Special Education Leadership Program in Applied Behavior Analysis (SELABA) in Distance Teacher Preparation

The goal of SELABA is to integrate a focus in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and special education teacher preparation with a distance education component in the Special Education and Rehabilitation Counseling doctoral program at the University of Kentucky (UK). Graduates will be qualified to assume leadership positions in special education in high and low incidence disabilities with a focus in ABA. Specifically, graduates will be able to identify evidence-based practices in behavior management and instruct undergraduate and graduate students in skills needed to teach students with disabilities with varying diverse backgrounds including English language learners using principles of ABA. SELABA will emphasize teaching, supervision, and consulting. Students will complete internships in racially diverse schools and in clinical settings for a total of 1500 hours. Within this framework, students will design and deliver distance education content in ABA and supervise and consult in various geographic regions using distance education media. During each of the 4 project years, four full-time doctoral students will be supported by project funds. In addition, one post-doctoral student will be supported per year. It is projected that the cohort of four students will complete doctorates by the end of the project- funding period and secure university faculty positions in categorical, cross-categorical, or non- categorical teacher preparation programs. SELABA has four primary objectives: (a) to nationally recruit students for program enrollment, (b) to implement the program and graduate a cohort of four students, (c) to evaluate the effectiveness of the program, and (d) to disseminate information about the program and the result of its research and development activities.