The lab without borders.

 Dr. Cirincione-Ulezi has served as a special educator, clinician, educational administrator and professor of special education. Her clinical experience spans infancy through adulthood. Currently, she is a Faculty Director for the ABA and Clinical Psychology Programs at Capella University. She is CEO and founder of ULEZI, LLC and co-founder of Inquiry, Inc. In addition to serving as President for the Illinois Association for Behavior Analysis, she is an Affiliate Chapters Board Member for Applied Behavior Analysis International and serves as a subject matter expert for the Behavior Analysis Certification Board. She is on the Editorial Board for the Journal of Behavior and Social Issues and has published in the journal Behavior Analysis in Practice.

Her research interests include supervision, mentoring, leadership and culturally humble practice within the field of ABA. She is a champion for equity, diversity and inclusion and is deeply committed to using her skills and experiences, paired with the science of applied behavior analysis, to empower the lives of the people she supports and serves, in positive and meaningful ways.

Dr. Cirincione-Ulezi holds a Doctorate degree in Education from Loyola University of Chicago. She holds a Master’s degree in Special Education from the University of Illinois at Chicago and a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership from the American College of Education. She is a graduate of the Irving B. Harris Infant Mental Health Specialist program at Erikson Institute of Chicago. She is an Illinois licensed special education teacher and an Illinois Early Intervention provider and State evaluator.

 Dr. Noor Syed (she/her) is an Assistant Professor of Applied Behavior Analysis, Clinical Coordinator, and founding Director of the Center for Autism Advocacy: Research, Education, and Services (CAARES) with SUNY Empire State College. She has also recently been named the Turben Director of Autism Advocacy. The Center’s primary initiative is to help SUNY Empire become a fully inclusive and supportive college for those who identify as neurodiverse through a multi-tiered system of support framework; this work is being conducted alongside autistic colleagues and caregivers in autism. Dr. Syed also directs a Master’s of Science program in ABA through SUNY Empire. She is the Executive Director of Anderson Center International, an organization dedicated to building compassionate, sustainable resources for evidenced-based practices globally, an Adjunct Doctoral Advisor in ABA with Endicott College, and a certified general and special education teacher. Dr. Syed is the co-editor of Research Ethics in Behavior Analysis and serves on the ABA Ethics Hotline. Her interests lie in compassionate care, cultural humility, and social justice through an analysis of diversity, equity, and inclusion. She received her undergraduate degree in behavior analysis under Dr. Raymond G. Romanczyk in the Institute of Child Development at Binghamton University and completed her PhD in ABA with Dr. R. Douglas Greer at Teachers College, Columbia University.  

 Dr. Christen Russell (she/her/they) is the founder and Executive Director of Affecting Behavior Change (ABC). She founded ABC from her passion and commitment to education, diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice, ethical behavior and decision-making, and behavior analysis. Through continual personal and professional growth, Christen’s mission is to help systematically fill the gaps in areas of continuing education, professional development, and research. In addition to direct service in educational and organizational settings, Christen has been actively involved in the field of behavior analysis through academic instruction, training and supervision of staff, as well as the design and dissemination of applied research. Christen holds adjunct faculty positions teaching masters and doctoral level students at Endicott College and Capella University and is an expert ethicist on the ABA Ethics Hotline. Christen received her PhD. in Applied Behavior Analysis from Endicott College, an M.S. in Psychology with a concentration in Behavior Analysis from Kaplan University, and a B.A. in Psychology from Rutgers University. Christen received the Exceptional Contribution to DEI Initiatives award from Endicott College’s Institute for Applied Behavioral Science.   Her research interests include Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Justice, and Belonging (DEIJB), Functional Assessments in Organizational Behavior Management, Performance Improvement, Best Practices in Teaching Behavior Analysis (TBA), Systems Analyses, and Instructional Design. Christen has published her work in several book chapters and peer-reviewed journals and presents at regional, national, and international conferences.