Rik Carl D'Amato

Dr. Rik Carl D'Amato is an award winning professor and distinguished international scholar. He recently released a new book which focused on "understanding the biological basis of our behavior" which Dr. D'Amato believes overviews ideas that are critical to us becoming comprehensive health service provider psychologists.

In 2019, Dr. D'Amato consulted at Mountain View Elementary School in the Windsor, Colorado Weld RE 4 Schools while continuing his work part-time at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology (TCSPP). For six-years, 2013-2019, D'Amato worked as a full-time faculty member at TCSPP. Twice D'Amato was awarded TCSPP's highest honors being named the Distinguished Faculty Researcher in 2018 and the the Distinguished International Scholar award in 2015. Since joining the TCSPP faculty, he serves as a Distinguish Research Professor of School Psychology and Neuropsychology for the specialist and doctoral programs in school psychology. He helped co-develop the new Psy.D. degree in School Psychology which has a strong focus on becoming a proactive school psychology leader. Twice he served as Chair of the Faculty Development and Promotion committee and once as the Chair of the Chicago Faculty Council (Senate). Moreover, for more than a decade he served as Founding Editor-in-Chief or as Associate Editor of the INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGY ASSOCIATION'S International Journal of School & Educational Psychology.

From 2008 to 2012, D'Amato was founding Director of the Centre for Teaching and Learning Enhancement and Professor and founding Head of the Department of Psychology at the University of Macau (UM), Taipa Island, Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR), China. In this role, he helped develop new programs, hired faculty, and updated the university general education curriculum. D'Amato also established a program to mentor new faculty who joined the university in research and instruction. Professor D'Amato served as a keynote speaker at the 2009 World Autism Awareness Day Conference in Macau, focusing on medical and psychoeducational approaches to Autism. While in China, he also held a series of workshop at the Guangzhou (Brain) Psychiatric Hospital, the first and largest psychiatric hospital (in the world) with a maximum capacity of almost 2,000 beds. In March 2015, D'Amato returned to China to again consult at the UM.

D'Amato has published or presented more than 400 books, articles, chapters, reviews, encyclopedia entries, papers, posters, workshops, etc., including (60 periodical publications and 10 books), most of which address the integration of the practical and scientific aspects of ecological neuropsychology, schooling, and learning. His most recent book published by Springer was co-edited with Dr. Charles Zaroff (of UM), and is entitled The neuropsychology of men: From neurodevelopment to evidence-based interventions. He also has published two books with Dr. Gertina Johanna Van Schalkwyk (of UM) entitled From the Confucian way to collaborative knowledge co-construction and Excellence in Asian university teaching both in the noted New Directions for Teaching and Learning series Volume I and Volume II (Numbers 142 and 143) with Jossey-Bass (a Wiley Online Library brand). D'Amato and Dr. Davis edited the Neuropsychology of Asians and Asian Americans: Practical and theoretical considerations (2014; Springer). D'Amato has co-authored numerous other books including Essentials of neuropsychological assessment: Rehabilitation planning for intervention (2008; Springer), the Handbook of school neuropsychology (2005; Wiley & Sons), Psychological perspectives on intervention: A case study approach to prescriptions for change (1992/1997; Waveland/Longman) and The school psychologist in nontraditional settings: Integrating clients, services, and settings (1989; Lawrence Erlbaum). This book was popular and accordingly was selected by Routledge (Taylor & Francis) to be re-released in their Routledge Library Edition: Psychology of Education (a 53 volume set of historic international education books) https://www.routledge.com/The-School-Psychologist-in-Nontraditional-Settings-Integrating-Clients/DAmato-Dean/p/book/9780415792080.

Dr. Rik Carl D'Amato's most popular article, which has now been read by more than 10,000 readers on RESEARCH GATE can be found at the following link: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281669129_The_History_of_School_Psychology_Understanding_the_Past_to_Not_Repeat_It from the OXFORD HANDBOOK OF SCHOOL PSYHCOLOGY.

A hallmark of his career has been his collaboration with students or young professors and some 85% of his publications and presentations are co-authored with students or student-faculty research teams. D'Amato typically works with doctoral student who go on to work at universities (33%), medical schools, hospitals, clinics (33%), or in public schools (33%).

