Buffalo Public Schools (BPS) has awarded a three-year consultancy contract, worth nearly $120,000, to Daemen’s Center for Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA)—consisting of faculty with the college’s ABA department—for autism intervention and support training for the school district.
Vicki Knapp, chair of ABA
Three ABA faculty members will help train BPS educators for up to 60 pre-K-12 classrooms that have or will have students diagnosed with autism.
ABA faculty submitted a bid for the contract after the school corporation requested consultant services that can be provided by a Licensed Behavior Analyst (LBA) or a Board-Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA).
Daemen was chosen for the contract for offering “valid and reliable strategies provided that are research-based for students with autism,” among other reasons. 
“We’re training teachers to help the district to build evidence-based classrooms and to provide best practices,” said Vicki Knapp, assistant professor of applied behavior analysis and chair of the department. “Those educators can then increase the ability to serve students in their classrooms.”
Michelle Hickman and Ashley Brehm—both assistant professors of ABA—and Knapp will be involved with the BPS training.
Hickman and Brehm are also providing similar consultancy services to Niagara Falls City School District.