Star Autism Support

Lisa Kemmerer

Ph.D., BCBA-D

PHDBCBA-D

Dr. Kemmerer has been working with children with autism since 1994. She is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst and received her PhD in Special Education with an emphasis in applied behavior analysis from the University of Iowa. Some of Lisa’s work experiences include: faculty positions at multiple universities, autism coordinator for the University of Iowa, Children’s Hospital Autism Center, behavior analyst with school districts in Iowa and West Virginia, special education teacher, and paraprofessional.

Kara Magee-Arick

M.S., BCBA

MSBCBA

Kara has spent the last decade working directly with students that have Autism. She received her Master’s degree in special education from Portland State University and is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA). She is a co-author of both the Links Curriculum and Sunshine Literacy Program and currently travels the country conducting workshops and providing in-class training for STAR Autism Support. Kara is an experienced education professional having worked as a classroom teacher and Autism Specialist with students of all ages as well as with adults in community and vocational settings.

Sheila Magee

M.S.

MS

Sheila has served in public schools for over 30 years as a classroom teacher, school psychologist and administrator. She has coordinated programs for children with autism at both the pre-school and school-age level. The programs she coordinated have implemented the STAR Program and served as model training sites. She has many years of experience coaching and implementing the strategies found in the STAR Program, including: Discrete Trial Training, Pivotal Response Training, Teaching Functional Routines and Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports.

Aimee Dearmon

M.S. CCC-SLP, BCBA

MSCCC-SLPBCBA

Aimee is a speech and language pathologist (SLP) and a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) who has over 15 years of experience serving students with autism in public, private and home settings. In addition to providing workshops and training in schools across the country and Puerto Rico, Aimee works with STAR Autism Support to manage and develop large projects. Her work includes developing workshops, building training sites, and coaching staff to successfully implement The STAR Program and Links Curriculum in several states, regions, and districts.

Mark Howard

M.S.Ed.

MS

After early professional experience in college administration, Mark worked for more than a decade as a special educator, trainer, and mentor for teachers and paraprofessionals in primary and secondary public schools. During his time in the classroom, he developed and led a specialized program using the STAR Program to support students in kindergarten through grade 6. Mark holds a master’s degree in education, and has presented at local, regional, national, and international professional development opportunities and conferences.

Shawn Kolb

BCBA

BCBA

As a Training Specialist for STAR Autism Support, Shawn Kolb provides professional development and on-site coaching for educators and parents on implementing evidence-based practices for students with autism. Shawn is a Board Certified Behavioral Analyst (BCBA) who has over 30 years of experience working with children and adults with autism and developmental disabilities. Most recently she developed and provided oversite for a day program for preschoolers with autism which utilized the STAR curriculum.

Cara Speicher, M.Ed, BCaBA

LABA

LABA

Cara Speicher, M.Ed, BCaBA, LABA is a Training Specialist with STAR Autism Support with over 25 years of experience in autism education. She holds a Master's in Education - Special Education/Autism Intervention from the University of North Texas and has supported students across public schools and private practice for more than two decades. Cara specializes in autism intervention, behavior analysis, early intervention, and program development, and has spent 15+ years implementing the STAR Program and Links Curriculum.

Cami Ferguson

M.S. CCC-SLP, BCBA

MSCCC-SLPBCBA

Cami worked within the private sector for 6 years and the public school setting for 14 years. Within the school setting Cami was a part of the Assistive Technology team, Autism team, provided hands-on STAR training, supervised SLPs and graduate students. She provided support for Preschool Programs for Children with Disabilities, Functional Life Skills and Structured Teaching Method classrooms. She works with children and families with speech and language disorders, autism and other developmental disabilities.

Joel Arick

Ph.D.

PHD

Dr. Arick has experience working as an educator, researcher and trainer in the field of autism for over 40 years. He is the lead author of the nationally used STAR (Strategies for Teaching based-on Autism Research) Program and Links Curriculum. He is also a co-author of several other published programs in the area of autism. These programs include the ASIEP-3 (Autism Screening Instrument for EducationalPlanning-3, 2004), the KADI (Krug Asperger Disorder Index, 2003), and the FACTER Program (Functional Assessment and Curriculum for Teaching Everyday Routines, 2004). Dr.

Karen Brown

M.S.

MS

Karen received her Master's in Human Development & Early Childhood Disorders from the University of Texas at Dallas in 2009 and went on to work with Early Childhood Intervention. During that time, she contributed to the assessment of children birth to 3 with special needs as well as provided interventions and parent support within the home setting. Since 2012, Karen has been a certified Special Education Teacher, working in a variety of classrooms including Functional Communication, Resource/Inclusion, and Early Childhood Special Education.

Darby Lasley

M.S.

MS

Darby works with STAR Autism Support to provide workshops and hands-on consultation to classrooms throughout the country and in the state of Oregon with classrooms who have been trained to serve as model training sites (Oregon Regional Program Autism Training Sites/OrPATS). Darby brings classroom experience as an elementary life skills teacher who helped create the first elementary ORPATS training site in Lane County. For four years Darby served as a Program Supervisor overseeing the elementary life skills program and the regional autism program for Lane Education Service District.

Nate Marsden

B.S.

BS

Nate has worked in public education, with students with autism and developmental disabilities, since 1999. As a training specialist for STAR Autism Support, Nate provides on-site consultation to teachers to implement evidence-based practices. Nate holds a degree in Special Education from Weber State University and has an Early Childhood Special Education license from Utah State University. Nate has been a Behavior/Autism Specialist and a Special Education Teacher. As an early childhood educator, Nate implemented the STAR curriculum as part of the Utah Statewide Autism Education Project.