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Bright spot Pediatric Therapy

About Us

At Bright SpOT Pediatric Therapy, we understand that occupational and speech therapy are crucial for supporting children's development and helping them reach their full potential. Our team of passionate therapists is dedicated to providing exceptional care for children in a way that is neurodiversity affirming, child-led, and relationship based.
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Our mission

Nurturing Growth, Empowering Kids

At Bright SpOT Pediatric Therapy, we understand that occupational and speech therapy are crucial for supporting children's development and helping them reach their full potential. Our team of passionate therapists is dedicated to providing exceptional care for children in a way that is neurodiversity affirming, child-led, and relationship based.
Experienced Team
Our therapists are highly trained and experienced in working with children of all ages, abilities, and neurotypes.
Skilled Therapists
We stay up-to-date with the latest research and best practices in occupational and speech therapy, and we use evidence-based techniques to deliver high-quality care that yields positive results.
Collaborative Care
We believe that effective therapy involves collaboration between our therapists, your child, and your family.

Caitlin

Occupational Therapist, Co-founder
"Children have always held a special place in my heart. Building relationships with these kiddos to create a safe space to learn about difficult things is incredibly rewarding. Additionally rewarding are the relationships built with their families that put their trust in me to support their children."
Biography

Leading the way in Neurodiversity Affirming Care

A graduate of Auburn University and the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences, Caitlin is passionate about helping others. Throughout her career, pediatrics has been her focus. She has experience in outpatient, community, and home health pediatric settings. Caitlin has been trained in the SOS Approach to feeding (an intensive feeding course centered around sensory-based feeding experiences), The Learn Play Thrive Approach to Autism (a neurodiversity affirming approach), Beckman Oral Motor, DIRFloortime, Learning Without Tears (formerly known as Handwriting Without Tears), Sensory Integration, and more. She is a proud member of the Therapist Neurodiversity Collective and strives to make every client, no matter their neurotype or age, feel included, safe, and valued. Her passions are neurodiversity-affirming practices, executive functioning, and using feeding therapy to create fun and positive experiences around eating for children.
In her spare time, Caitlin enjoys spending time with her husband, children (Nora and Teddy), family and friends, and the family dog. You can find her goofing off with her kids - and if they're napping... obsessing over DIY projects, learning woodworking, practicing on her scroll saw, listening to audiobooks, and searching for the best iced latte in town.

Emily

Speech-Language Pathologist, Co-founder
"I strongly believe in an individualized approach to therapy to provide the best outcomes for children. Working with children of all ages and helping them to overcome their communication difficulties is my passion, and I strive to involve parents and any other members of the team in order to promote the most effective intervention."
Biography

Leading the way in Neurodiversity Affirming Care

Emily graduated from the University of Central Oklahoma with her degree in Speech-Language Pathology. She has over ten years of experience and has worked in an elementary school, clinic setting, and home health. She has a passion for children of all ages, and is especially focused on building relationships with families, and making sure that each child’s functional needs are being addressed. Emily has worked with clients with a variety of diagnoses and needs, targeting oral motor skills, articulation and phonology, phonological awareness and literacy, receptive and expressive language, pragmatic/social language, fluency, and executive functioning.
Emily enjoys spending time with her family and friends, and her dog Florence. You can find her outside on a hike, watching her favorite sports (basketball and football), or listening to live music.

Shawna

Office Manager
"Having two children in OT/ST, with Bright SpOT, I have seen firsthand what therapy can do to empower children. I cannot wait to now be part of that empowering impact!"

Biography

Shawna received her certification in medical assisting in 2005 and spent 15 years working in healthcare. Eight of those years were in administration before leaving healthcare in 2018 when her daughter was born. Since then, she spent a little over a year working as a preschool teacher in a mother's day out program before returning home to be with her two children. Shawna has a passion for children and helping them discover and navigate the world around them.
Shawna lives in Leander with her husband, two children, two dogs, one cat, and plenty ‘o fish! She enjoys spending time listening to audiobooks and homeschooling her children.

Claudia

Occupational Therapist, Team Lead
"As a Mother to a child with Autism, I understand firsthand the challenges that families may face. I strongly believe that a child learns best through play and in their natural environment. It is important to me to build a strong therapeutic relationship, one that is respectful, encouraging, supporting, and fun."

