CE Bundle 3: School-Based

Michele LaMarche is the co-founder of Special Learning, Inc. She is also the founder and Executive Director of Step By Step Academy (SBSA), a highly-regarded centre-based non-profit Autism treatment centre in Columbus, Ohio. Since its formation almost ten years ago, SBSA has touched the lives of over one thousand students through rigorous application of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) treatments, resulting in exceptional outcomes.

Ms. LaMarche, with over fifteen years of professional experience in the field of ABA, uses her knowledge of behavioral treatment to produce ground breaking, effective, empirically validated curricula, a critical factor in successfully mainstreaming hundreds of students with ASD. With her credentials and work through Special Learning and SBSA, she has changed the lives of countless individuals and families affected by ASD.

Peter Gerhardt, Ed.D., is the Executive Director of the EPIC School in Paramus, NJ.  Dr. Gerhardt has more than 35 years’ experience utilizing the principles of Applied Behavior Analysis in support of adolescents and adults with autism spectrum disorders in educational, employment, residential and community-based settings. He is the author or co-author on a number of articles and chapters on the needs of adolescents and adults with ASD and has presented nationally and internationally on this topic. 

Dr. Gerhardt serves as Chairman of the Scientific Council for the Organization for Autism Research and is on numerous professional advisory boards including the Cambridge Center for Behavioral Studies.  He received his doctorate from Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey’s Graduate School of Education.

Amanda Fishley, MA, BCBA, COBA is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst and Certified Ohio Behavior Analyst. She received her Master’s degree in Special Education/ABA from The Ohio State University. She has been working with in the field of ABA for over ten years.

She has experience working with children, adolescents and adults in school, home and mental health settings. These experiences have allowed her to work closely with parents, teachers, paraprofessionals, as well as mentoring and supervising behavior analysts. She is the Associate Director of Clinical Solutions for Special Learning, creating and presenting educational materials and promoting Special Learning’s mission to positively impact the special needs community.

Ronnie Detrich, Ph.D., has been providing behavior analytic services for over 50 years. His work can be characterized as thorough-going behavior analysis drawing from the conceptual, experimental, and applied branches of our discipline.

In recent years, Ronnie’s work has focused on the challenges of achieving adequate levels of treatment integrity in large systems, the role of the evidence-based practice movement in behavior analysis, and the large-scale implementation of effective practices in public schools. He is a trustee of the Cambridge Center for Behavioral Studies and is on the editorial boards of Perspectives in Behavior Science and Exceptional Children. He serves as an Associate Editor for the Journal of Positive Behavior Intervention. Ronnie has also served on the editorial board of Behavior Analysis in Practice and was the Coordinator of ABAI’s Practice Board.

Dr. Shawn Kenyon, BCBA-D has been in the fields of Applied Behavior Analysis and Special Education since 1995. Throughout his career he has been a Program and Clinical Director in private schools as well as public schools and non-public special education schools in Massachusetts and California while also working and consulting nationally across several states and internationally in Brazil. In his current position, he directs behavioral services in the special education department for a large public school district in southern California.?

Dr. Kenyon is the founder and owner of a small behavioral consulting company, also located in southern California. He has been an instructor in the graduate program in Applied Behavior Analysis at Northeastern University, located in Boston MA., since 2007. Dr. Kenyon has also held faculty positions at Simmons University and Endicott College, both also located in Massachusetts and he currently serves as a reviewer for the journal Behavior Analysis in Practice.

Jennifer is a dually credentialed professional, licensed and certified as a Speech-Language Pathologist and Behavior Analyst (BCBA). She possesses expertise and advanced skills in teaching language to children on the autism spectrum. She has helped clients across the life span from Early Intervention, Preschool through School in both home and center-based settings. Over the past 10 years, she has successfully integrated strategies and techniques from both disciplines to support individuals with autism and their educational teams.

