Pediatric Neuropsychologist

Dr. Folsom obtained her doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Fuller School of Psychology in Pasadena, California. She completed a two-year postdoctoral fellowship in Clinical Neuropsychology at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Semel Institute/The Help Group. She previously held an appointment on Johns Hopkins University’s Medical Staff and worked at Kennedy Krieger Institute’s Center for Autism and Related Disorders in Maryland.

Dr. Folsom specializes in the neuropsychological assessment of individuals with a wide age range (children aged 7 years to young adults) who struggle with various learning, behavioral, and socio-emotional issues. She has significant experience in diagnosing the following conditions: Autism Spectrum Disorder and other conditions that usually co-occur with this diagnosis; Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder; Dyslexia and other Specific Learning Disabilities; and Anxiety/Depression. She also helps in educational programming.

Dr. Folsom is committed to coming alongside families to help understand their children and to encourage them to thrive and achieve their personal best. From the time she meets with families for the intake, she tries to discover what makes the children tick – what their passions are and what is at the root of their struggles. Having been trained in the Boston Process approach, she does not merely look at test scores but goes beyond these to unearth complex neuropsychological processes that may be contributing to children’s vulnerabilities as well as their unique strengths. She makes keen observations throughout the assessment process to inform her overall findings, not just about diagnoses but also about relative strengths and vulnerabilities of each child. She transforms these findings into targeted recommendations expressed in plain language that is accessible to all the treatment team members, including parents, teachers, doctors, therapists, counselors, and even educational advocates/lawyers.

Dr. Folsom hails from the Philippines and went to the University of the Philippines (UP) for her master’s degree in psychology. She also taught at UP. Before pursuing her graduate studies in the United States, she served as a staff psychologist at the Philippine Children’s Medical Center, the premier tertiary care pediatric hospital in the Philippines, under the supervision of Lourdes K. Ledesma, PhD, the only neuropsychologist in the Philippines at that time.

While Dr. Folsom was working at John Hopkins University, she was part of a multidisciplinary team of professionals providing assessments for international families eager to access top medical care from one of the United States’ leading health institutions. Her desire is to provide the same level of neuropsychological care to families who visit NESCA and to expand these services to those in her homeland, the Philippines.

Dr. Folsom lives in the Boston area with her husband and daughter. Her family loves traveling, spending time on the beach, watching movies, and discovering the best ice cream places in New England.