Biography

Claudia graduated from San Jose State University with a Masters in Occupational Therapy and a minor in Atypical Child Development. She holds over 15 years of child development experience and is passionate about working with children of all ages. Claudia is certified in Handwriting Without Tears, Therapeutic Listening Program, and Astronaut Training, She has received additional training in Sensory Integration, DIR Floortime, and Bal-a-vis-x. She is currently in the process of training in Feeding Therapy: A Sensory- Motor Approach, Mastering Mastication, and Oral Placement Therapy.
Claudia recently moved to Leander from Portland, Oregon with her husband, two sons and two dogs. In her spare time, she enjoys exploring all that Austin has to offer, baking, cooking, going on walks with the family, and watching movies.

Kennedy

Occupational Therapist
"I’ve always had a passion for pediatrics and helping people. I believe it’s important to treat every child individually and not based on their diagnosis. My goal is to help make the lives of each child and family easier."

Biography

Kennedy graduated from the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences with her Masters in Occupational Therapy. She has experience in outpatient settings with both children and adults and has training in DIRFlooritme. Kennedy is passionate about pediatrics and genuinely loves to build relationships with children and their families.  Kennedy has experience with Autism, ADHD, emotional regulation, sensory processing difficulties, interoception, gross motor skills, fine motor skills, handwriting, dysgraphia, daily living skills, executive functioning, visual motor integration, and more.
In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her husband, son, and two dogs. 

Kaiti

Speech-Language Pathologist
"I am passionate about advocating for and supporting a child’s ability to communicate by providing individualized and child-centered intervention. It’s an honor to be a part of such a neurodiversity-affirming practice where each clinician truly cares about the children and families we serve."

Biography

Kaiti holds an undergraduate degree from UT Austin and a graduate degree from Northwestern University. She has over 11 years of experience in the Speech Language Pathology field as a SLP-Assistant and SLP working in a variety of settings that include home health, private clinic, and schools. Kaiti has a passion for working with the pediatric population and has treated children in the areas of expressive and receptive language, fluency, articulation/phonology, pragmatic language, Augmentative and Alternative Communication, and feeding. Kaiti values building relationships with the children she works with and their families through providing individualized, child-centered, neurodiversity-affirming interventions. Kaiti is PROMPT trained and is currently working toward becoming a registered Natural Language Acquisition (NLA) trained clinician soon.
Kaiti enjoys spending time with her husband, daughter Nadiya, family, friends, and two dogs. You can typically find her laughing with her daughter, watching shows/movies with her husband, trying new restaurants, or reading/watching/listening to anything true or fiction crime related.

Megan

Occupational Therapist
“Inclusion works to the advantage of everyone. We all have things to learn and we all have something to teach” Helen Henderson

Biography

Megan received her Masters in Occupational Therapy from the University of Missouri. She has experience working with kids in schools, clinics, and within the home. She is passionate about integrating disability advocacy and health care. Megan aims to support families in their daily activities while empowering children to explore their neurodivergent identity and strengths. Megan values each family’s individual differences and priorities. She has experience with trauma-informed care, daily living skills, hand writing, PDA, sensory processing, executive functioning, transitioning, fine motor, visual motor integration, and more.
In her free time, Megan enjoys exploring nature, reading, running, going to escape rooms, and spending time with her husband and two pets.

Shannon

Occupational Therapist
“If you are willing to put in the work, the reward will be magnificent, because the children will change in front of your eyes.” - Dr. A. Jean Ayres

Biography

Shannon received her bachelors degree from The University of Texas at Austin and masters degree from Texas Woman’s University in Dallas. She grew up in Frisco, TX and recognized her love for the pediatric population early on. She has experience as a preschool teacher as well as working in outpatient, inpatient, and community settings. Currently, she is completing training for the Certificate in Ayres Sensory Integration.
In her spare time, Shannon enjoys having quality time with her family and friends, spending time outside with her dog, eating good food, working out, and reading her kindle.

Rebecca

Occupational Therapist
"The opposite of anxiety isn’t calm, it’s trust.” - Barry M. Prizant

Biography

Rebecca received her bachelor’s degree in anthropology from the University of Texas. She graduated in 2019 from the University of St. Augustine in Austin with her doctorate in occupational therapy. The focus of her doctoral project was the development of an outdoor/nature-based occupational therapy intervention for children, during which she helped develop the outdoor space at a pediatric clinic and design new outdoor activities. She has taken courses in telehealth, Size Matters handwriting, the Alert Program, the Interoception Curriculum, and feeding, including the SOS (Sequential Oral Sensory) Approach. Becca has over four years of experience working in a pediatric outpatient clinic and is excited to bring her skills to the new Bright SpOT clinic. Prior to being an OT, Becca worked as a paraeducator in a preschool setting with children with language and learning disorders. 