Ann Beirne, MA, BCBA is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst with over two decades of experience working with individuals with autism spectrum disorder.

She has provided direct services to children and families in home environments, schools, and residential programs. Her work with this population has spanned the lifespan, including toddlers, young children, adolescents and adults with developmental disabilities.

Ms. Beirne is co-author of the textbook Understanding Ethics in Behavior Analysis:  Practical Applications available from Routledge Publishing in 2019.

Julie is a dually credentialed Occupational Therapist and Board Certified Behavior Analyst. She started working with children on the autism spectrum in 1994 as a behavior technician. This sparked a passion for working with these amazing kids. Julie has served as a BCBA and/ or OT in home, center, and community based programs. She has also worked in private schools and consulted in public schools. She has a unique perspective encompassing her experiences as an OT, BCBA, and parent, and firmly believes in the importance of collaboration with families and multiple disciplines in order to help children achieve their full potential in all areas of their lives.

Ms. Cynthia Ring is a Licensed Social Worker and holds a B.S. in Psychology and a M.S.W. Cynthia is currently working on a Doctorate in Forensic Psychology. Cynthia plans to work on getting a BCBA in January of 2012. Current projects and interests include transitions to employment for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in the criminal justice system, recidivism, functions of violent behavior/aggression, and sports and recreational programs for people with disabilities.

Cynthia is currently employed as a social worker and director of the day habilitation services at Step By Step Academy in Worthington, Ohio. She has been serving individuals with autism and their families since 2006.

Dr. Bailey received his PhD from the University of Kansas and is currently Professor Emeritus of Psychology at Florida State University where he was a member of the graduate faculty for 38-years and produced a record 63 PhDs. He is currently Director of the FSU Panama City Masters Program in Applied Behavior Analysis. 

Dr. Bailey has published over 100 peer-reviewed research articles, is a past editor of the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, and is co-author of Research Methods in Applied Behavior Analysis, How Dogs Learn, Ethics for Behavior Analysts, 2nd Expanded Edition, How to Think Like a Behavior Analyst, and 25 Essential Skills and Strategies for Professional Behavior Analysts, all co-authored with Dr. Mary Burch.

Karen is the Founder and CEO of Special Learning. She started the company in 2010 after learning about the effectiveness of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) juxtaposed against the reality that over 95% of the world did not have access to ABA. As an entrepreneur with over 20 years of corporate experience, she started Special Learning to leverage existing and emerging technology to make quality ABA resources and services available to parents, educators and professionals around the world.

Karen’s entrepreneurial experience includes starting and growing a diversity retained executive search firm specializing in placing women and minority executives in leadership positions of Fortune 1,000 companies. Her investment banking background includes working with various venture capital and private equity companies to facilitate deal flow while representing CEOs of rapidly growing companies seeking to raise equity and debt capital for various middle market businesses and commercial real estate developers. Her corporate background includes various leadership and functional roles in Fortune 1,000 and middle market companies.  Her additional entrepreneurial activities include owning and operating high end boutique

She graduated with a Masters of Management degree from Kellogg Graduate School of Management of Northwestern University. She is a Certified Public Accountant and a recipient of the Elijah Watts Sells Award from the American Institute of Certified Public Accounts (AICPA), an award granted to less than top 5% of all CPA exam candidates.

Miranda Schehr is the Clinic Transition Director of Step by Step Academy. As a clinic transition director she directs the treatment plans of multiple clients through management, training and supervision of clinical staff. Before her involvement with SBSA she worked as an Intervention Specialist in Applied Behavioral Services, where she was responsible in the implementation of treatment of multiple clients and their families through teaching and training in the classroom and home environments.

She earned her Bachelor of Science in Mild-Moderate Special Education at Xavier University, Cincinnati, OH, completed a graduate coursework in Behavior Analysis in the University of North Texas, Denton TX; and she is anticipating the completion of her Masters of Education in Cognitive and Behavioral Disabilities in August 2012.