Bios – 2016 Conference
Jim Johnston, Ph.D., BCAB-D
Dr. Jim Johnston received his doctorate from the University of Florida in 1970 and held faculty
positions at Georgia State University, the University of Florida, and Auburn University. He has
published both laboratory and field research with both human and non-human species on a
variety of topics. He has longstanding interests in the area of developmental disabilities and
founded the Master’s Program in Applied Behavior Analysis in Developmental Disabilities at
Auburn University. He served as editor of The Behavior Analyst and on the editorial boards of the
Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior and the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis,
among others. He served as president of the Association for Behavior Analysis International, as
well as for the Florida, Alabama, and Southeastern behavior analysis organizations, and was the
first president of the Behavior Analysis Certification Board and the Association of Professional
Behavior Analysts. He co-authored Strategies and tactics of behavioral research, now in its third
edition, with H. S. Pennypacker, as well as Radical behaviorism for ABA practitioners. His most
recent book is The Promise of Behavioral Services for People with Intellectual Disabilities, coedited
with Denny Reid.
Dennis Reid, Ph.D.
Dr. Denny Reid has over 40 years of experience as a clinician and supervisor in educational,
residential, and community support settings for people with autism and intellectual disabilities,
and has consulted with human service agencies in the majority of states of the United States as
well as Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. He has published over 140 refereed journal articles
and book chapters focusing on applied behavior analysis and authored or co-authored 10 books.
His Motivating Human Service Staff book is now in its 2nd Edition and received the Writer’s Digest
Certificate of Merit Award. Dennis is also the senior author of the American Association on
Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD) Supervisory Training Curriculum. In 2007 he
was awarded Fellowship status in the Association for Behavior Analysis International and in 2006
received the AAIDD International Research Award. Dennis is the founder and current director of
the Carolina Behavior Analysis and Support Center in Morganton, North Carolina, USA. His
company has employed people with autism and other severe disabilities in a supported work
capacity for 19 years.
Jeannie Golden, Ph.D., BCBA-D
Dr. Golden is a Licensed Psychologist who received her Ph.D. in School Psychology from Florida
State University in 1981. Dr. Golden has worked as a teacher and school psychologist and had a
private practice in Greenville, NC, where she worked with children and adolescents with behavior
problems and their families for over 15 years. Dr. Golden is an associate professor in Psychology
Department at East Carolina University, where she teaches undergraduate and graduate courses
in Applied Behavior Analysis and conducts Behavior Therapy seminars for child psychiatry
residents at the ECU School of Medicine. She became the first nationally Board Certified Behavior
Analyst in North Carolina in December of 2000 and was given the Florida Association for Behavior
Analysis Honorary Lifetime Membership Award in September of 1994 and the North Carolina
Association for Behavior Analysis Fred S. Keller Excellence in Behavior Analysis Award in
February of 2005. She also received the East Carolina University Alumni Association Teaching
Excellence Award in May of 2001and the Board of Governors Distinguished Professor for Teaching
Award in May of 2009. In April of 2012, Dr. Golden received the ECU Scholarship of Engagement
Award. In July of 2008, Dr. Golden was awarded a $298,000 grant from the Kate B. Reynolds
Charitable Trust entitled ECU-Greene County Partnership to Improve School-Based Mental Health
Services. Dr. Golden is the principal investigator on a grant for over $500,000 from the DHHS
awarded through the NC Department of Public Instruction for expanding school-based mental
health services in two North Carolina counties. Dr. Golden has been a presenter throughout the
United States, as well as in Belgium, Italy, England and Australia.
