Fellowship Team
The Fellowship team prioritizes creating a welcoming learning environment in which all participants can share their expertise and experience in working with young children and families and explore opportunities for professional and personal growth.
What Fellows say about the Fellowship Team
“The biggest thing I’m taking away is the generous spirit of the Fellowship team and, in response, all the participants. Modeling such kindness and enthusiasm made a big impact on me, especially since there was professionalism, time-management, and clear communication as well. This atmosphere provided me the necessary space to feel regulated and open to learning.”
“The Fellowship team did an amazing job at creating a fun, safe, reflective, non-judgmental engaging space.”
“The Fellowship team is incredible. They showed up eager to share space with Fellows and guest speakers. I loved their positive energy and ability to step back and allow Fellows to construct their own understanding of the material. It’s clear they are committed to the growth and wellbeing of the Fellows, and this was a major strength of the Fellowship!
Agustina Bertone, PhD
Associate Director
Agustina Bertone, PhD, serves as the Associate Director of the Early Childhood Fellowship. She is a Spanish-bilingual licensed clinical psychologist with specialties in perinatal psychology and infant/early childhood mental health. Dr. Bertone has worked in a number of settings, including hospitals, schools, academic centers, and community mental health clinics. She is passionate about the implementation of culturally-responsive practices for supporting parents with young children in schools and therapeutic settings. She completed her doctorate in Counseling, Clinical, and School Psychology at the University of California Santa Barbara and a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Early Childhood and Integrated Care at UCLA
Blair Paley, PhD
Director
Blair Paley, Ph.D. is the Director of the Early Childhood Fellowship. Dr. Paley also directs the SEEDS Program at UCLA, the Early Childhood Core for the Division of Population Behavioral Health, and is a Clinical Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. Her work focuses on developing early interventions for parents and caregivers with young children impacted by trauma, prenatal alcohol exposure, and other early adversities, as well as designing professional development opportunities for community providers who work in early childhood settings. She has served as Principal Investigator on a number of federally-funded grants focused on the development and dissemination of interventions for young children and families in under-resourced communities. Dr. Paley completed her doctorate at UCLA, a research post-doctoral fellowship at UNC, Chapel Hill and a clinical post-doctoral fellowship at UCLA.
Camila Ferrario, LMFT
Facilitator
Camila Ferrario, LMFT is a facilitator for the Early Childhood Fellowship. She is a bilingual (English/Spanish) Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist specializing in infant and early childhood mental health, perinatal mental health, and parent-child relationships. Ms. Ferrario provides evidence-based treatment through the UCLA Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) Clinic and supports collaborative research and scientific publications at the UCLA MOMS Clinic focused on perinatal mental health. She also participates in clinical research through the UCLA McDonald Play Lab, adapting evidence-based interventions for young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), rare genetic disorders, and other neurodevelopmental conditions to improve family outcomes. Passionate about integrating clinical care, research, and education, she also teaches graduate students in the Marriage and Family Therapy program at Loma Linda University. Ms. Ferrario is a PCIT International Certified Therapist in Standard PCIT and PCIT-Toddler and has specialized training in Perinatal Mental Health, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), Circle of Security Parenting (COS-P), and early childhood mental health with a focus on neurodevelopmental disorders. She earned her Master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from California State University, Northridge.
Gabriela Alejos, LCSW
Facilitator
Gabriela Alejos, LCSW is a lead facilitator for the Early Childhood Fellowship. Ms. Alejos is also a Clinical Social Worker with the PCIT Clinic and, a Trainer and Curriculum Developer for the Prevention Center of Excellence at UCLA, and a facilitator for SEEDS (Strategies for Enhancing Early Developmental Success) Programs. Much of her current and past clinical work has been with young children and their families. Ms. Alejos is passionate about dyadic work and is always impressed by how powerful and healing relationships truly are. She is a Level 2 Reflective Parenting facilitator, is certified in Parent-Child Interaction Therapy and PC-CARE and has completed Implementation-Level Child-Parent Psychotherapy Training. Ms. Alejos earned her Master’s in Social Work from the University of Southern California with a concentration of Children, Youth and Families.
Jenna Titen
Program Coordinator
Jenna Titen is the Program Coordinator for the Early Childhood Fellowship, as well as a Training Coordinator for the UCLA Prevention Center of Excellence. Prior to joining the team, Ms. Titen provided administrative support at an outpatient clinic with UCLA Health, with prior administrative experience in various industries over the last several years. Ms. Titen earned her BA in Sociology and minored in Business Management at CSU Channel Islands.
Laura Braafladt, LCSW
Facilitator
Laura Braafladt, LCSW is a facilitator for the Early Childhood Fellowship. In addition, Ms. Braafladt is the Community Partnerships Program Manager and a Facilitator for UCLA SEEDS. Ms. Braafladt has a background in early education and infant and early childhood mental health and is a graduate of the DMH+UCLA Early Childhood Fellowship (2020-2021 cohort). Laura previously served as the Director of Early Care and Education Mental Health at Allies for Every Child, where she supported the delivery of mental health services across early learning settings and led the growth of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation (IECMH) services. In this role, she provided consultation, reflective practice, clinical supervision, and training to support the capacity of educators and other family serving professionals. Ms. Braafladt earned her Master of Social Work from California State University, Long Beach and her Bachelor’s in Psychology with a Minor in Applied Developmental Psychology from UCLA.
Valerie Yarema, MSW
Assistant Director
Valerie Yarema, MSW is the Assistant Director and a lead facilitator for the Early Childhood Fellowship, in addition to her role as a Curriculum Developer and Facilitator for the UCLA SEEDS (Strategies for Enhancing Early Developmental Success) Program. In all of these roles, Ms. Yarema utilizes a trauma-informed lens to promote the school readiness and emotional wellbeing of young children while supporting the growth and development of early childhood professionals. She has worked clinically in a variety of settings, including community mental health, school-based therapeutic support, private practice, and home visitation. Ms. Yarema is a graduate of UCLA’s Master of Social Welfare (MSW) program with a concentration in Child and Family Wellbeing.