Kansas ABA

By Kelley L. Harrison

KansABA’s mission is to (a) advance the science and practice of behavior analysis, as well as its education and training; (b) address issues relevant to the science, practice, education, and training in behavior analysis; (c) maintain disciplinary, professional, and ethical standards in the science, practice, education, and training in behavior analysis; and (d) recruit and enhance interest in behavior analysis throughout the State of Kansas and the Kansas City metropolitan area — Clay, Jackson, and Platte counties.

Governance
KansABA is governed by an Executive Council that consists of a president: Kelley Harrison; a full member representative: Marren Leon-Barajas; an adjunct representative: Allyson Bell, and a student representative: Lisa Ambrosek. The Council is assisted by a secretary: Stacha Leslie; and a treasurer: Brittany Mitchelson Vaughn. In addition, KansABA has a Legislative Affairs Committee: Nicole Kanaman, chair; Legislative Liaison: Lisa Popelka, Sara Diaz de Villegas, Laura Camafreita, and Karen Fry; an IT Committee: Bryan Simmons, chair; IT Liaison Matt Laske; a Professional Development committee: Christie Stiehl & Megan Schmidt, chair; and a historian: Ed Morris.
KansABA is excited to announce the following individuals were elected for incoming positions in 2023: Student member representative-elect: Lauratu Bah; Secretary-elect: Breanna Roberts; and President-elect: Allyson Bell.
Finally, KansABA would like to thank Kelley Harrison, who finished her term of service in 2022 as the chair of the Professional Development committee.

Membership
KansABA updated their bylaws in 2023 to expand membership options. Specifically, membership includes not only those who reside in the Kansas or Kansas City Metropolitan area, but also those who practice within these locations as well as those who are enrolled in educational programs that reside within these locations. Additionally, requirements to become a full member or an adjunct member were clarified to include individuals whose degrees are from both accredited and nonaccredited programs (full member), to not require a thesis component to be accepted (full member), and to not require higher education (adjunct member). Finally, a new membership category was added—Stakeholders—to expand KansABA’s representation to individuals who have a stake in behavior analysis, but do not practice behavior analysis as a professional. This may include but is not limited to caregivers, parents, or guardians of individuals consuming or affected by behavior analytic services, individual consumers of services, teachers, or paraprofessionals.
Moving forward, KansABA offers membership to individuals who reside, practice, or are enrolled in an educational program that resides in Kansas or the Kansas City Metropolitan area—including Clay, Jackson, and Platte counties. KanABA has membership categories for Full Members: for individuals that possess the minimum of a master’s degree in behavior analysis, psychology, or a related discipline; Adjunct Members: for any practicing professional in the field of behavior analysis, psychology, or related discipline who possesses any degree below a master’s degree or who has not completed higher education; Student members: for individuals who are currently enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate academic degree program,
internship, certification program, or resident program relevant to a career in behavior analysis, psychology, or other related discipline; Stakeholders: for any individual who has a state in the field of behavior analysis but is not practicing behavior analysis as a professional; and Lifetime Members: for individuals who provide considerable support for KansABA for above the required amount (lifetime members receive free membership and conference registration indefinitely).

Membership includes registration at the annual April KansABA conference, which in turn includes admission to the conference’s Career and Education Fair, snacks and drinks throughout the conference, lunch, and an evening reception. The membership year is conference to conference.

