Sara Castro-Olivo, PhD, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Counseling, Recreation, and School Psychology at Florida International University (FIU). She received a BA in Psychology from California State University, Bakersfield. She received an M.S. in Special Education and a Ph.D. in School Psychology from the University of Oregon. She completed her APA accredited predoctoral internship at Dallas Independent School District. She is a Nationally Certified School Psychologist and a Licensed Specialist in School Psychology in the state of Texas. She has worked with Latine communities in Texas, California, and Oregon since 2001 as a bilingual community health educator, bilingual parent trainer, and school psychologist. She has worked as a faculty member in School and Counseling Psychology since 2007 in California and Texas.
Dr. Castro-Olivo’s research focuses on the development and validation of culturally responsive social-emotional and behavioral interventions for emergent bilingual students and families. She has published over 30 peer- reviewed journal articles and chapters. Her research has been published in top journals in the field and highlighted in the APA Monitor, Huffington Post, and the American Youth Policy Forum. She serves as an associate editor for the journals, Contemporary School Psychology and School Psychology. She is a member of the research advisory board for the Collaborate for Academic and Social-Emotional Learning (CASEL). Dr. Castro-Olivo has served as chair/co-chair of over 20 doctoral students in school psychology. She is passionate about mentoring and strengthening communities' socio-emotional wellbeing.