neuroimaging, neuropsychological assessment, and child psychiatric disorders.  It was during this time that Dr. Femia-Hou recognized the importance of cross-training in the areas of clinical and school psychology to provide the most comprehensive training possible.  

Dr. Femia-Hou continued her education at the University of Rhode Island where she earned her Doctorate in Psychology with a specialization in School Psychology.  During her time in Rhode Island, Dr. Femia-Hou cross-trained in various clinical and school settings, including outpatient neuropsychological placements, child and adolescent therapy clinics, day treatment schools, and public-school settings. Dr. Femia-Hou received a graduate student fellowship to support her dissertation work related to the correlation between stress, anxiety, and Autism Spectrum Disorders.  Additionally, while completing her graduate work, Dr. Femia-Hou gained experience in program evaluation methods while serving as a statistical consultant for an educational company. Upon completion of her coursework, Dr. Femia-Hou accepted an American Psychological Association approved internship at the Andrus Children’s Center in Yonkers, NY.  Here she expanded her knowledge and abilities in the area of treating complex child and adolescent psychiatric disorders in school-based settings. Dr. Femia-Hou worked diligently to gain expertise and experience in the areas of both child psychology and education.  

Upon completion of her internship, Dr. Femia-Hou concluded her formal educational training and began working for New York Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center in their outpatient school-based mental health program where she completed her postdoctoral supervised hours.  During her time in the School-Based Mental Health program, Dr. Femia-Hou worked with students, families, teachers, and school administrators in a public school located in Harlem, NY.  She provided comprehensive mental health services to students and professional development to staff.  During this time, Dr. Femia-Hou learned the importance of developing sustainable interventions that required a collaborative effort from the public and private sectors to truly help students thrive.  Following the birth of her first child, Dr. Femia-Hou and her family relocated to NH to continue her life-long learning in helping children and adolescents.