Kristin R.

My Work Style

My work style is to find ways to make my clients feel more at home in the world around them. I am collaborative and always want to work closely with other stakeholders. My biggest priority is always developing meaningful goals that are socially significant and produce the best possible quality of life for the client and their family. My job is to work myself out of a job- I am here to support you for a time, but the goal is always to transfer those skills to you.

Area of Expertise

Analysis of Verbal Behavior, DTT, NET, Social Skills instruction with video modeling, problem behavior reduction, feeding challenges, staff and parent/caregiver training

What I Do To De-stress In My Free Time

I love to cook and bake (and eat!!), so that is a big one. I love snuggling with our 3 cats when I am home. We are lucky to live near the beach; I am always up for beach time. I love antiquing, road trips and any kind of travel.

Why I Became a BCBA

I worked with children with Autism from 1999-2004 and then had the opportunity to work with the Autism Initiative in PA, which was led by several BCBAs. One of the goals of that initiative was to increase the number of BCBAs in the state. Once I began learning more about the science and why we do what we do, I really wanted to pursue certification. One of my favorite aspects of being a BCBA is the ability to impact the people you train for years to come. I still hear from teachers I have consulted with through the years, reminiscing about something they learned with me or how they have changed their career path because of our work together. To have that impact is powerful and humbling.

What Previous Clients Would Say About Me

My previous clients would say that I really strive to treat each one of them as an individual and to address issues of significance to them. One of the best compliments I ever received was from a parent who told me I was the first person to see her teenager “as a whole person”.

What I Love Most About What I Do

Every small victory fills me up. Seeing a child or a caregiver feel good about themselves and develop confidence in their skills is just rewarding.

Most Challenging Professional Moment

I think the biggest challenges I have faced are working with stakeholders who are not all on the same page. It is so critical for everyone involved in a child’s treatment to be invested in it.

Most Rewarding Professional Moment

There are a lot, but here are 2 (I can’t pick!!): -Securing 4 full days of paid training for every paraeducator in every classroom I worked in (13 classrooms), and having subs to cover their duties. Paraeducators are the backbone of special education classrooms and often don’t receive proper (if any) training on how to perform their jobs. It took me time to build rapport with every administrator in every building to get this permission, but it was so worth it. I had a gentleman who was a teaching assistant for 12 years tell me “I feel like I know what I am doing for the first time”. -I worked with a student in a classroom with some fantastic, hard working staff in a challenging situation. We all worked very hard to teach this student to mand, which replaced a lot of intense, high rate problem behavior (that previously served the mand function). The student has acquired 8 mands before Christmas break. Christmas break came and we were worried that this skill would regress over break. The student returned and correctly probed every single mand acquired before break, as if no time had passed. I remember all of us (classroom staff) squealing and jumping up and down and calling mom (who practiced those mands over break!!) to share the exciting news. To see both the student’s progress and the genuine excitement and pride among the staff is still such a great memory. It’s also a great example of teamwork.

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