About Us

CEO/Owner

Nadine Briggs is the CEO of Simply Social Skills, LLC, which includes Simply Social Kids, a social skills coaching program for children, teens, and young adults, and Building Adult Friendships (buildingadultfriendships.com), an online course helping adults build real, lasting connections. She is the 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.

Michelle doVale-Callahan brings over 15 years of special education experience across a wide range of learning environments, from residential therapeutic schools to regional vocational high schools. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Literature from Westfield State College, where she graduated Magna Cum Laude, and a Master of Education in Special Education from American International College, where she earned a 4.0 GPA. Michelle is a licensed special education teacher in Massachusetts with additional licensure in English and a Sheltered English Immersion endorsement.

Throughout her career, Michelle has worked with students who face a broad spectrum of learning, behavioral, and emotional challenges. She is skilled in IEP development, co-teaching, data-driven instruction, and family communication. She is currently expanding her expertise through the Massachusetts Association of Vocational Administrators pathway program. Michelle is fluent in Portuguese and has working proficiency in Spanish.

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 holds degrees in psychology and education from Clark University in Worcester, MA. She is currently pursuing her master's degree in education, with a primary focus on child and adolescent mental health and development.

Jessica has experince as a Math and Reading Tutor at Kumon Math and Reading Center, and as a Mentor with Big Brother Big Sister. She was also 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 assists with social skills groups and creates our eye-catching social media posts.

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

Mahriah Masterson has dedicated her career to working with young children, bringing hands-on experience, warmth, and a deep commitment to each child's growth and development. She has worked in a variety of early childhood settings across New Hampshire and Massachusetts, serving children from infancy through age five in roles ranging from teacher's assistant to lead toddler teacher. Currently, she also works as a social coach assistant at Simply Social Kids, where she supports children and young adults with special needs.

Mahriah holds an associate teacher certification from Lakes Region Community College, where she is continuing her studies toward an associate's degree in Early Childhood Education. She is CPR and first aid certified and has completed extensive professional training in areas including challenging behavior, the Preschool Pyramid Model, health and safety, and early literacy. She brings particular experience working with children who have ADHD and autism.

Their top 5 character strengths according to the VIA character strengths survey are love, fairness, perspective, appreciation of beauty and excellence, and teamwork.

Claudia Dul has a Master's degree in Child Study and Human Development from Tufts University and a Bachelor's degree in Psychology from Caldwell University. Claudia is also working as a Research Assistant at UNH's Institute on Disability. Their main areas of interest are fostering social-emotional development in autistic youth and improving identification and support of neurodiverse individuals throughout the lifespan.

Claudia has personal experience both living as an autistic person and supporting neurodiverse friends and family. They believe in using developmental research and the stories of autistic self-advocates as a guide to empower autistic youth. Claudia has previously worked in early childhood education, summer programs, and conducting NAEP assessments. They will assist with social skills groups and administrative tasks.

Their top 5 character strengths according to the VIA character strengths survey are love, fairness, perspective, appreciation of beauty and excellence, and teamwork.

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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Social coaching for kids, teens, and young adults with in-the-moment coaching, wraparound support, monthly parent Q&As, and a fun, screen-free experience

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One Industrial Way Unit 4
Tyngsboro, MA 01879

Phone: (978) 764-2758

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