Dr. Neil Gowensmith
Neil Gowensmith is a core faculty member at the University of Denver’s Graduate School of Professional Psychology, teaching exclusively in the Masters of Forensic Psychology program. In 2014, he created and became the director of the department’s forensic mental health institute, Denver FIRST (The University of Denver’s Forensic Institute for Research, Service, and Training), which operates a postdoctoral fellowship, an outpatient competency restoration program, and a robust forensic evaluation service. Dr. Gowensmith has worked in prisons, jails, courts, community mental health centers, and mental health hospitals throughout his career. He continues to serve as a national expert in forensic mental health, with consultation, research, and practice focusing specifically on outpatient competency restoration, standards for forensic evaluators, conditional release of insanity acquittees, and public forensic mental health systems.
Dr. Karen Grabowski
Karen Grabowski, Ph.D. is a Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Denver’s Graduate School of Professional Psychology (GSPP) and Co-Director of the Master of Arts in Forensic Psychology (MAFP) Program. Dr. Grabowski earned her master’s and doctorate at Texas Tech University’s counseling psychology program, and she completed a postdoctoral fellowship with the MAFP Program and Denver FIRST in 2017. Among her many professional roles, she has served as Director of the Department of Jail Based Evaluation and Restoration and Director of Training & Programs for the State of Colorado. She started teaching as an adjunct professor in the MAFP program in 2019, and she began serving as MAFP Co-Director as of Fall 2023. Dr. Grabowski’s professional interests are focused on the intersection of law and psychology, specifically forensic evaluations, competency systems, and ethics. She has served as an expert witness in multiple criminal cases throughout her career, including for issues related to competency to proceed, risk, and ineffective counsel.
Dr. Lavita Nadkarni:
Dr. Lavita Nadkarni received her Clinical Psychology PhD from Adelphi University. She is the Director of Forensic Studies and Professor at the University of Denver’s Graduate School of Professional Psychology (GSPP), where she teaches graduate level students and supervises doctoral and postdoctoral students who conduct forensic assessments for those who are legally involved and underserved. She has been teaching, consulting, and presenting on issues related to forensic psychology for more than 25 years. As a clinical forensic psychologist for the Courts, she has provided forensic psychological evaluations relating to the matters of domestic violence, trauma, immigration, and asylum, competency, parental custody and access, child abuse and neglect, and assessment of risk. Dr. Nadkarni has also supervised graduate students involved in research contracts assessing high-risk criminally involved populations, and those returning citizens who have co-occurring substance use and mental illness disorders. She has program evaluation experience with correctional and legally-encumbered individuals and programs. She has presented on animal maltreatment evaluations and collaborative responses to animal cruelty cases. Recently, Dr. Nadkarni presented with her colleagues at the PsySAA 30th anniversary congress.
Dr. Kim Gorgens
Dr. Kim Gorgens is a board-certified rehabilitation psychologist and Professor of Psychophysiology, Clinical Neuropsychology and Psychology of Criminal Behavior at the University of Denver. She manages a large portfolio of brain injury related research and has lectured extensively on those issues around the world. She has a 2010 TED talk on youth sports concussion and a 2018 TED talk on brain injuries in criminal justice with 3.5M views. She has been interviewed on CNN with Anderson Cooper, NPR, and on 20/20 and her work with brain injuries has been featured in USNews, Newsweek, the Economist, People Magazine, and more. She has a small forensic neuropsychology practice with juvenile and death penalty cases and is active in legislative and policy development around best practices in brain injury. Her research studies the reported injury history, cognitive function, and brain biomarkers of all vulnerable populations including young and older athletes, probationers and inmates, persons who are unhoused, and women who have been exposed to interpersonal violence.
Dr. Jennifer McMahon
Dr. Jennifer McMahon is a Research Assistant Professor at the University of Denver in the Master’s of Forensic Psychology Program and Director of Programs at Denver FIRST (Forensic Institute of Research Service and Training). She oversees the Outpatient Competency Restoration Program and Brain Injury Screening Program and is co-director of the clinical forensic fellowship. Dr. McMahon has worked in several forensic mental health systems with expertise in the areas of juvenile justice, forensic assessment, and competency to stand trial.
Dr. Josh Francis
Dr. Josh Francis is a visiting assistant professor at the University of Denver’s Graduate School of Professional Psychology, where he also serves as the practicum director for the master’s program in forensic psychology. He has a private practice that offers clinical and forensic evaluation services in Colorado, and he is a contracted evaluator for the state. He earned a Ph.D. from Sam Houston State University in 2022. Josh is always looking for opportunities to collaborate in research, and his current interests are related to topics involving forensic assessment, competency restoration, personality, and trauma. In his admittedly limited spare time, he enjoys traveling, scuba diving, and music.
FACULTY BIO
The University of Denver’s Masters of Forensic Psychology Program faculty
The University of Denver’s MAFP provides students with opportunities for classroom education, research, service, and community engagement across a wide variety of settings. All faculty in the MAFP are forensic psychologists, and each has a great deal of experience working and providing services across multiple settings (courts, jails, prisons, community mental health centers, hospitals, etc.). In addition to their teaching and research activities, the MAFP faculty each conduct forensic evaluations for courts and other legal settings. Each of the faculty has been qualified for court testimony, and each has experience testifying in a number of different hearings and courtrooms. Faculty teach and train on issues regarding effective expert testimony, oversee mock testimony opportunities, and supervise students and early career professionals in maximizing courtroom testimony.
The Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation, of the University of Witwatersrand, announced today the appointment of Professor Brett Bowman as the new Senior Director for Research, effective 1 July 2025. Professor Bowman, a Professor of Psychology and chairperson of the PsySSA Science of Psychology Standing Committee, is an NRF B-rated researcher and a member of the Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf). He is a distinguished academic and teacher, well suited to this leadership role.
