Dana
The Big Cheese(y)
Go-to karaoke song? Salt-N-Pepa - Shoop
Most-used emoji? 😬 🙃 ❤️ 🤦🏻♀️
In-N-Out Burger order? Double double protein style, with cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickles, pepperonicinis, ketchup and mustard, NO dressing.
Be honest, how many cups of coffee do you drink in a day? 2
Personal motto: You can't take it with you
Introvert, extrovert, or ambivert? Ambivert
Hidden talent: I can touch my nose with my tongue
Most controversial food opinion: Sardines are delicious.
Myers Briggs personality type: Logician and adventurer
Astrological sign and do you believe in it? Capricorn and heck yes!
Former Broadway performer (Les Misérables) turned BCBA and founder of PTB. Dana has helped thousands pass their board exams while somehow making reinforcement schedules entertaining (or turning it into a song). When she's not creating exam prep tools, Dana is training her Yorkie to stop barking, shopping for another Stanley cup, or learning pickleball.
Tyra Sellers
Academic Shenaniganator
Go-to karaoke song? Bad Reputation - Joan Jett and the Blackhearts.
Most-used emoji? ❣️
In-N-Out Burger order? Pass.
Be honest, how many cups of coffee do you drink in a day? 1-2 decaf, oat milk lattes.
Personal motto: Leave each situation a little better than I found it.
Introvert, extrovert, or ambivert? Factory installed introvert with excellent public-facing software.
Hidden talent: Knowing an alarmingly large number of song lyrics, esp for 80s songs.
Most controversial food opinion: Meat eaters are pickier than vegetarians.
Myers Briggs personality type: Professionally ENFJ, privately INFJ, occasionally ENTJ when someone has created an avoidable mess.
Astrological sign and do you believe in it? Taurus, and no, but it's still fun to talk about.
Tyra is a tattooed, vegetarian, wear-her-heart-on-her-sleeve kind of human. She has a moderately alarming love of flowers and plants and is a bit of a Jane of all trades when it comes to behavior analysis. She loves solving problems and serves as the resident behavior analysis nerd.
Rita
Marketing Legend
Go-to karaoke song? Bohemian Rhapsody
Most-used emoji? No thanks.
In-N-Out Burger order? Double double, animal style
Be honest, how many cups of coffee do you drink in a day? 2
Personal motto: Friends don't let friends overuse exclamation marks.
Introvert, extrovert, or ambivert? Extrovert
Hidden talent: Olympic level sleeping
Most controversial food opinion: Beets are kryptonite
Myers Briggs personality type: Architect/Logistician
Astrological sign and do you believe in it? In fairness, I'm a Libra.
PTB's resident marketing expert. You will find her working hard (or hardly working) by a pool or a beach, in a Golden Girls coverup alongside a portable workstation. Outside of work, she's "reading" an audiobook, eating her husband's awesome pizza creations, or famously revolting against the overuse of the exclamation mark!
René
Femme Fatale of Finance
Go-to karaoke song? Love Shack - B52's
Most-used emoji? 😂
In-N-Out Burger order? Double double animal style and animal style fries!
Be honest, how many cups of coffee do you drink in a day? At least 2...okay 3. But sometimes 4.
Personal motto: Find something to laugh about every day
Introvert, extrovert, or ambivert? Ambivert
Hidden talent: Changing the lyrics of 80's songs to be about her cats
Most controversial food opinion: Stale gummy bears are better than fresh
Myers Briggs personality type: ESTJ
Astrological sign and do you believe in it? Pisces - Some days yes, some days no. Is that a Pisces thing to say?
If she could, Rene' would live forever in October and loves all-things Halloween and horror. She enjoys gardening, bowling (badly) with friends and movie marathons. If she's not slaying a spreadsheet, you can find find her searching for vintage vinyl or hanging out with her two kitties, Cleo and Mew.
Karina
Chaos Coordinator Task Juggler
Go-to karaoke song? Depeche Mode, Everything Counts.
Most-used emoji? ❤️🔥
In-N-Out Burger order? Double-Double animal style.
Be honest, how many cups of coffee do you drink in a day? I am more of a green juice and tea type of gal.
Personal motto: "Don't dream it, be it."
Introvert, extrovert, or ambivert? Ambivert.
Hidden talent: Animal whisperer.
Most controversial food opinion: Pineapple on pizza is A-OK with me.
Myers Briggs personality type: ENFJ
Astrological sign and do you believe in it? Leo. Do I believe in Astrology? What time where you born? I can make you your birth chart.
Karina is an LA native. She loves the arts and enjoys long hikes in the mountains or a day at the beach with her poodle, Polly. Karina appreciates all things analog. She’s a film photography enthusiast. When she’s not shooting photos for the website, you can catch her behind the scenes balancing logistics and managing day-to-day operations.
