Sabrina E. B. Schuck

Biography

Sabrina E. B. Schuck, Ph.D., is Associate Professor in Residence in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of California, Irvine School of Medicine, with courtesy appointments in Psychological Science and Education. She received a Ph.D. in Education with emphases in Special Education and Educational Psychology from the University of California, Riverside. Schuck served as Director and later Executive Director of the UC Irvine Child Development Center from 2009 to 2019, overseeing a school-based behavioral health program for children with neurodevelopmental disorders.

Schuck's research focuses on developing and evaluating integrative psychosocial interventions for children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Autism Spectrum Disorders. She has served as Principal Investigator on multiple National Institutes of Health grants, including an R21 from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development examining animal assisted intervention with dogs for children with ADHD. Her work explores mechanisms of action in these interventions, including physiological markers such as heart rate variability and salivary biomarkers. She has also contributed to research on digital health interventions and wearable technology applications designed to support executive function development in children with ADHD.

Schuck has published over 35 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters on topics including animal assisted interventions, executive function deficits, and school-based interventions for children with neurodevelopmental disorders. She serves on the Institutional Review Board at UC Irvine and has been a peer reviewer for multiple NIH study sections, including special emphasis panels for the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. She served as Secretary for Development and Steering Committee Member for the International Society for Anthrozoology from 2019 to 2022.

Education

• B.A. in Psychology (Cognitive Psychology), University of California, Irvine, 1990
• M.A. in Psychology (Clinical Child Psychology), Chapman University, 1997
• Ph.D. in Education (Emphases in Special Education and Educational Psychology), University of California, Riverside, 2008

Distinctions

• City of Irvine, Irvine Residents with Disabilities Advisory Board, Friendly Community Member Award, 2023
• MOM's OC Distinguished Leader in Child Development, Honor, 2017
• Association of American Medical Colleges, Early Career Women Faculty Award, 2016
• Instructor Honor, Student Evaluations - Top 15% of instructors in the School of Social Sciences, 2015-2016
• Tustin Unified School District, Educational Partnership Week, Professional recognition 'Principal for a Day', 2014
• Daughters of the American Revolution, Academic Scholarship Award, 1993-1995