From a young age, Tara Levinson ’95 M.Ed.’98 Ph.D.’04 knew to trust her gut.
At 17, she applied early decision to Lehigh. When she set foot on campus for a tour, she immediately turned to her parents and declared, “This is where I’m going to college.” Her parents encouraged her to finish the tour first, but Tara recalls with a laugh, “I already knew.”
It was an instinct that proved right. Lehigh not only launched her on a career path that has changed countless lives, but it also became the place where she met her husband, Rob ’97, on one of her first weekends on campus.
Finding Her Calling at Centennial
Tara’s education at Lehigh spanned 12 years, culminating in her distinction as a Lehigh “triple crowner” with three degrees.
She first earned a degree in psychology, her undergraduate studies sparking a lifelong fascination with autism.
“I have such a passion for these kids,” she says. “It instantly felt like a great space for me.”
Her journey to a master’s in special education led her to Lehigh’s Centennial School, now celebrating its 60th anniversary. As a presidential scholar, Tara began substituting in classrooms, working with students on the low-incidence disabilities track, which at the time included autism, and helping with job coaching for older students.
She credits professors Diane Hyland, Asha Jitendra, and Christine Cole P’11 as pivotal mentors. “I can’t say strongly enough how much they helped me,” she reflects.
She laughs now about those early days: “I was job coaching students the same age as me and didn’t quite know what I was doing yet, but those students taught me as much as I taught them.”
By her second year, Tara’s dedication was clear, and she was invited to join the Technical Assistance Team, consulting with school districts across Pennsylvania on complex cases.
“It was a wonderful experience and a pivotal piece of my career,” she recalls.
That work sparked her passion for diagnostics, the “how and why” behind children’s behavior. With encouragement from her mentors, she remained at Lehigh to pursue her doctorate in school psychology.
An Unexpected Global Adventure
After earning her doctorate, Tara moved with Rob to New York City, where she worked as a school psychologist in a diverse school district and applied her knowledge of functional and curriculum-based assessment.
Soon after, Rob’s career took them to Hong Kong, an unexpected twist and another case of Tara trusting her instincts.
Few licensed psychologists had a background in child psychology in Hong Kong, so Tara quickly became a go-to resource.
“I was cold-calling professors I’d only read about in college, saying, ‘I need your help. I’m the only one here doing this work,’” she recalls.
Suddenly, she was working across Asia, consulting with schools and families in China, Singapore, the Philippines, Japan, and Australia, gaining experience far beyond her original expertise.
When the family returned to the U.S., with their children now able to read chapter books in Mandarin, Tara faced another decision. Did she want to join a system or a school, or should she start her own private practice?
Once again, her instincts guided her, and she chose the autonomy of building her own practice.
“It’s been this truly amazing career,” she says. “Every brain works differently. When we understand how our brain works, we discover our superpowers.”
Giving Back to Lehigh
Now settled in Connecticut, Tara continues to expand her private practice while giving back to the Lehigh community. She has been part of the Lehigh University Autism Services council since its inception and recently joined the College of Education’s Dean’s Advisory Council (DAC), where she aims to help strengthen the college’s global presence and foster a more robust alumni network.
“There are so many talented people who have come through, and we need to tap into that,” she says.
Tara is deeply grateful that her graduate education at Lehigh was funded through scholarships and assistantships, leaving her debt free.
“Because of all I was given at Lehigh, it’s my job to give back.”
She and Rob have long shared that commitment. While living in Hong Kong, they met with then-Lehigh President Alice Gast to discuss expanding the university’s international presence. More recently, they hosted a dinner for alumni at their home in Connecticut, continuing their tradition of weaving community into their lives.
Lessons in Instinct and Optimism
For Tara, trusting her instincts has led to adventures she could never have imagined, from coaching peers, to becoming one of the few licensed psychologists with a child psychology background in Hong Kong, to shaping lives through her private practice.
“When I started, disability was something people whispered about,” she reflects. “Now we can talk about differences openly and even talk about them as superpowers.”
Warm, humble, and quick to laugh at herself, Tara is shaping not only the lives of children and families but also the next generation of educators and psychologists through her work with DAC.
“I was given so much at Lehigh,” she says. “It’s my job to return that.”
