Clinical Director
Lauren
Lauren has been a part of Woodbury since 2011 where she started as a Clinical Supervisor and has since stepped into the role of Clinical Director.
Lauren started her professional journey with an undergraduate degree in psychology after learning about autism within one of her lectures. She was fortunate enough to find a position within an ABA school in the UK where she started as a junior therapist. Over the years she progressed to a senior therapist role and a classroom teacher allowing her the opportunity to gain valuable experience within the classroom. Since then she has successfully completed a mastered in special education as well as gaining the relevant experience and supervision to become a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA).
Lauren moved to Australia to be part of the Woodbury team and has played an integral part in the development of Woodbury’s specialised curriculum and the training and coaching of their highly qualified teaching and therapy team.
Through her experience within ABA, Lauren has had the opportunity to work with a variety of individuals, mainly with a primary diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder, ranging from early intervention through to adult services. This broad experience, across age groups and with a variety of developmental and emotional disabilities, provides her with a very practical and functional application of ABA. She has strong interests in the field of verbal behaviour, group learning and integration. Lauren has a true passion for the discipline and endeavours to continue to support and guide Woodbury in its aspiration to provide quality and meaningful education to our students.
Clinical Supervisor
Ross
Ross moved to Sydney in July 2019 from Columbus, Ohio in the US. At The Ohio State University he received BA degrees in Moderate-Intensive Special Education and Disability Studies and an MA in Applied Behaviour Analysis.
Ross joins Woodbury with many years of teaching and behaviour analytic experience across all age ranges and ability levels. Formerly he was employed with the Ohio School for the Deaf and other suburban schools and provider agencies throughout Columbus and Ohio, followed up by 4 years as a behaviour support specialist at The Ohio State University Nisonger Center.
With over 10 years of experience working in clinical, home, and community/recreational settings as an independent care provider and ABA therapist for children and individuals with low incidence disabilities and multiple diagnoses including autism, he believes that all exceptional children deserve individualized approaches to education in order to achieve their true capabilities. His research studies and interests primarily lie in the scope of children with ASD and multiple disabilities and equpping professional staff, caregivers and families with the proper training to effectively assist with intensive challenging behaviours. Ross is fluent in American Sign Language (ASL) and looks forward to the opportunity to learn Auslan (Australian Sign Language) to assist with functional communication training for Woodbury students.
Ross is ecstatic to join the Woodbury team and has high hopes for the individualized outcomes to be achieved.
Speech Pathologist
Karen
Karen is a speech pathologist from the US where she lived in two very cold places, Michigan and Colorado. Prior to moving, she worked as a speech pathologist for 9 years.
Karen is a LAMP certified speech pathologist and has many years experience working with Speech Generating Devices (SGD). Prior to coming to Woodbury, Karen has spent 7 years working in a private non-profit ABA school, very similar to Woodbury. Most of her work has been in early intervention and with primary school-aged children. During this time she was also working in her own private practise as well as working part time at the Children’s Hospital to help run their summer AAC camp. She found this fun and an eye opening experience to be with children using their communication devices in the heart of the Rocky Mountains.
Karen moved to Australia 3.5 years ago, and feels very lucky to be part of the Woodbury team; “It is my passion to work with children on the autism spectrum and their families so I am grateful to be part of the Woodbury team”.
Teacher
Rebecca
Rebecca has 10 years of experience in Applied Behaviour Analysis; her first experience was in delivering home therapy to families using service providers and her initial training in ABA with service providers such as Aspire and ABI.
She has been a teacher at Woodbury since July 2010. Rebecca has a Bachelor in Arts (majoring in Psychology), along with a Masters in Special Education, specialising in emotional and behavioural concerns. Currently, Rebecca is undertaking coursework to become a BCBA and is intending to complete this by the end of 2018. Rebecca’s particular interests are in helping children develop their self-help skills with regard to daily living tasks, communication, helping students manage and identify their own behaviours (where possible) and making the transition to other schools as smooth as possible for both the children and their families. Rebecca is also passionate about training others in ABA, including staff and other stakeholders, so more people can see the benefits of this powerful tool.
Teacher
Emily
After graduating from university with a Bachelor of Education (Primary), Emily moved to the United States and worked as a teacher in a small preschool for children with Autism. This was where she first encountered ABA in a classroom setting. Upon returning to Australia Emily knew she wanted to continue working in the ABA field and began at Woodbury in 2012.
Emily is extremely passionate about embedding ABA into naturalistic teaching opportunities. She is particularly invested in creating a classroom environment that promotes independence, teaches flexibility and encourages students to express themselves in a functional way.
Teacher
Jacquelyn
Jacquelyn has joined Woodbury this year and is commencing her first year of teaching with Woodbury. Jacquelyn has a bachelor in Arts (majoring in Social and Cultural analysis) and has completed a Masters of Primary Education. During her studies, Jacquelyn studied overseas in a South Korean University where she learnt about the trail leading Korean Education System, how culture can influence an individuals learning and even learnt how to communicate in Korean.
Jacquelyn has a passion for teaching children of all needs and ensuring they get the education and support they deserve. She has a deep understanding that every child is different and that a teacher’s responsibility is to discover which ways an individual child learns and use this to enhance their learning. She is very interested in culture and how this can impact or influence a child’s learning style. “I enjoy learning about other individuals’ cultures as i believe this will encourage me to be a more understanding individual in everything that i do.”
Teacher
Lori-Anne (Annie)
Lori-Anne (Annie), started Woodbury in 2018.
Annie’s initial encounter of Woodbury was after an in class observation when they first opened in 2006. It was this experience which ignited Annie’s passion for teaching. Now, after completing her studies ( and a short break to start a family) she has come back to Woodbury and is excited to be part of this amazing team.
She first began her career in the Early Childhood Sector, completing a Diploma in Children’s Services. She then went on to complete a Bachelors Degree which covered the birth the 12 year age range and gained valuable experience working with children in both the classroom and outside school settings. While on maternity leave she completed post graduate studies in behaviour support teaching.
What she enjoys most about working in Woodbury is the relationships and bond that are built with your students and their families. Annie says “The students at Woodbury have taught me so much already and I can’t wait to see what my future at Woodbury holds”.
Room Leader Rubens Place
Claire
Claire joined Woodbury as the team room leader in Rubens Room, our Early Intervention program for our younger students, started in 2019.
Claire first started teaching children with Autism as a junior therapist when in her last year of completing a bachelor of sociology, whilst living in the UK. Quickly coming to love the role, she developed a passion for ABA and how she could help these wonderful children she was meeting. Since then Claire has been blessed to work with many amazing professionals in both schools, private clinics and in private homes as a senior therapist and special education consultant.
Claire has also completed a Masters in special education, studied the early start denver model (ESDM) and continues to study for her BCBA.
Of all the amazing mentors and teachers she has met, Claire feels that her students remain the biggest teachers of all. Through them learning so much about resilience, joy, patience, sensitivity and humour.
“It is my hope that the Ruben Class will be an enjoyable and fun place to learn pivotal skills that will lay the foundation for a brighter future”.
Therapy Team
Meet the Woodbury Therapy Team.
Woodbury is proud to have a dedicated team of highly trained ABA therapists who work in our school providing vital support within the classroom.
From left to right is:
Nicole (Senior therapist, RBT), Crystal (Junior therapist), Lynda (Senior therapist, RBT), Shaya (Junior therapist). Natalie (Senior therapist, RBT), Pui Ka (Junior therapist), Clarissa (Senior therapist), Simona (Junior therapist),
Not pictured Amanda, Kasia & Stephanie (Junior therapists) Hannah (Senior Therapist)