About Us

CEO/Owner

Nadine Briggs, CEO of Simply Social Skills, LLC. Nadine launched Simply Social Kids, her social skills coaching program for children/teens/young adults in 2007. She is currently developing an online course to support adult friendships called Building Adult Friendships (https://buildingadultfriendships.com). Nadine is also co-author of the bestselling How to Make and Keep Friends book series.

Nadine has dual graduate certifications in Coaching Children & Teens and Coaching Children & Teens with ADHD. She has expertise and certifications in bullying and cyberbullying prevention, Foundations of Positive Psychology including learned optimism and resilience, and is a certified PEERS for Adolescents social skills program provider. Her training includes collaborative problem solving to teach children conflict resolution and training in child anxiety at the Child Anxiety Network at Boston University. She is certified in the Girl Meets World curriculum which addresses relational aggression in girls and in Cognitive Behavioral Coaching. Much of the Simply Social Kids social skills program has been created by Nadine and her team. They specialize in creating fun games and activities that entertain as well as educate group participants on social skills.

Nadine has two adult children who are the catalyst for her current career. She has a daughter with Down syndrome and a son with ADHD. She has a personal passion for helping kids find true friendships. She created Simply Social Kids in 2007 to provide a sensory-simple, safe, accepting environment for all kids. Her goal is to help kids find true friendship and connectedness.

Nadine co-authored the bestselling books: How to Make & Keep Friends: Tips for Kids to Overcome 50 Common Social Challenges, How to Make & Keep Friends: Helping Your Child Achieve Social Success, I Feel Mad! Tips for Kids on Managing Angry Feelings, I Feel Worried! Tips for Kids on Overcoming Anxiety, Tips for Teens on Life and Social Success, I Need to Win! Tips for Kids on Good Sportsmanship and Bully Busting and Managing Meanies: Tips for Kids on Managing Conflict. She is a parent/educator consultant and public speaker. Top 5 character strengths according to the VIA character strengths survey: honestly, humor, love, perspective, and social intelligence.

Bethany Knoettner has been a School Psychologist since June of 2000 and resides in Westford, Ma with her husband and two sons. Holding a Master’s degree in School Psychology and a Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study from Northeastern University, Bethany’s passion lies in facilitating social skills groups, friendship counseling, and individual support for students.

Bethany’s career roles have included conducting psychoeducational evaluations, collaborating with school IEP teams, and facilitating counseling groups. She has also contributed to the development of psychological assessment tools as an assessment field tester at Pearson Assessments. Her top 5 strengths according to the VIA character strengths survey are honesty, judgement, social intelligence, teamwork and kindness.

Bette has both her undergraduate and graduate degrees in Manufacturing/Process Engineering from University of Lowell. For fifteen years she worked in a few high tech companies traveling both domestically and international. The trip to China was amazing!

Bette has two older teenage children. Both of her children have ADHD and Anxiety while her son also has Learning Disabilities in Reading, Writing, & Math. Since having children, Bette decided to transition to part time employment so she could spend more time with her family. Some of her part time jobs include police dispatching, town election worker, Federation for Children with Special Needs, MA Department of Health, Early Intervention, and church secretary.

Bette is a trained Surrogate Special Education Parent advocating for children in DCF custody.

The top 5 character strengths according to the VIA character strengths survey: fairness, forgiveness, honesty, kindness, and hope.

Jessica Lam is a current junior at Clark University in Worcester MA, majoring in Psychology with a minor in Education. She has a main interest in child and adolescence mental health and development.

Jessica is working as a Math and Reading Tutor at Kumon Math and Reading Center, a Mentor with Big Brother Big Sister. She also is an educator and president of the Clark Educational Studies Program "SPLASH!". Jessica also served as the Equity and Inclusion Representative on the Undergraduate Student Council, where she advocates for underrepresented groups. She will be assisting with social skills groups and creating eye-catching social media posts.

Jessica's top 5 character strengths are appreciation of beauty & excellence, honesty, kindness, love of learning, and curiosity.

Mairead Ouellette is a junior at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, where she is enrolled in the university’s highly regarded 3+3 Psychology B.S./Occupational Therapy Doctorate program with a minor in Exercise Science. She is passionate about helping children thrive and plans to pursue a career in pediatric occupational therapy.

Since 2021, Mairead has worked in both after-school programs and summer camps, gaining valuable experience supporting children’s social and developmental growth. She has also worked in a specialized gym for children on the autism spectrum, where she developed a deeper understanding of neurodiversity and the importance of creating inclusive, engaging environments.

At Thomas Jefferson University, Mairead serves as secretary of the Students of Occupational Therapy club. In this leadership role, she manages the club’s social media channels and helps coordinate member communication, contributing to a supportive and connected student community.

Mairead’s top five character strengths are fairness, perspective, honesty, love of learning, and curiosity.

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One Industrial Way Unit 4
Tyngsboro, MA 01879

Phone: 978-764-2758

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