Faculty Directory › UConn Health

Jeffrey Pella, PhD, MSc

Assistant Professor of Psychiatry


Academic Office Location: Psychiatry UConn Health 65 Kane Street, Room 2034 West Hartford, CT 06119
Website(s):	Child and Adolescent Psychiatry

Overview
Education & Training
Clinical Interests
Teaching
Committees & Organizations
Research
Research Opportunities
Publications
Presentations

Dr. Pella earned his Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Psychology from Roger Williams University, Rhode Island. He then pursued and completed his Master of Science (M.Sc.) in Developmental Psychopathology and his Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Developmental Psychology from the University of Reading, United Kingdom.

Dr. Pella is a faculty member at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine, where his expertise lies in the fields of pediatric anxiety and developmental psychology. As an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry, he has made numerous contributions to the academic community through various administrative, educational and committee leadership roles. Since 2022, he has been serving as the Program Director for Scholarship and Discovery, overseeing the development of research projects that contribute to the advancement of knowledge in the field of medicine. Additionally, Dr. Pella holds the position of Program Director for Scholarly Projects for Psychiatry Residents, providing mentorship and guidance to residents. He has been the Course Director for VITAL 1.2 since 2021. Dr. Pella's commitment to promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion is evident through his active involvement in steering committees and his role as a representative for students. He actively contributes to creating an inclusive and supportive environment for all members of the medical community. He is a preceptor and content expert in various subjects, including anxiety disorders and child psychopathology.

Dr. Pella's contributions to the field extend to national and regional levels. He has been invited to speak at prestigious conferences and has numerous publications in prominent journals. Furthermore, he has successfully secured grants and played pivotal roles in research studies focused on pediatric anxiety, affirming his commitment to advancing the understanding and treatment of anxiety disorders in children and adolescents. Dr. Pella also gives talks on admissions and the medical school application process.

Education

Degree	Institution	Major
BA	Roger Williams University	Psychology
MSc	University of Reading	Developmental Psychopathology
PhD	University of Reading	Developmental Psychology

Degree

Institution

Major

Roger Williams University

Psychology

MSc

University of Reading

Developmental Psychopathology

PhD

University of Reading

Developmental Psychology

Post-Graduate Training

Training	Institution	Specialty
Postdoctoral	University of Connecticut	Pediatric Anxiety

Training

Institution

Specialty

Postdoctoral

University of Connecticut

Pediatric Anxiety

Awards

Name of Award/Honor	Awarding Organization
Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award	Gold Foundation
The Gold Humanism Honor Society	Gold Foundation
Honors	Center for Health Intervention and Prevention Member (UConn CHIP)
Member	Phi Alpha Theta
Member	Psi Chi

Name of Award/Honor

Awarding Organization

Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award

Gold Foundation

The Gold Humanism Honor Society

Gold Foundation

Honors

Center for Health Intervention and Prevention Member (UConn CHIP)

Member

Phi Alpha Theta

Member

Psi Chi

Pediatric anxiety assessment

Cognitive behavioral therapy

Scholarship & Discovery (Program Director)

Vertically Integrated Teams Aligned in Learning (Course Director)

Delivery of Clinical Care (Preceptor)

Formulating Research Questions (Content Expert)

Research Design and Validity (Content Expert)

Trauma and Stressor Related Disorders (Content Expert)

Anxiety Disorders in Children and Adolescents (Content Expert)

Trauma and Stressor Related Disorders (Content Expert)

Anxiety Disorders in Children and Adolescents (Content Expert)

