Experienced professional with a demonstrated history of research and practice. Focus on gifted youth and parenting. Skilled in Educational Assessment (IEP/504 development and support), Coaching, Educational Consulting, Interventions, and Social Emotional Learning. Playful presenter with a flair for making practical sense of research for application in a variety of settings.

Wendi M Schirvar, Ph.D. specializes in children and adolescents with advanced development by addressing a variety of issues including dyssynchronous development; parenting non-compliant and resistant behaviors; executive functioning, attentional and emotion regulation deficits; twice exceptionalities; behavioral dysregulation; and learning problems.


Dr. Schirvar serves as the Minnesota Liaison and Midwest Regional Coordinator to the national organization SENG (Supporting Emotional Needs of Gifted Students). She is also the Board appointed Legislative liaison to the Minnesota Council for Gifted & Talented. Building on her doctoral research addressing the role of pragmatics in social skill deficits, she is currently co-facilitating the UCLA research-based PEERS program; practical and successful social skill development through student and parent training. She is a frequently sought presenter to local and national professional and parent groups as she brings humor and experience to her presentation of best practices.  Her philosophy is grounded in the premise that all families have strengths, apparent or yet to be discovered, and her “work” is to empower,  coach and support families to realize and maximize their strengths together.  She is impassioned to bring this to fruition through a soon-to-be-published book to support parents and providers on teaching emotional awareness and regulation. You can often find her regulating herself through various outdoor, fear-inducing challenges!