Joseph R. Feist, Ph.D. is a licensed clinical psychologist who has provided evaluation and therapy services in Coral Gables (since 1977) but has also offered services in Vero Beach since 1996, usually on weekends and most of the time at Make Your Mark. For the past two years, Dr. Feist has been full time here. (How did this match happen? The youngest of his three children began school in Miami, but graduated from St. Edward’s School in Vero Beach. Remember back then, the Sternberg’s started Mark Your Mark Learning Center.)
I am often asked to help parents decide if an educational evaluation is needed and how the results of the evaluation can be used to assist their child today and in the future. Dr. Feist provides Psycho-Educational Evaluation Services for students, from pre-kindergarten age to adulthood, in order to assess: learning strengths and weaknesses, identification of any Learning Disabilities, the presence and severity of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADD/ADHD), or any emotional disturbances that may be interfering with their education. Testing is used by parents and schools to design an appropriate educational program that best meets the student’s needs; whether those needs be for remedial or gifted services. Testing is also necessary to establish the need for educational accommodations and academic support within all classroom settings, from pre-K up through graduate school. This type of testing is also required for students to be granted extra time or accommodations for standardized tests such as the FSA or Stanford Achievement Test, college entrance examinations such as the SAT and ACT, tests for professional and graduate training such as the LSAT, MCAT, GRE and GMAT, and for licensing tests such as the Bar Exam, Doctor Boards, etc. Lastly, educational testing is also helpful in considering appropriate boarding school or special school placements.
Dr. Feist is able to provide other specialized types of evaluation services. Testing for Academic Enrichment can help to determine a student’s eligibility for special programs such as the Indian River County’s Gifted Child Program. A Developmental Assessment of pre-school students can identify if a child is demonstrating the need for early intervention services. And, students faced with making future career decisions often find that tests that measure vocational interest, personality traits, reasoning skills, and academic strengths and weaknesses, are sometimes helpful in plotting a future educational/career course.
A note from Lynda:
Sometimes, when students come to Make Your Mark in Life for tutoring or learning support services, the parent and tutor notice consistent types of educational challenges. This might be within a subject area like reading or math. Other times, it could show up in other aspects of learning such as attention/focus, organization or memory. If these challenges are interfering with a student’s ability to demonstrate his/her academic skill, an educational evaluation may be the key to getting greater support from the school in the classroom and/or with difficult tests.
I am able often asked to help parents decide if an educational evaluation is needed and how the results of the evaluation can be used to assist their child today and in the future. For so many parents, this is new information. In fact, they do not realize that sometimes these services are made available at no charge through the school district. And, when it needs to be provided privately, parents are eager to hear my recommendations for providers, the typical fees for services, as well as ways to obtain these services at a reduced cost.
I feel I must share that Dr. Feist is usually my first recommendation. In my professional opinion, his many years of experience enables him to provide parents with the most comprehensive evaluation; from start to finish. He has the expertise to use a variety of specialized assessments to discover what supports and hinders every child’s educational goals. He provides an easy-to-understand, well-written report with specific recommendations for next and future steps. Dr. Feist makes himself available to review this information with the parents, giving them all the time they need to get their questions answered. And, he is so dedicated to helping students and their families ~ he is always willing to collaborate and share ideas with me about every student we share and even those we see in our own practices. I feel honored and privileged to be able to offer Dr. Feist’s services to my Make Your Mark families. Even though we will no longer be under the same roof ~ for the first time in 15 years ~ our collaborative efforts will continue on!