Name & Description	Category	Role	Type	Scope	Start Year
Scholarship and Discovery Operating Committee		Member	UConn Health	State	2022
Student Diversity Equity and Inclusion Committee	Education Committee	Faculty member	UConn Health	University	2021
VITAL Operating Committee	Education Committee	Member	UConn Health	University	2021
VITAL Curriculum Development Committee	Education Committee	Member	UConn Health	University	2021
Psychiatry Departmental Grading Committee	Education Committee	Member	UConn Health	University	2021
UConn School of Medicine Admissions Committee	Other	Chair	UConn Health	University	2019
Committee on Undergraduate Medical Education (CUME)	Other	Member	UConn Health	University	2019
Trials	Professional/Scientific Journal	Reviewer	External	International	2019
Northeast Consortium on Medical Education	Workshop/Conference	Member	External	Regional	2019
Child and Youth Services Review	Professional/Scientific Journal	Reviewer	External	International	2018
Child Care Youth Forum	Professional/Scientific Journal	Reviewer	External	International	2018
UConn School of Medicine Admissions Committee	Other	Member	UConn Health	University	2017
Psychopathology Review	Professional/Scientific Journal	Reviewer	External	International	2011
Journal of Experimental Psychopathology	Professional/Scientific Journal	Reviewer	External	International	2011

Name & Description

Journal Articles

A comparison of two teacher trainings on student anxiety
Ginsburg, G. S., Pella, J. E., DeVito, A., & Chan, G. School Psychology International 2023 Aug;
Therapist and therapy-related predictors of outcomes in a randomized controlled trial of school-based treatments for pediatric anxiety
Orlando, C. M., Caron, E., Smith, I. C., Harrison, T. J., Ginsburg, G. S., & Pella, J. E. Journal of Behavioral and Cognitive Therapy. 2022 Dec;
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of School-Based Treatments for Anxiety Disorders.
Ginsburg, Golda S; Pella, Jeffrey E; Slade, Eric The journal of mental health policy and economics 2022 Sep;25(3):91-103
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of School-Based Treatments for Anxiety Disorders
Ginsburg, G. S., Pella, J. E., & Slade. E. Journal of Mental Health Policy and Economics 2022 Mar;
Self-Coding of Fidelity as a Potential Active Ingredient of Consultation to Improve Clinicians' Fidelity.
Caron, E B; Dozier, Mary Administration and policy in mental health 2022 Mar;49(2):237-254
Teacher Knowledge of Anxiety and Use of Anxiety Reduction Strategies in the Classroom.
Ginsburg, G. S., Pella, J. E., Ogle, R. R., DeVito, A., Raguin, K., & Chan, G. Journal of Psychologists and Counselors in Schools. 2021 Sep;
Teacher Anxiety Program for Elementary Students (TAPES): An Open Trial.
Piselli, K., Pella, J. E., Chan, G., & Ginsburg, G. S. Education and Treatment of Children 2021 Jun;
Teacher Accommodation, Student Avoidance and Pediatric Anxiety
Ginsburg, G. S., Pella, J. E., DeVito, A., Chan, G. Journal of Psychologists and Counselors in Schools. 2021 Jan;
School-Based Clinicians Sustained Use of a Cognitive Behavioral Treatment for Anxiety Disorders.
LoCurto, J., Pella, J., Chan, G., & Ginsburg, G. School Mental Health 2020 Jul;
School Connectedness and Child Anxiety
Pikulski, P. J., Pella, J. E., Casline, E. P., Hale, A., Drake, K. L., & Ginsburg, G. S. Journal of Psychologists and Counselors in Schools. 2020 Mar;
Pediatric Anxiety Disorders: A Cost of Illness Analysis.
Pella, Jeffrey E; Slade, Eric P; Pikulski, Paige J; Ginsburg, Golda S Journal of abnormal child psychology 2020 Feb;
Caregiver Report of the Utilization of School-Based Services and Supports Among Clinically Anxious Youth
LoCurto, J., Pella, J.E., Chan, G., & Ginsburg, G.S. Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders. 2020 Jan;
Teacher Anxiety Program for Elementary Students (TAPES): intervention development and proposed randomized controlled trial.
Ginsburg, Golda S; Pella, Jeffrey E; Piselli, Kate; Chan, Grace Trials 2019 Dec;20(1):792
Concordance between clinician, supervisor and observer ratings of therapeutic competence in CBT and treatment as usual: does clinician competence or supervisor session observation improve agreement?
Caron, E B; Muggeo, Michela A; Souer, Heather R; Pella, Jeffrey E; Ginsburg, Golda S Behavioural and cognitive psychotherapy 2019 Dec;1-14
School-Based Treatment for Anxiety Research Study (STARS): a Randomized Controlled Effectiveness Trial.
Ginsburg, Golda S; Pella, Jeffrey E; Pikulski, Paige J; Tein, Jenn-Yun; Drake, Kelly L Journal of abnormal child psychology 2019 Nov;
Children’s Perceptions of Barriers to Session Attendance in School-based Treatment for Anxiety
Pella, J. E., Ginsburg, G. S., Casline, E., Pikulski, P. J., & Drake, K. L. School Mental Health 2018 Feb;(10):417–427
Parental responses to children’s avoidance in fear-provoking situations: relation to child anxiety and mediators of intervention response
Casline, E. Pella, J. E., Drake, K. Ginsburg, G.S. Child Youth and Care Forum 2018 Jan;
Child Anxiety Prevention Study: Impact on Functional Outcomes.
Pella, Jeffrey E; Drake, Kelly L; Tein, Jenn-Yun; Ginsburg, Golda S Child psychiatry and human development 2016 Jul;48400-410
Socially anxious mothers' narratives to their children and their relation to child representations and adjustment.
Murray, Lynne; Pella, Jeff E; De Pascalis, Leonardo; Arteche, Adriane; Pass, Laura; Percy, Ray; Creswell, Catharine; Cooper, Peter J Development and psychopathology 2014 Nov;26(4 Pt 2):1531-46
A pilot RCT of a teacher delivered school-home intervention to reduce student anxiety
Ginsburg, G. S., Pella, J. E., & Chan, G. (2024). School Mental Health
Clinician and Consultation Factors Associated with CBT Fidelity Growth: Independent Observers vs. Consultant Fidelity Raters.
Caron, E., Ginsburg, G., Muggeo, M., & Pella, J. (2024). Evidence-Based Practice in Child & Adolescent Mental Health

