Waiting to Grab the Torch matters because it changes what a BCBA notices when decisions have to hold up in case conceptualization, intervention design, staff training, and literature-informed problem solving. In Waiting to Grab the Torch, for this course, the practical stakes show up in stronger conceptual consistency and better translational decision making, not in abstract discussion alone.
Provider: BehaviorLive — via Women in Behavior Analysis
Take This Course →Including ethics, supervision, and topics like this one. New live CEU every Wednesday.
Join Free →The field of behavior analysis was led by men back in the 1960's and 1970's. Fast forward 50-60 years, these men still hold powerful positions or serve as gatekeepers. Their legacy casts a foreboding shadow that grants them power and authority onto any position or relationship to insert their influence. Yet, women now dominate our industry, compromising 85% of the workforce (BACB, 2020). And while we do not have comprehensive data on women in leadership positions, four out of 14 CEO and COO positions of the largest eight enterprise agencies providing ABA services to autistic learners are women, none of which hold CEO positions. Seven out of the last 20 ABAI presidents are women (4 within the most recent 5 presidents). Women are rising to leadership positions but there are still barriers to push through, including barriers imposed by the old guard. While many behavior analysts practice a functional analysis to process their own thoughts and feelings about the world instead of relying on topographical stereotypes, some routine behaviors are hard to unlearn. Many women have experienced unjust, hurtful, and harmful inequalities throughout their career. The presenters today have not only experienced these, but have served as unofficial mentors to other women who seek counsel while experiencing these hardships. In the current presentation, the presenters share a behavioral analysis of aggressions, macro and micro, towards women within the last 5 years, the good and bad advice we received, and useful strategies others can take to rise above when confronted with these distressing circumstances, and how men can help our plight as women rise in their career. While the presenters are speaking from their own experiences as women, many elements can apply to other minority groups and intersectionalities.
| Certification Body | Credits | Type |
|---|---|---|
| BACB® | 1 | General |
Dr. Kerri Milyko came upon behavior analysis as a student of Dr. Henry Pennypacker at the University of Florida. Upon his encouragement, she forged a path that led to the University of Nevada-Reno studying under Dr. Patrick Ghezzi and then, as an entrepreneur opening precision teaching clinics in Tampa and Reno. Professionally, Dr. Kerri has started various ABA practices (Precision Teaching Learning Center; Agile Learning Solutions; The Learning Consultants), and has applied her behavior-analytic instructional design skills to a software company (CentralReach) where she worked with product managers in designing digital solutions for ABA providers. She now unites these skills as Vice President of Clinical Development at Centria Autism and Life Skills Autism Academy - not only creating products and systems to improve the service delivery of ABA, but working with clinicians to ensure the implementation and support of these products and services are sustainable in a large organization. Her primary behavior analytic foci are instructional and systems design, performance thinking, measurement and data analysis, and compassionate-focused applied behavior analysis. Finally, Dr. Kerri volunteers on various boards. In 2019, she was elected to serve 3 years on the Board of Directors for the Standard Celeration Society where she served 2 years as the Chairperson. In the same year, she was appointed by the governor of Nevada to serve on the first-ever Board of Applied Behavior Analysts to create ABA practice regulations for the state for licensure where she served as President in 2019. In August of 2021, she was elected as a Trustee of the Cambridge Center for Behavioral Studies. She actively serves on the Professional Standards Committee for CalABA and is the Teaching Behavior Area Coordinator for ABAI. Personally, Kerri values quality time with her three children, her husband, and dear friends. She loves wine and butter, true crime podcasts, and a good sci-fi novel while tinkering in her backyard.
Dig into the research behind this topic — plain-English summaries written for BCBAs.
252 research articles with practitioner takeaways
239 research articles with practitioner takeaways
224 research articles with practitioner takeaways
You earn CEUs from a dozen different places. Upload any certificate — from here, your employer, conferences, wherever — and always know exactly where you stand. Learning, Ethics, Supervision, all handled.
No credit card required. Cancel anytime.
All behavior-analytic intervention is individualized. The information on this page is for educational purposes and does not constitute clinical advice. Treatment decisions should be informed by the best available published research, individualized assessment, and obtained with the informed consent of the client or their legal guardian. Behavior analysts are responsible for practicing within the boundaries of their competence and adhering to the BACB Ethics Code for Behavior Analysts.