Claudia
Professional People Person
Go-to karaoke song? Africa by Toto
Most-used emoji? ✨
In-N-Out Burger order? Cheeseburger, no onion, with yellow peppers
Be honest, how many cups of coffee do you drink in a day? One. Plus a Red Bull, for balance.
Personal motto: It seemed like a good idea at the time
Introvert, extrovert, or ambivert? Extrovert sun, introvert rising
Hidden talent: Somehow needing orthopedic inserts despite having a desk job
Most controversial food opinion: Yes to pickles, always.
Myers Briggs personality type: ISTJ
Astrological sign and do you believe in it? Cancer. Selectively.
Claudia spends her days solving mysteries and practicing the opposite of stoicism. A professional talker-to-people, she’s fueled by sparkling water and the unshakable belief that customers are smiling when reading her email responses. She has 8 pets, likes getting caught in the rain, and is not into yoga.
Erin
Wordsmith & Content Crafter
Go-to karaoke song? I still don't have one.
Most-used emoji? 🫡
In-N-Out Burger order? Cheeseburger, Animal Style fries, Diet Coke.
Be honest, how many cups of coffee do you drink in a day? At least 3.
Personal motto: One good turn deserves another.
Introvert, extrovert, or ambivert? Ambivert.
Hidden talent: Song parodies.
Most controversial food opinion: A good burrito is better than a fancy restaurant.
Myers Briggs personality type: INFP
Astrological sign and do you believe in it? Scorpio and, unfortunately, yes.
Born and raised in California, Erin has lived all over the Golden State but currently calls San Francisco home. She is PTB's resident writer, so, if you're subscribed to our newsletter or if you follow us on social media, then you're familiar with her work. When she's not crafting content, you can find her power walking the hills of SF or tending to her princely cocker spaniel, Bernie.
Jeremy
Friend of Computer
Go-to karaoke song? Alan Parsons Project - Eye in the Sky
Most-used emoji? 😔
In-N-Out Burger order? Double Double, mustard-fried, cheese fry, Coke.
Be honest, how many cups of coffee do you drink in a day? 2?
Personal motto: I lied. - "My main goal is to blow up and then act like I don't know nobody." - RiFF RaFF
Introvert, extrovert, or ambivert? Introvert
Hidden talent: I'm certain I would have won Bozo's Grand Prize Game.
Most controversial food opinion: I'm one of those people who are particular about 'chili'. Most people have never had chili, they instead enjoy some tomato-based bean stew that I call 'tzchili'. It sounds the same, that way I don't have to offend people when they talk about their tzchili.
Myers Briggs personality type: INTP
Astrological sign and do you believe in it? Virgo - not a chance. (I think that's a Virgo thing.)
Jeremy is a record-collecting, Horror movie obsessed, run-of-the-mill nerd. He worked in System Administration for a number of years before making the transition to software development. His main goal is to try and make things easier for the team.
Subject Matter Experts
Adrienne Bradley
I was born before the first ever text message sent.
Carmen Ruiz-Ochoa, MA, BCBA
I have ridden my bike along the California coast 2 times in my lifetime, accumulating a total of 1090 miles!
Celia Heyman
Worked in finance before joining the ABA profession and was an official ballperson of the US Open Tennis Championship!
Courtney Bloom
I find assembling large-scale furniture strangely relaxing. The instructions are more of a backup plan.
Dr. Javier Virués-Ortega, PhD, BCBA-D.
Probably the only behavior analyst to have caved 4,000 feet underground!
Karen Dealy, MS, BCBA
An avid sea kayaker and lover of lighthouses, I've paddled out to over 100 lighthouses off the coasts of the US, Canada, the UK, and France.
Katie Harris
I’ve been working with individuals with disabilities and learning strategies of ABA since I was 14. I have a horrific phobia of sharks, even though the beach is my favorite place. I have three sassy daughters and two very ill-behaved dogs.
Mariela Feldman, MS, BCBA
Ballroom dancing is my favorite hobby. It reminds me that progress comes through practice, feedback, and persistence, just like in ABA.
Robert Ryan Pabico, MS, BCBA
Although I work in Applied Behavior Analysis, somehow my daughter, Harper, has me completely behaviorally trained. She is my world!!!
Sarah Jean Keck, Biesold, BCBA
Prior to my work in this field, I trained dogs professionally. During this time, you could find me hidden in a rubble pile to train Search and Rescue dogs, creating an obstacle course for a puppy with an underdeveloped cerebellum and hiding samples in my pockets to train Diabetic Alert dogs.