Ohio ABA

by The OHABA Board

The mission of the Ohio Association for Behavior Analysis (OHABA) is to support the growth and dissemination of applied behavior analysis in the public and private sectors, with special emphasis on application in educational settings. Objectives include providing professional development in the form of a yearly conference; supporting the certification of BCBAs, especially for those in Ohio; and providing an informational website as a portal to support behavior analysis for businesses, schools, and clinics. The website also provides up to date information from legislative agencies and advocacy groups related to the practice of behavior analysis in Ohio.

OHABA is an organization for people interested in behavior analysis and is primarily an interest group. OHABA works to promote behavior analysis by promoting behavior analysis in the educational setting, promoting behavior analysis and university programs that specialize in applied behavior analysis, providing a forum for the discussion of research and conceptual issues in behavior analysis, maintaining a website containing information about the organization and about behavior analysis in Ohio and elsewhere, and functioning as the Ohio contact for and representative of the Association for Behavior Analysis International (ABAI).

The OHABA Executive Board Members as of March 2020 included the President Jennifer Sweeney, Ph.D. BCBA-D, COBA; Past President Nicole Powell, Psy.D., BCBA-D, COBA; President-Elect Janet Hansen, Ph.D., BCBA-D, COBA; Secretary Bryan Droesch, MS.Ed., BCBA, COBA; and Treasurer Nicole Williams, MS, BCBA, COBA. The OHABA Board is committed to making the organization a resource to members across the state of Ohio. The OHABA Board includes Marketing and Technology co- chairs Ron DeMuesy, M.Ed., BCBA, COBA and Lee Geer, MS, BCBA, COBA; Membership Chair Brittany Duffy, BCBA-D, COBA; Professional Standards Chair Janette Long, MA, BCBA, COBA; Education Chair Dacia McCoy, PhD, BCBA-D, COBA; Program co-chairs Andrew Penmer, MA, BCBA, COBA, and Nicole DeLano, BCBA, COBA; and Public Policy Chair Jen Gonda, BCBA, COBA.

During 2020, the full Board and committees worked hard to coordinate opportunities for its members. In February 2020, OHABA was proud to offer a two-day conference. Invited speakers included Linda LeBlanc (keynote), Rick Kubina, August Stockwell, and Amanda Kelly. The topics of the conference were diverse and ranged from ethical ways to advocate for clients, building systems within ABA agencies, gender affirming skills for behavior analysts and ethics of visual analysis. Due to COVID, the Board did not host any in person events throughout the year. Instead, the Board created monthly virtual events, (Coffee Chat & Thirsty Thursday) to bring our members together to discuss topics and issues related to behavior analysis. Examples of virtual event topics include diversity in behavior analytic practice, telehealth, and ABA in schools.

Membership Information
Increasing membership across the state has been a primary focus for OHABA. The chapter is intent on continuing to increase its membership by offering CEU opportunities to members across the state. Individuals interested in joining OHABA, can find a membership form on our website a www.ohaba.org. Membership fees are $30 for full members, $20 for affiliate members, and $15 for student members. This was the first year OHABA offered three-year memberships for our full ($75) and affiliate ($60) members. Benefits of membership include a reduced registration fee for OHABA conferences with CEUs included, free Ethic CEU opportunities at Town Hall meetings held in different regions of the state four times per year, the opportunity to exchange ideas, discuss job leads, and share the results of research and practice efforts, upcoming access to various workshops and webinar opportunities, and updates on changes affecting the practice of applied behavior analysis. Individuals interested in becoming a member of OHABA or any members who are interested in serving on the board or a committee, should contact OHABA at ohaba@ohaba.org.

Annual Conference 2020
The 2020 Conference was held on February 5–6 at the Marriott University Hotel. The 2020 conference was OHABA’s 10th annual conference and sold out, with approximately 450 attendees. The conference celebrated OHABA’s 10th annual conference, which had our largest attendance since its inception. During the conference, the Board worked with field leaders, spearheaded by Dr. William Heward, in implementing Con-Clue during the conference, which provided conference attendees the opportunity to earn prizes for engaging in sustainable behaviors.

Certification in the State of Ohio
The OHABA board has worked closely with the Ohio State Board of Psychology to educate BCBA’s in the state on the process and importance of becoming Certified Ohio Behavior Analysts (COBA’s). Only individuals who have the COBA can practice behavior analysis in the state, except in exempt settings. The last step in obtaining the certification requires candidates to attend a half day workshop and pass an exam covering the rules and regulations regarding behavior analytic practice in Ohio. The Board has committed to having representation at each of these workshops to assist in answering questions and to ensure newly certified members are aware of OHABA as a resource.

Future Direction
OHABA Board is committed to making the organization a resource to members. The Board continues to add additional Board positions and develop committees to assist Chairs in completion of their duties. The board continues to promote networking events with the goal to reach ABA professionals across the state by regions. Due to COVID, our initial efforts which were hosting Town Hall events per region, have shifted to monthly coffee chats to reach all members of the state. We commit to continue to offer those events to focus on a variety of topics, special interests, open collaboration and focused CEUs programs. The Board continues to become aware of potential legislation, which could impact the practice of behavior analysis in the state. The Board is also evaluating policies and practices to ensure we are focused on the diversity, equity and inclusion of all members.