D'Amato was awarded an achievement medal for serving as Editor-in-Chief of School Psychology Quarterly, the AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION (APA) School Psychology Division journal. D'Amato's research group received the Best Applied Neuroscience Paper of the Year award from the Society OF CLINICAL NEUROPSYCHOLOGY of the APA. D'Amato was awarded the APA School Psychology Division's life service award becoming a Jack Bardon Service award winner. This was a highlight for Rik because he was a fan and friend of Dr. Bardon who was one of the greatest change agents in the field of APA School Psychology! From 2017 to 2019 D'Amato was elected as APA School Psychology Vice President of Convention Affairs and Publication Relations and served on the School Psychology Executive Committee.

For 19-years, D'Amato served as a Professor of School Psychology and in other roles such as Assistant Dean at the University of Northern Colorado (UNC). Parents from all over Colorado and even neighboring states (such as Wyoming and Montana) brought children to UNC for neuropsychological consultations with Dr. D'Amato in the Neuropsychology Laboratory/Clinic, which provided services to children, families and youth, which D'Amato directed. He was named an M. Lucile Harrison Professor of Excellence for outstanding teaching and mentoring, and an Albert M. and Jo Winchester Distinguished University Scholar for his research. D'Amato was also selected as Graduate Professor of the Year. D'Amato was twice awarded the Who's Who Among America's Teachers award after being nominated by his students. In 2005, Dr. D'Amato also served as Director and the Center for Collaborative Research in Education--in this role, he mentored new faculty and doctoral students from a number of countries. For his excellence across the university, D'Amato was awarded the UNC President's Special Recognition Award. The PHIL DELTA KAPPA INTERNATIONAL chapter presented D'Amato with the University Leader of the Year award for his work co-coordinating the four college-wide National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) visit and co-authoring the report.

D'Amato has served on the editorial boards of the Journal of School Psychology, Psychology in the Schools, Journal of Pediatric Neuropsychology, Applied Neuropsychology, School Psychology Review, the Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, and serving as Associate Editor of School Psychology International, where he co-coordinated a special issue on Psychology and counseling in Asian countries. His research interests are in the area of clinical neuropsychology applied to school and family practice, academic accreditation, school mental health services, personality assessment, cross cultural psychology, and international education. For his contributions to school neuropsychology from around the world, in 2004 D'Amato was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGISTS NEUROPSYCHOLOGY INTEREST GROUP.

After Latvia gained its independence from the Soviet Union, D'Amato was awarded a SENIOR FULBRIGHT SCHOLARSHIP to train teachers and collaborate on curriculum re-design at the Liepaja Pedagogical Institute, a university located in a former closed city and near the primary Soviet naval base. In 2008, he was awarded an Emeritus Professorship in Psychology by the UNC Board of Trustees. Before that time, he worked as a licensed school psychologist in Minnesota, and previously as a high school teacher in Wisconsin. He began his interest in global education and cross cultural psychology when he taught conversational English in Indonesia in 1978. D'Amato is a Fellow in School Psychology and Clinical Neuropsychology of the APA and is an elected member of the SOCIETY FOR THE STUDY OF SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGY. He also serves as a Nationally Certified Counselor and a Nationally Certified School Psychologist.

D'Amato received his B.S. from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, his M.S. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW), and his Ph.D. from Ball State University (BSU). D'Amato studied with Dr. Raymond S. Dean (UW and BSU), a distinguished mentor extraordinaire, and pioneer in the fields of clinical neuropsychology and nontraditional school psychology. Dr. Rik is an expert in serving children with social-emotional difficulties, learning problems, and traumatic brain injuries.

When he returned from his five years in China, he brought with him his toy Persian cat named WenWen. She joined his family with their black cat named Magic. His hobbies include photography, water sports, movies, cooking, cake decorating, computer games, biographies, ceramics, and world travel. He has two adult children, Michael A. D'Amato, IV and David (and Lizzie) D. D'Amato, who all reside in Colorado. David and Lizzie were married in September 2015 in Golden, CO at the foot of the Rocky Mountains. Dr. D'Amato enjoys spending time at lakes especially watching sunsets.