Patrick C. Friman, Ph.D., BCBA-D
Dr. Pat Friman received his Ph.D. from the University of Kansas. He is the current Vice President of
Behavioral Health at Boys Town and a Clinical Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the
University of Nebraska School of Medicine. He is the former Editor of the Journal of Applied
Behavior Analysis and former President of the Association for Behavior Analysis International. He
is currently the Book Review editor for the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis and on the
editorial boards of six peer reviewed journals. He has published more than 190 scientific articles
and chapters and three books. The primary focus of his scientific and clinical work in is in the area
of Behavioral Pediatrics and Behavioral Medicine. Dr. Friman’s work in behavioral pediatrics has
concentrated on the gap between primary medical care for children on one side, and referralbased clinical child psychological and psychiatric care, on the other. A secondary focus is on
adolescent behavior and development an example of which is a commercially available DVD on
Adolescence and Other Temporary Mental Disorders. He also specializes in consultation regarding
workplace issues such as motivation, dealing with difficult people, change, happiness and
pathways to success.
Kerin Weingarten, Ph.D., BCBA-D
Dr. Weingarten obtained a dual Masters of Arts (MA) in Clinical Psychology: Applied Behavior
Analysis and Clinical Counseling specializations from the Chicago School of Professional
Psychology. During these studies, she focused on data-integrity, graphing, teaching units, and the
philosophy of behavior analysis. She predominately focused on and improving the lives of
individuals with developmental disabilities and mental health concerns in day-treatment settings,
as well as improving the working environment of their caregivers. Kerin completed a PhD in
Experimental Psychology from the University of Wisconsin: Milwaukee under Dr. Jay Moore..
Kerin focused on a “translational approach” to our science- permitting the study of non-humans
animals to direct the work she was doing with humans. As Clinical Director at Carolina Center for
Applied Behavior Analysis and Autism Treatment (CCABA), she focuses on improving the lives of
clients and their families with Autism. With staff, she aims to improve the working environment
and elicit staff abilities. In the clinic, she aims to improve data and treatment integrity and focus
the Center on giving back to the community through displaying research at conferences and in our
Centers, and by hosting educational classes, opportunities, and continuing education units (CEUs).
Erica Brown, M.S., BCBA
Erica is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. She graduated from Salem College with a Bachelors of
Arts Degree in Psychology. She earned her Master’s degree in Applied Behavior Analysis from
Columbia University, Teachers College. Erica began her career at the Mariposa School for Children
with Autism as a one to one and social skills instructor for students ages 3-13. Erica also served as
a Program Coordinator at Mariposa where she developed and coordinated a track out program for
students with autism and other developmental delays. Additionally, she worked as the Program
Coordinator for the social skills and afterschool one to one Verbal Behavior programs. While
pursuing her masters’ degree, Erica worked full-time in a self-contained preschool classroom and
an inclusion first grade classroom that employed the principles of Applied Behavior Analysis. In
2013, Erica began working at Carolina Center for ABA and Autism Treatment as a consultant for
the Cary area. Erica is currently is the Director of Training and Staff Development and provides
off-sight BACB supervision for graduate students employed at Carolina Center.
Adam Ventura, MS, BCBA
Adam is a graduate of Florida International University. Adam has been a Board Certified Behavior
Analyst (BCBA) for seven years and is the founder and CEO of World Evolve, Inc., a behavioral
organization located in south Florida. Adam has been working in the field of applied behavior
analysis for over 10 years and has experience working with children and adults with varying
disabilities. Adam was a member of the local review committee in Miami, Florida for over four
years and is currently a member of the behavior analysis and practice committee (BAPC) for the
state of Florida. Adam also currently serves an adjunct professor in the psychology department at
Florida International University.
Jarrett Barnhill, M.D
Dr. Barnhill is a professor of psychiatry and Clinical Professor in Neurology at the University of
North Carolina School of Medicine. Dr. Barnhill received his undergraduate degree at the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and his medical degree from the Bowman Gray School
of Medicine - Wake Forest University. Dr. Barnhill completed residencies in general psychiatry,
child psychiatry, and neuropsychiatry. He is a Distinguished Life Fellow in the American
Psychiatric Association and Fellow in the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.
