Keynote Speakers

Professor Cheri A. Levinson is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at the University of Louisville and Director of the Eating Anxiety Treatment (EAT) lab. She is also the Founder and the Clinical Director of the Louisville Center for Eating Disorders, which is the only eating disorder specialty clinic in the state of Kentucky, where she treats patients, and supervises and trains other clinicians and students in evidence-based treatments for eating disorders. Currently, Prof Levinson is Vice Chair of the Kentucky Eating Disorder Council, which is a state sponsored council charged with improving eating disorder treatment and access to treatment in KY.

Prof Levinson’s research focuses on building new treatments for eating disorders, primarily using new technologies. To do this work she uses advanced analytics and technologies, such as individual network analysis, ecological momentary assessment, and wearable sensor technologies. Prof Levinson has published more than 135 peer-reviewed manuscripts and chapters and has been the primary investigator on several national grants and awards, including three active clinical trials tested exposure therapy and personalised treatments for eating disorders. She has received several awards for her work including the 2021 Association for Psychological Science Rising Star Award, 2020 American Psychological Association Theo Blau Award, and the Academy for Eating Disorders 2015 Outstanding Scientific Contribution Award.  

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Prof Levinson’s clinical works focuses on the treatment of adults, adolescents, and children with eating disorders. She specialises in the treatment of comorbid disorders (eating disorders, OCD and anxiety disorders) using empirically supported cognitive-behavioral techniques. Prof Levinson has worked in all levels of eating disorder care, including outpatient, partial-hospitalisation, residential, and inpatient care.  

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Before moving home to Louisville, Prof Levinson trained at the University of North Carolina Center of Excellence in Eating Disorders (CEED). While at CEED, she trained in cognitive behavioral therapies, dialectical behavior therapy, family based therapy for adolescents with anorexia nervosa, acceptance and commitment therapy, and mindfulness therapies for eating disorders. Prof Levinson was a post-doctoral fellow at the Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine Department of Psychiatry, where she developed technology based treatments for eating disorders. She completed her clinical internship at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine. She received her Master’s and Doctoral degrees in the psychology department at Washington University in St. Louis. She completed her undergraduate degree in psychology and history at the University of Kentucky.