Conferences & Workshops
In 2023, we hosted our annual conference in a hybrid format. Our conference’s theme was “Clinical Services Across the Lifespan: From Research to Practice.” Featured presenters included Dorothea Lerman (University of Houston, Clear Lake), “Current Research and Practice on Improving Job-Related Social and Problem-Solving Skills”; Jon Baker (Western Michigan University), “Promoting Successful Aging Through the Lifespan for Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities”; Katrina Ostmeyer (Beyond the Individual, LLC), “A Guide Through the Maze: Meeting Clinical Needs of Diverse Populations in Behaviorally-Oriented Private Practice”; Byron Wine (The Faison Center & University of Virginia), “Decreasing Employee Injuries in Human Services”; and Ilene Schwartz (University of Washington), “Project DATA 25 Years Later: What We Have Learned From a Quality of Life Influenced EIBI Program.” We also held a business meeting, a Behaviorists for Social Responsibility SIG meeting, and a student poster session during the annual conference. Finally, we presented the 2023 KansABA Service Award to Matt Laske for his outstanding contributions to the KansABA organization and the 2023 Outstanding Contributions to Behavior Analysis in Kansas to Max Foster, former Executive Director of the Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board.
In 2023, we hosted two virtual workshops. Our first workshop’s theme was “Enhancing the Maintenance and Generalization of Staff’s Implementation of Healthy Behavioral Practices” and was presented by Nicole Kanaman (Goodlife Innovations). Our second workshop’s theme was “A Behavioral Crisis in Education: The Behavior Analyst as the School Consultant” and was presented by Anika Kosta (The Operant Teacher).
Both workshops and the annual conference provide our members with professional development opportunities, networking opportunities, and general, supervision, and ethical continuing education credits. Upcoming workshop
and annual conference information can be found on KansABA’s website.

Special Interest Groups
KansABA’s members have a range of interests in teaching, research, service, and practice. To support them, KansABA encourages the development of special interest groups (SIGs). In this, KansABA will (a) assist them with recruitment, promotion, and dissemination; (b) publish SIG news and announcements on the KansABA website and in its conference program; (c) host SIG business meetings at the KansABA conferences; (d) co-sponsor continuing education events; and (e) maintain links between the SIGs and KansABA’s websites.
KansABA currently has one SIG called “Behaviorists for Social Responsibility” (BFSR). Their mission is to promote and advance the application of the science of behavior to address social issues, particularly those with social justice, human rights, and environmental implications. All are welcome to join the SIG. Benefits of membership include professional development, network opportunities, research and service opportunities, access to resources, and topics of interest. This year, the BFSR continued regular meetings and advocacy efforts.

Legislation and Licensure
Our Legislation Committee continues to monitor and inform KansABA members of matters related to licensure requirements and related information through the quarterly KansABA newsletter and throughout the website legislation page. This year, there were no reported changes with respect to Kansas or Missouri licensure. However, the committee continued to work with the Kansas Grassroots ABA group. Together, these teams are identifying ways to better reach and support individuals across the state of Kansas. Their current initiatives include identifying and disseminating resources to help practitioners secure funding for services in the state of Kansas, bringing practitioners from across the state (and especially in rural areas) together for networking and support opportunities through virtual quarterly meetings, and working with state legislators to increase funding opportunities for individuals with diagnoses other than autism and for adults with disabilities.

KansABA Web Site & Online Presence
KansABA is excited to announce a new website in 2024! Our IT chair, Bryan Simmons, transitioned our previous website to a new platform that will allow for easier and expanded access to member resources. Please visit us at www.Kansaba.org. In fact, if you type “KansABA” into Google’s search engine, you will see that KansABA has six of the first seven listings. We will continue to update and expand the site as we continue to grow.

KansABA is also excited to announce an active Facebook and LinkedIn profile in 2024! Our IT chair,
Bryan Simmons, manages our presence on both platforms to engage our members year-round. Please follow us on both platforms under the name “Kansas Association for Behavior Analysis” for the most up-to-date information on KansABA activities.

Initiatives in 2023–2024
KansABA hopes to continue to grow as a professional organization and as a valuable resource for practicing and aspiring behavior analysts in the state of Kansas. As such, we have several initiatives this year. This includes (1) electing a Stakeholder Member Representative and engaging members who join our new membership category—stakeholders, (2) reformatting educational events to ensure we support individuals across the state of Kansas practicing in a variety of settings, and (3) increasing KansABA’s presence in state legislative activity.