Dr Barnhill served on the board of directors for the National Association of Dual Diagnosis as
treasurer and vice president from 2003-2015. He is the 2008 recipient of the Frank J Melanoscino
Award from NADD. He played a major role in the development of the Diagnostic Manual for
Intellectual Disability (DMID), serving on the International Advisory Board and section
coordinator for the section on Childhood and Adolescence. He is an editor upcoming and
Diagnostic Manual –Intellectual Disability (DM-ID-2) schedule to be released in 2017. He served
on the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Committee of the American Academy of Child and
Adolescent Psychiatry for 8 years. In 2012 he received the American Psychiatric Foundation's
Frank J Melanoscino award. Dr. Barnhill's clinical interests include autism, mental disorders in
individuals with mental retardation and other developmental disorders, and the neuropsychiatry
of traumatic brain injury, metabolic, mood and seizure disorders, Tourette's and ObsessiveCompulsive disorders.
Cynthia Anderson, Ph.D., BCBA-D
Dr. Anderson holds a PhD in Clinical Child psychology. She is a board licensed psychologist and a
BCBA-D. Cynthia is the Aeschleman Distinguished Professor of Psychology at Appalachian State
University and currently serves as the Applied Representative to the Executive Council of the
Association for Behavior Analysis International and Member at Large for Division 25 (Behavior
Analysis) of the American Psychological Association. Cynthia has been working with children
exhibiting challenging behavior for over 20 years. Much of her work is centered on better
understanding factors that facilitate and inhibit adoption and sustained implementation of
evidence-based practice in school and community contexts. Her work has been funded by the U.S.
Department of Education and has published over 70 peer-reviewed publications, books and book
chapters, and technical assistance documents in the areas of functional behavior assessment,
function-based interventions, and pediatric feeding disorders.
Molly Pinney, M.S.
Molly Ola Pinney is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Global Autism Project, a
nonprofit that increases the capacity of local individuals working with children with autism
worldwide. She started the organization after moving to Ghana in 2003 with a family who had a
child with autism. She was struck by the lack of awareness and services provided there when
families started showing up at her house looking for the woman who knew what autism was. She
has grown the Global Autism Project to an organization that has served six countries so far and is
well on its way to achieving its goal of establishing centers of excellence in 20 countries by year
2020. She has been the recipient of numerous awards and accolades for her work, including the
Comcast NBC Universal award, the Autism Light Foundation award as well as given the
opportunity to ring the NASDAQ bell alongside her staff in 2012. Molly has been an invited
speaker at multiple events in the fields of nonprofit leadership, applied behavior analysis, and
entrepreneurship. As a leader in the nonprofit community and international service delivery,
Molly has collaborated with multiple universities to increase their ability to disseminate applied
behavior analysis internationally. Through a partnership established with the University of
Massachusetts Boston, Molly was instrumental in the certification of the first Board Certified
Behavior Analyst® in East Africa.
Patrick Ballantine
Patrick served 10 years in the North Carolina State Senate, As a Senator, Ballantine had many
distinctions. North Carolina Taxpayers United, a non-partisan watchdog group that monitors tax
and spend legislation, named Ballantine the "Taxpayers' Best Friend." Citizens for a Sound
Economy gave him a "Perfect 100" score, and Senator Ballantine had the 2nd highest business
ranking from NCFREE (North Carolina Forum for Research and Economic Education). Sen.
