About Us
Our purpose at LearningWorks for Kids is simple: we are here to show you how video games and digital play can be good for your kids. By focusing on popular games and technologies, we catch kids where they are--online, in-game, and digitally connected--transforming their everyday digital experiences into incredible opportunities for real-world learning. Firmly rooted in an emerging body of neuroscience research, we aim to teach kids, parents, and educators how video games and digital technologies can "exercise" the critical thinking and academic skills essential to every child's learning and success. While we do show how digital play can benefit any child, we focus in particular on helping the "alternative learners" who may struggle in traditional academic settings, but are almost universally engaged by digital technologies.
Dr. Randy Kulman, President: Dr. Kulman is the founder and president of Learningworks for Kids. He coordinates our team of psychologists, educators, and digital designers in our quest to make videogames good for kids. As a licensed clinical child psychologist, Dr. Kulman has been working directly with kids and families for the past 30 years, and has become a leading expert on the use of digital technologies for improving thinking skills in children. One of Dr. Kulman's most important roles here is leading our team of psychologists and students in our ongoing research into game-based learning, the use of digital technologies in helping children with attentional and learning problems, and using videogames for teaching problem solving skills in schools. Dr. Kulman became interested in the use of videogames for teaching thinking skills through his clinical work with children and families. After listening to hundreds of children and parents reporting how engaged kids were in their videogame experiences, he began researching methods by which videogames could be helpful to children, and from there developed the framework for Learningworks for Kids.
James Daley, Editorial Director: As the Editorial Director at LearningWorks for Kids, James oversees the editorial direction, design, and content production for all of LWK's websites and publications, working to ensure the quality of content and consistency of vision across our diverse and evolving media platforms. James brings to LWK his experience both as an editor and educator, along with his great passion for gaming and technology. In addition to his work at LWK, James continues to instruct digital writing courses at the University of Rhode Island, and edit anthologies of fiction, essays, and political rhetoric for Dover Publications.
Philip Bishop, Director of Web Development: Philip is responsible for the design, construction and management of the company's websites, including the primary sites for parents and children, and Playing Smarter, LWK's curriculum-based program for schools. Prior to joining LearningWorks for Kids, Philip ran his own graphic design and web development business for 20 years. His clients included Splendor of Florence festival websites in Providence and Philadelphia, Crossroads Rhode Island and Art Guide New England. Philip has also pursued a successful career as a freelance writer over three decades, including five years as a contributing editor to FamilyPC Magazine and one year as an editorial consultant to Apple, Inc. Philip's writing -- much of which has focused on family video gaming -- has also appeared in USA Today, Rhode Island Monthly, Creative Screenwriting and numerous other national and regional publications.
Jeffrey Brusini, LMHC, Esq. Education Director: Jeff joined the LWK staff to bring his experience as a practicing therapist and school-based clinical specialist to the LWK projects. A licensed clinical mental health counselor and attorney, Jeff has over 20 years' experience providing psychotherapy to children and their families. He has been the director of private special education schools from 1990-2009, and is currently a clinical consultant to 4 school districts in Rhode Island. Jeff uses state-of-the-art digitial technology in his therapy practice with children, and has made sure that the schools he has created and run have always done likewise.
Jennifer Slater, Educational Coordinator: In her five years with LearningWorks for Kids, Jen has studied the relationship between executive functioning and academic skills, as well as worked to develop recommendations for parents and teachers to help children in specific skill areas. She has been involved in several research studies through Learningworks for Kids that examined the use of digital technologies to improve executive and thinking skills in children, as well as parents’ perceptions of videogames and other technologies as teaching tools. She has been a key contributer to the development of LWK's online Playing Smarter program. In addition to her work at LWK, Jen is a certified sixth grade teacher pursuing her Master's degree in Education at the University of Rhode Island. 
Louis F. Ruffolo, Ph.D, Research Coordinator: Dr Ruffolo coordinates research projects for our parent-based LearningWorks for Kids program and our school-based program, Playing Smarter. Dr Ruffolo is a licensed psychologist and certified school psychologist specialilzing in the assessment of ADHD, Learning Disabilities, and Executive Functioning Disorders. He has extensive experience assessing and helping children with school adjustment concerns and educational planning.
Patrick Elliot, Senior Contributing Editor: As Senior Contributing Editor for Learning Works for Kids, Patrick focuses on reviewing games for the site's PlayBooks and producing content for both web and print, while helping to ensure the quality of all game-based content for LWK. Beginning his career in journalism with National Public Radio, Patrick originally wrote hourly newscasts for his local affiliate station. Since then he has covered news and gaming for a variety of websites and publications, and currently writes for the leading interdependent Nintendo site on the web, Nintendo Life. 
Wyatt Furman, Web Development Intern: Wyatt is working as an intern with Learning Works for Kids while studying as a graduate student in the Master of Science in Computer Science Program at the University of Rhode Island. His internship involves helping to improve the interactivity of LWK’s websites. In addition to web programming, Wyatt has studied database management. He has built and maintained several websites, including one for the Graduate Student Association at the University of Rhode Island. 