In her free time, Becca enjoys cooking, arts and crafts, and reading.

Yessica

Occupational Therapist
"No child at any stage of life wants to be difficult or aggressive, there is always a hidden “trigger” that needs to be addressed."

Biography

Yessica is a dedicated Occupational Therapist with an educational background, including a Bachelor’s Degree in Rehabilitation Services from the University of Texas-Pan American (currently UTRGV) and a Master's in Occupational Therapy from Texas Tech University Health Science Center. With 13 years of experience, she has navigated diverse settings, from outpatient pediatrics/Home Health to Inpatient Rehab Hospitals, specializing in neurological disorders and community care. Her journey intensified over the past 12 years, spurred by her son's ADHD/Autism diagnoses, propelling her to deepen her expertise in neurodevelopmental disorders, sleep disorders, and classroom modifications. As a recently diagnosed ADHDer herself, she is passionate about enhancing executive functioning across all stages of life, fostering the belief that neurodivergent individuals can thrive in personal relationships, careers, and family life. Currently, she is enhancing her education towards innovative interventions like a metronome to bolster executive functioning and the connection between sleep disorders and nutrition on emotional dysregulation.
Married for 15 years to another ADHDer with a family history of Autism Spectrum, Yessica cherishes her role as a mother to three spirited and brilliant boys, aged 12 to 2. With a bustling schedule of soccer practices, swim lessons, and playdates, she finds joy in hiking, swimming, mastering the art of bachata/salsa dancing, and indulging in coffee and taco socials with her Mom Friends.

Jenna

Occupational Therapist
“If we are to achieve a richer culture, we must weave one in which each diverse human gift will find a fitting place.” –Margaret Meade

Biography

Jenna is a graduate of UT San Antonio. She has experience in acute care and outpatient pediatrics. After completing her Level 2 Fieldwork at Bright SpOT, she fell in love with what Bright SpOT stands for. She has always had a passion for helping children achieve their full potential while also embracing each child’s unique qualities and personalities. Jenna has a special interest in feeding therapy and sensory integration - for both of which she pursues education and research to grow her knowledge. 
In Jenna's spare time, she loves playing pickleball and chasing her high energy Australian Shepherd around. She also loves painting and gardening!

Mary

Speech-Language Pathologist
“I have always been passionate about communication as a whole since it is how we express who we are and how we connect with others. I strive to empower each child with a voice, one speech sound or word at a time.”

Biography

Mary graduated from Texas State University with a Master of Science in Communication Disorders. She has experience working with children in the school and clinic setting with a variety of communication disorders and has an interest in fluency disorders. She is passionate about helping children reach their fullest communication potential while having fun and helping them grow into their unique personalities.
In her free time, Mary enjoys catching up with friends and playing with her cat, Athena. She loves to bake and decorate various pastries, read fantasy novels, hike, and check out new spots in the area.

Taylor

Speech-Language Pathologist
“The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn’t said.” - Peter Drucker

Biography

Taylor received her bachelor's degree from the California State University, Fullerton, and her Master’s of Science in Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology from Tennessee State University. She has been practicing speech therapy since 2021 and has gained experience in the private clinic and school setting. Taylor is passionate about building relationships and trust with children and their families. She values helping individuals find their voice and educating parents on how to best support speech and language development. Taylor has received training in PROMPT (Prompts for Restructuring Oral Muscular Phonetic Targets) and LAMP Words for Life. 

In her free time, Taylor enjoys spending time with her family and friends, hiking with her dog, and exploring new foods and places.

Rebecca

Speech Therapists
“I have always been passionate about communication as a whole since it is how we express who we are and how we connect with others. I strive to empower each child with a voice, one speech sound or word at a time.”

Biography

Mary graduated from Texas State University with a Master of Science in Communication Disorders. She has experience working with children in the school and clinic setting with a variety of communication disorders and has an interest in fluency disorders. She is passionate about helping children reach their fullest communication potential while having fun and helping them grow into their unique personalities.
In her free time, Mary enjoys catching up with friends and playing with her cat, Athena. She loves to bake and decorate various pastries, read fantasy novels, hike, and check out new spots in the area.
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