Ballantine was also published in the Wake Forest Law Review for a compelling article advocating
regulatory reform. Sen. Ballantine resigned his Senate seat in April 2004 to run for Governor of
North Carolina. Sen. Ballantine challenged several qualified candidates and won the Primary
Election in late July 2004 to become the Republican Nominee for Governor. In a hard-fought
campaign that took Senator Ballantine to all 100 counties, he lost the election to the incumbent
Governor Mike Easley. With a valiant effort, he received almost 1.5 million votes, more than any
other Republican candidate for Governor in North Carolina's history. Mr. Ballantine is an attorney
licensed to practice in State Court, Federal Court and the United States Supreme Court. Ballantine
graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a BA in political science, and
he received his law degree from the University of Dayton, where he was bestowed with The Order
of Barristers. Mr. Ballantine is an entrepreneur having built many successful businesses. He
founded Ballantine Company, Inc., a public affairs firm specializing in government relations. He
and his lovely wife Lisa have a daughter, Wilker (16), and a son, Augie (9). They live in Wilmington
and are active members of St. Andrews on the Sound Episcopal Church.
Lorri Shealy Unumb
Lorri is a lawyer, professor, and the mother of three children – Ryan (14), who has autism;
Christopher (11); and Jonathan (8). In 2005, she wrote ground-breaking autism insurance
legislation for South Carolina (“Ryan’s Law”) that passed in 2007 and served as the catalyst for the
national movement toward autism insurance reform. Lorri began her work in autism advocacy as
a volunteer. In 2008, she was recruited by the New York-based non-profit Autism Speaks, where
she now advocates full-time on behalf of individuals with autism. As head of state government
affairs, she has testified more than 100 times on health insurance issues in legislatures around the
country. A frequent keynote speaker, Lorri still teaches a health law course at George Washington
University Law School called “Autism and the Law.” She and her husband Dan wrote the first-ever
comprehensive textbook on legal issues related to autism, also called “Autism and the Law.” Lorri
and Dan recently founded the Autism Academy of South Carolina, a non-profit center serving
the year-round therapeutic needs of children on the spectrum.
Michael Perone, Ph.D.
Dr. Mike Perone earned his PhD in 1981 at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He was an
assistant professor at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington before joining the faculty at
West Virginia University in 1984, where he is a professor of psychology and an associate dean. His
research is concerned with developing laboratory models of behavioral processes involved in
problem behavior such as failures of self-control.
James E. Carr, Ph.D., BCBA-D
Dr. Jim Carr, is the Chief Executive Officer of the Behavior Analyst Certification Board. His
professional interests include behavior analyst credentialing, behavioral assessment and
treatment of developmental disabilities, verbal behavior, and practitioner training. Dr. Carr has
published over 125 scientific articles on these and other topics. Dr. Carr is a Fellow of the
Association for Behavior Analysis International. He is the editor-in-chief of the journal The
Analysis of Verbal Behavior and has served on the editorial boards of 10 other behavior analysis
journals, including 4 appointments as associate editor. Dr. Carr is the president of the Colorado
Association for Behavior Analysis and past president of the Mid-American and Alabama
Associations for Behavior Analysis. He received his doctorate in 1996 from Florida State
University under the mentorship of Dr. Jon Bailey and previously served on the behavior analysis
faculties at University of Nevada-Reno (1996-1999), Western Michigan University (1999-2008),
and Auburn University (2008-2011).
Maddie Reid
Maddie received her undergraduate in Psychology from Haverford College in 2009, and went on to
receive her masters degree in Human Services Management from McDaniel College. During
graduate school in Maryland, Maddie worked as a manager of a residential program for adults
with disabilities, and moved to Virginia, then North Carolina, to pursue a career in the ABA
field. Maddie received her BCBA in 2014, and is currently working as a BCBA at the Carolina
Center for ABA. Maddie maintains a professional mentorship relationship with Dr. Byron Wine, a
prominent BCBA-D in the OBM field, who assists with OBM-driven projects within the Carolina
Center.
