Professional Staff

Dr. Steven Butnik earned a doctorate degree (Ph. D.) in clinical-child psychology from The Ohio State University in 1980. Licensed and practicing in Virginia as clinical psychologist since 1982, Dr. Butnik and Ms. Frishtick co-founded ADDVANTAGE in 2000, a practice dedicated to evaluating and counseling individuals of all ages with attention problems and other learning problems. His preparation to assess and treat individuals with AD/HD and learning problems includes his formal academic training, work as a graduate research assistant at OSU for two years (assisting in several studies designed to assess the impact of stimulant medication on students’ classroom and standardized test performance), an APA-approved, pre-doctoral clinical-child psychology internship, as well as more than 35 years of clinical experience. In addition, Dr. Butnik participates in yearly continuing education programs focusing on AD/HD issues. He co-authored a book for health care professionals about psychological testing (1996), received additional training for neurofeedback (EEG biofeedback) and quantitative electroencephalography (qEEG) in 1998. He published an article in The Journal of Clinical Psychology (2005) on the assessment and treatment of adolescents and adults with AD/HD. Dr. Butnik has given many presentations to community and professional organizations about various AD/HD issues. Dr. Butnik has been certified to offer an evidenced-based training program to improve working memory in individuals with AD/HD. In 2008 he was appointed as a reviewer/consultant for the Journal of Attention Disorders. In addition, he has served as a consultant for a University of Virginia study investigating multiple AD/HD assessment instruments. In 2013 Dr. Butnik contributed an article about slow processing speed in gifted students to an online newsletter aimed at Twice Exceptional students (2e). 

Julia A. Frishtick earned her B.A. degree from Queens College, City University of New York, in 1974. She received her Masters degree in Social Work from The Ohio State University in 1977. She is licensed in Virginia as a Clinical Social Worker. Ms. Frishtick has provided services to adults since 1987. She has developed a special interest in ADHD in adults. She and Steven Butnik co-founded ADDVANTAGE in 2000.

Ms. Frishtick works exclusively with adults.