Dr. Kathryn Haas, OTD, OTR/L, ATAC, is a licensed doctor of occupational therapy with more than two decades of clinical and school-based experience. Her affinity for the field traces back to her youth, inspired by the pioneering work of her mother, Patricia Haas, who served as an occupational therapist from 1954 to 2005. Dr. Kathryn Haas is a national expert witness who provides forensic analysis and testimony across all 50 states in matters involving IDEA, Section 504, and multidisciplinary assessment. Her evaluations address complex disability profiles and align with federal special education regulations. She also completes Independent Educational Evaluations throughout California.

Dr. Haas began her career in 1999, where her expertise spans the full lifespan across school, clinical, hospital, and community settings. She is recognized for her evidence-based, functional, and neuroaffirming approach with neurodivergent and neurotypical populations. Dr. Haas has worked across hospitals, schools, residential programs, early intervention, arts and leisure settings, and private practice. Her experience includes inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation, early childhood services, K–12 multidisciplinary assessment, home and community-based therapy, and specialized programs supporting youth and adults with disabilities.

In her current role, Dr. Haas is renowned for her holistic, methodical, and evidence-based approach as a highly sought-after assessor. She has dedicated herself to fostering engagement within both neuro-diverse and neuro-majority populations across diverse environments. Her doctoral research reframed autistic stimming as a valid social language rather than a behavior to suppress, influencing her ongoing work to expand understanding within the neuro-majority and promote acceptance-based practices. Dr. Haas’s treatment recommendations prioritize functional outcomes and collaborative frameworks, involving students, parents, teachers, related service providers, administrators, and medical professionals.

Originally from California, Dr. Haas later lived in Alaska, where she embraced outdoor pursuits like fishing, camping, hiking, skiing, and skijoring behind sprint-mushing dogs. Her adventurous spirit even led her to skijor behind a reindeer during the inaugural Reindeer Race at the Fur Rendezvous Festival. In 2015, she returned to California to care for her elderly parents, discovering a newfound love for outrigger canoeing as a holistic approach to exercise, camaraderie, and connection with nature. Currently, Dr. Haas actively participates in outrigger canoe races as a member of a Southern California racing club, with each season culminating in a challenging race from Newport Beach to Catalina.

Dr. Haas brings a rare combination of clinical depth, cultural insight, and forensic skill to every evaluation. Her work reflects an unwavering commitment to functional outcomes, student dignity, and legally sound special education practice.