Book Chapters

Internalizing Disorders
Pella, J. E., Hale, A. E., & Ginsburg, G. S. SAGE encyclopedia of Abnormal and Clinical Psychology 2017 Jul;

Conference Papers

Teacher Anxiety Program for Elementary Students (TAPES): Description and Outcomes.
Ginsburg, G. S., Pella, J. E., DeVito, A., & Chan, G.

Title or Abstract	Type	Sponsor/Event	Date/Year
Navigating the Medical School Application	Talk	The Student National Medical Association	2023
The Evolving Status of Research in Medical Education.	Talk	University of Connecticut Health Leaders	2023
Pre-Healthcare Panel Discussion	Panel Discussion	Medical Minds Matter	2023
School-based clinicians sustained use of a cognitive behavioral treatment for anxiety.	Poster	Research and Policy Conference	2019
The teacher anxiety program for elementary students: Open trial results.	Talk	National Association of School Psychologists	2019
The Cost of Illness of Pediatric Anxiety Disorders.	Poster	Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies	2017

Title or Abstract

Type

Sponsor/Event

Date/Year

Location

Navigating the Medical School Application

Talk

The Student National Medical Association

2023

The Evolving Status of Research in Medical Education.

Talk

University of Connecticut Health Leaders

2023

Pre-Healthcare Panel Discussion

Panel Discussion

Medical Minds Matter

2023

School-based clinicians sustained use of a cognitive behavioral treatment for anxiety.

Poster

Research and Policy Conference

2019

The teacher anxiety program for elementary students: Open trial results.

Talk

National Association of School Psychologists

2019

The Cost of Illness of Pediatric Anxiety Disorders.

Poster

Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies

2017