Working closely with the leadership of its Research Programs and Facilities, the NKI Administration is responsible for the management and oversight of the diverse portfolio of psychiatric research.

Bennett L. Leventhal, M.D.
Deputy Director

Bennett Leventhal, M.D. is currently Professor and Vice Chair in the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the New York University Langone Medical Center and the NYU Child Study Center. He is also Deputy Director of the of the NY State Office of Mental Health�s Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research.

Dr. Leventhal was born in Chicago and grew up in Arkansas, Illinois, and Louisiana. After receiving his medical degree from Louisiana State University School of Medicine in New Orleans, Dr. Leventhal completed his child and adolescent psychiatry training at Duke University, serving there as chief resident and junior faculty member. Following two years as a medical officer at the Naval Regional Medical Center, Portsmouth, Virginia, Dr. Leventhal joined the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Chicago; there he served as Professor of Psychiatry & Pediatrics and, as Director of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry for more than two decades. He remains the Irving B. Harris Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Emeritus, at the University of Chicago. He was also a Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the Center for Child Mental Health and Developmental Neuroscience at the Institute for Juvenile Research at the University of Illinois.

Dr. Leventhal is a Diplomate of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in both General Psychiatry and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and a Fellow of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and the American Psychiatric Association. Dr. Leventhal has years of distinguished service to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and, recently received a medal on the occasion of the Academy�s 50th anniversary recognizing him as one of the major contributors to the field of child and adolescent psychiatry in the past half century. Among his many other awards and honors is the National Board of Medical Examiners Edith Levitt Award for Distinguished Service. Dr. Leventhal has played a leadership role in national and regional efforts to promote children�s mental health research and to create comprehensive, cutting-edge systems of care for children�s mental health. These efforts include membership on the Board of The Northwestern University Child and Family Justice Center and, Directorship of the State of Illinois Autism Project. He is also highly regarded more broadly in the field of medicine as a member of the National Board of Medical Examiners and the Illinois State Medical Board.

Dr. Leventhal is an internationally-renowned child and adolescent psychiatrist. He is widely recognized for his leadership and expertise in fostering scientific career development, training, and broad-based collaborative research networks that span from molecular genetics to community service and public health. His direction and vision have led to the creation of outstanding clinical research programs that have developed and shaped scientific approaches to the study of early emerging childhood disorders. These include the Laboratory of Developmental Neuroscience, directed by Edwin H. Cook, Jr., M.D., and the Program on Developmental Mechanisms of Psychopathology, directed by Lauren S. Wakschlag, Ph.D. His extraordinary talent at fostering career development and, the passion he conveys about the importance of children�s mental health research, have been largely responsible for launching the careers of countless distinguished clinical scientists, around the country and around the world. He is a powerful advocate for children�s mental health and has greatly enhanced the lives of children and families through his exceptional devotion to clinical care and his broad-based influence on policy and practice.

Dr. Leventhal�s work has included innovative initiatives to advance translational research on the causes and prevention of mental disorders in children and adolescents, focusing on disruptions in brain development that interfere with social functioning, including the molecular genetics of autism and the prenatal origins of disruptive behavior disorders. His wide-ranging scientific contributions are reflected in his current efforts to develop an international network of basic and clinical scientists designed to elucidate the origins of mental disorders in the first years of life as well as research programs in pediatric psychopharmacology, bullying, school-based prevention, epidemiology and the treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and autism.

Thomas O. O'Hara
Deputy Director for Institute Administration

Thomas O'Hara began his tenure at the Nathan Kline Institute in 1982 as a Fiscal Administrator for the Institute's Information Sciences Division (ISD). He progressed through successively more responsible positions before being named ISD's Deputy Director in 1987. In 1999, he was appointed as NKI's Deputy Director for Institute Administration. In this capacity he is responsible for the functional areas of sponsored research administration, business office operations, human resource management and the NKI's physical plant and facilities.

Mr. O'Hara received his B.A. from Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia and his M.B.A. from the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. He serves as Deputy Treasurer and a member of the Board of Directors of the Research Foundation for Mental Hygiene, Inc. and is a member of the Society of Research Administrators and the National Council of University Research Administrators.

Michael Kohn, Ph.D.
Director of Research Support

Dr. Michael Kohn received his Ph.D. degree in Electrical Engineering in l974 from the New York University School of Engineering. He joined the Nathan Kline Institute in 1957, as a member of the Biocybernetic laboratory. In 1970, he became head of the bioengineering laboratory and in 1982, he was appointed as Chief of the Research Support Division, a position which he holds at present. Dr. Kohn was a member of the Executive Board of the Council of Research Scientists and is a Member and Secretary of the Board of Directors of the Research Foundation of Mental Hygiene since 1978. During his past 40 years of service, he has served on a number of different ad hoc committees of OMH representing NKI and the research community as a whole. Dr. Kohn has over 30 publications in various scientific journals and holds an academic appointment as an Associate Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at New York University.