Professional Bio

My areas of specialty include infant, child, and adolescent development and child psychopathology. I have special interests in behavioral therapy, peer relationships, and neurodiversity with a specific focus on the Autism Spectrum.

I have been lucky to teach a variety of courses over my career surrounding these topics and look forward each semester to updating course materials with the newest scientific breakthroughs in our understanding of human development and mental health.

Working with my students has been the greatest joy of my career. Every class is an opportunity to connect with the amazing people in my classes. There is no other job like it!

Personal Bio:

In my spare time, I volunteer as a firefighter with ALPHA Fire Company. I also write psychological thrillers under the pen name Sarah K. Stephens. When I’m not teaching, volunteering, or writing, I’m enjoying time with my husband and family in the wilds of Central PA.

Non-Fiction Publications:

Kollat, S.H. (2018). The case for cold-calling: Initiating active participation in the classroom. College Teaching,      66(3), 168-169.DOI: 10.1080/87567555.2018.1463506

Kollat, S.H. (2017). Diversity statements aren’t enough to combat implicit bias. Times Higher Education.   https://www.timeshighereducation.com/opinion/diversity-statements-arent-enough-combat-implicit-bias

Walls, T.A., & Kollat, S.H. (2006). Agency to agentic personalities: The early to middle childhood gap.  In D.          Mroczek & T. D. Little (Eds.), The handbook of personality development. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

Fiction Publications: (under my pen name, Sarah K. Stephens)

Stephens, S.K. (2024). The Girl in the Fire. State College, PA: Kindle Direct Publishing.

Stephens, S.K. (2023). The Killing Kind. Cambridge, UK: Bloodhound Books.

Stephens, S.K. (2022). The Good Life. Cambridge, UK: Bloodhound Books.

Stephens, S.K. (2020). Isolation. Cambridge, UK: Bloodhound Books.

Stephens, S.K. (2020). The Anniversary. Cambridge, UK: Bloodhound Books.

Stephens, S.K. (2019). It Was Always You. Cambridge, UK: Bloodhound Books.