Melanie H. Bachmeyer, PhD, BCBA-D
Dr. Bachmeyer received her master’s degree from Georgia State University while working at the
Marcus Autism Center under the direction of Drs. Cathleen Piazza and Wayne Fisher. She received
her doctorate from the University of Iowa under the direction of Drs. David Wacker and John
Northup. She completed a pre-doctoral internship in the Pediatric Feeding Disorders Program at
the University of Iowa’s Children Hospital and a post-doctoral fellowship in the Pediatric Feeding
Disorders Program at the Kennedy Krieger Institute and Johns Hopkins University School of
Medicine. Dr. Bachmeyer is currently an assistant professor at the University of North Carolina
Wilmington. She conducts clinical research focused on behavioral assessment and treatment of
pediatric feeding disorders. She has published on the topic in peer-reviewed journals, such as the
Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, Behavior Analysis in Practice, and Behavioral Interventions.
She is the current President-Elect of the North Carolina Association for Behavior Analysis.
Audrey Shen
Audrey is currently a Board Certified Behavior Analyst for the Carolina Center, where she designs
ABA intervention programs for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), works closely
with staff to ensure high quality services are delivered to families, and collaborates with parents
and caregivers to create a successful learning environment for each child. She has over 15 years
experience providing empirically based interventions and Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) to
children with ASD. Audrey holds a Master’s degree in Education with a specialization in Autism
Education from San Diego State University, and she has been a Board Certified Behavior Analyst
for the past 5 years. She has conducted research on the effectiveness of ABA treatments and has
presented her research at the annual ABA International Convention. She was an initial employee
of ABC of NC, nonprofit school for children with ASD in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Audrey
was most recently the Clinical Manager for Easter Seals in California, where she held the overall
responsibility for the development of behavior programs, supervision of staff, and relationships
with funders, school districts, and families. In addition, she conducted research at the UC Davis
MIND Institute, where she helped carry out a brain imaging study to examine how the brain
develops in children with ASD.
Holly Moses
Holly Moses is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst, Licensed Professional Counselor, and Licensed
Psychological Associate practicing at Crossvine Clinical Group in Raleigh. Holly’s specialties
include diagnostic evaluation and treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorder, treatment of anxiety,
impulsivity, social skills deficits, depression, aggression, self-injurious behavior, and self-help
skills. She has published numerous research articles and is a frequent presenter on topics such as
learning, challenging behavior, ADHD, Autism, and parenting stress.
Rachel Bowman
Rachel received her Ph.D. in child clinical psychology from West Virginia University and attended a
predoctoral internship training program in developmental disabilities and applied behavior
analysis at the Kennedy Krieger Institute. Prior to her move to North Carolina in 2011, she was on
the faculty at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences for 9 years. More recently, Rachel
was an assistant professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Pediatrics at the Duke University
School of Medicine. She is excited about starting her new private practice clinic in Hillsborough,
NC, Dogwood Psychology Center for Children and Families. Her specialty areas include the
diagnosis and treatment of autism spectrum disorders, parent training, early intervention, and
behavior therapy. In her spare time, she enjoys running, hiking, biking, playing piano and guitar,
international travel, and volunteering with retired racing greyhound rescue groups.
Sara Rose Roman
Sara Rose has been providing applied behavior analysis to private clients since 2007. She works in
clients' homes, schools, and in the community and places a strong emphasis on parent training.
She graduated from Ball State University in 2015 with her MA in Applied Behavior Analysis. Sara
Rose is currently completing her supervised independent fieldwork hours and plans to sit for the
national certification exam in August.
Maria Lemler
Maria is an Autism Specialist for the UNC TEACCH Autism Program in Charlotte. She is a BCBA and
licensed Early Childhood Special Educator. Maria has been working with people with Autism
Spectrum Disorder and other developmental disabilities for several years and previously worked
for the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center following receiving her Master’s degree from Peabody College
at Vanderbilt University.
Sarah Kunkel
Sarah is a Positive Behavior Support Trainer with the West Virginia Autism Training Center in
Huntington, West Virginia. She has worked in the field of Autism for almost 10 years with a wide
range of clients and has provided numerous trainings on a variety of topics at local, statewide, and
international conferences. She is also a Board Certified Behavior Analyst and a doctoral student in
the Psychology Department at Marshall University.