North Carolina ABA

By Sarah Pope

The North Carolina Association for Behavior Analysis held its 33rd annual conference virtually on February 24–25, 2022. The conference was a great success thanks to the leadership of Monique Baker, president (Effective Interventions), as well as the rest of our Executive Council including Callie Plattner, past president (Mosaic Pediatric Therapy); Shanun Kunnavatana, president elect (Easterseals UCP of NC and VA); Nina Deese, vice president (Easterseals UCP of NC and VA); Leigh Ann Strain, secretary (Effective Interventions); Nancy Poteet, treasurer (private consultant); Sarah Pope, member-at-large (Mosaic Pediatric Therapy); Jacqueline Hamilton, member-at-large (Easterseals UCP of NC and VA); Alaina Swick, student representative (University of North Carolina Charlotte), Jamie Clary, publications editor (Riddle Developmental Center); Fred Spooner, senior NCABA advisor (UNC-Charlotte); Duke Schell, senior NCABA advisor (Riddle Developmental Center); Ruth Hurst, NC Psychological Association (Murdoch Developmental Center); Sarah Pope, liaison to ABAI and ACE coordinator (Mosaic Pediatric Therapy), Selene Johnson, community liaison (ABC of NC) and a host of other NCABA volunteers.

As the conference took place virtually, only a single track of presentations was available composed entirely of invited speakers and workshops from across the state and country to present on a variety of topics in addition to the “Welcome and Award Presentation”, the Annual Business Meeting, and a student symposium. The first day of the conference began with a workshop titled, “Adapting Our Applied and Ethical Practice to New Needs: A Post-Trauma Approach to Supporting Individuals Using Behavioral Tools in Diverse Settings “(Camille Kolu, PhD, BCBA-D, Cusp Emergence). This workshop was then followed by invited presentations focusing on the following topics:

“Discourse in 2022: Some Observations from a Radical Behaviorist” (Carol Pilgrim, PhD, University of North Carolina Wilmington)
“Feasibility Matters: Why Behavior Analysts Should Conduct Feasibility Research and How to Do It” (Cynthia Anderson, PhD, BCBA-D, May Institute)
“Mind the Gap: Using Evidence-Based Practice to Assess Challenging Behavior” (Shanun Kunnavatana, PhD, BCBA-D, Easter Seals UCP of NC and VA)

The second day of the conference began with a workshop titled, “Promoting Quality Feedback Conversations in Supervision” (Nicole Gravina, PhD, BCBA-D, University of Florida). This workshop was then followed by invited presentations focusing on the following topics:

“Programming for Generativity: Using Multiple Exemplar Instruction & Multiple Exemplar Training” (Danielle LaFrance, PhD, BCBA-D, West for Elemy)
“Contingencies of Joy: Meaning, Ethics, and Methods” (Shahla Alai-Rosales, PhD, BCBA-D, LBA, University of North Texas)
“Demystifying the Motivating Operation” (Caio Miguel, PhD, BCBA-D, California State University, Sacramento)

Our speakers did an outstanding job of delivering meaningful and important content to our attendees. This year, NCABA was able to offer both NCPA and BACB continuing education credits, including supervision and ethics credits. Up to 12 BACB credits were available to participants (inclusive of 4 ethics credits and 3 supervision credits) as well as up to 12 NCPA credits (inclusive of 4 ethics credits).

A total of 414 registrants participated in the 2022 conference. This was an increase of more than 100 additional participants than our 2021 virtual conference which included 311 registrants. NCABA was thrilled with the high level of participation and attendance given that the conference was being held virtually.

At the opening of the conference, Monique Baker welcomed all participants. Awards were given to several very deserving individuals during the opening remarks. Selene Johnson (ABC of NC) was awarded the NCABA “Do Things” Award; Mark Galizio (University of North Carolina Wilmington) was awarded the Fred Keller Excellence in Behavior Analysis Award; Carly Hodges (Little Steps, Big Leaps) received the Technical Utilization Award, and Sarah Teague (Complete ABA) received the Student Scholarship Award. Dr. Carol Pilgrim was also honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

The NCABA Student Representative, Alaina Swick (University of North Carolina Charlotte), organized an excellent student symposium for this year’s conference, including presentations by Sarah Hayes (East Carolina University), Amber Flannigan (East Carolina University), Melissa Tapp (University of North Carolina Charlotte), Janet Sanchez Enriquez (University of North Carolina Charlotte), and Alanna Ferguson (University of North Carolina Wilmington).

No poster session was conducted due to the virtual nature of the conference.

Despite the virtual nature of this year’s conference, this year’s annual business meeting was exceptionally well-attended. The status of licensure for behavior analysts in North Carolina was discussed, with a presentation made by Selene Johnson, who chairs the North Carolina Licensure Board. The newly elected officers were announced and are listed on our website, along with a link that members can use to contact them by email. The Board welcomes Haja Jallow in the position of vice president, Janis Krempa in the position of member at large, and Elizabeth Thuman into the position of student representative. Leigh Ann Strain was re-elected into the position of secretary.

Deserving a special thank you and acknowledgement are Jamie Clary, Ruth Hurst, Fred Spooner, Duke Schell, Selene Johnson, and Sarah Pope who serve non-voting but essential functions for the NCABA Board. Jamie Clary serves as our NCABA web editor, Ruth Hurst serves as our liaison to NCPA, Sarah Pope serves as our ABAI liaison and ACE coordinator, Selene Johnson serve as our community liaison, and Fred Spooner and Duke Schell serve as senior NCABA Board advisors. We want to sincerely thank out-going board members Callie Plattner (past president) and Jacqueline Hamilton for all they have done to support and advance NCABA during their terms.

NCABA did not present a NCABA poster at the ABAI poster session Expo due to changes in conference attendance plans as a result of COVID-19. NCABA elected to reserve funds to provide partial financial assistance in order to send the president or another designated board member to the national conference and annual chapter leadership training in an upcoming year once COVID-19 concerns have abated. This opportunity for financial assistance for an NCABA officer to attend the ABAI convention is reviewed annually by the Executive Council.

Please visit our website at www.nc-aba.com and see additional information regarding past events, upcoming opportunities, and to find information on becoming an NCABA member. The NCABA website also provides information about our history since 1989, including the “25 Year History” slide show, links to newsletters, and information about the conference and upcoming events, including our NCABA summer Autism conference