INTRODUCTION
Jennifer B. Symon, Ph.D. BCBA-D is a Professor in the Division of Special Education at California State University, Los Angeles. She is also a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. Dr. Symon coordinates the Autism programs at CSULA including the university autism certificate and the Master of Arts degree in Special Education with an emphasis in Autism. Dr. Symon's background includes work in homes, schools, and communities with individuals with mild to severe disabilities. She has primarily worked with individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), their families, and other key support providers. Dr. Symon served as the Principal Investigator for two federally funded grants to provide specialized training in autism to teachers, early childhood interventionists, behavior specialists, school psychologists, counselors and general educators. Additionally, she has worked collaboratively on other projects to develop and evaluate a service delivery system to expand the quality and quantity of services available to families.
Autism, Functional Communication Training, Positive Behavior Support in the classroom and School-wide Positive Behavior Support. Early Intervention, Cognitive and Linguistic Development, Consultation and Collaboration, and Paraprofessional training.
Dr. Symon's research interests include positive behavior interventions for children with ASD, family support, consultation in classrooms, and development and evaluation of service delivery models. Improving social, communication, and behavioral functioning for individuals with ASD. She has published several research articles evaluating the positive effects that resulted from training parents and service providers living in geographically distant locations.
Representative Professional Activities
| 2015 | Alnemary, F.M., Wallace, M., Symon, J.B.G., & Barry, L.M. (2015). Using videoconferencing to provide staff training on functional behavioral assessment, Behavioral Interventions, wileyonlinelibrary.com DOI 10.1002/bin. 1403 |
| 2014 | Moore, B., Parker-Strafaci, S., Best, S., Ling, S., Myck-Wayne, J., Symon, J. B. G., & Dean, M. (2014). Disability-specific challenges and strategies in inclusive preschool programs. In A. Richardson-Gibbs & M.D. Klein, Making preschool inclusion work: Strategies for supporting children, teachers, and programs. Baltimore, MD: Brookes Publishing Co. (153-191). |
| 2010 | Whalen, C., Moss, D., Ilan, A.B., Vaupel, M., Fielding, P., MacDonald, K., Cernich, S., and Symon, J. (2010). Efficacy of TeachTown: Basics computer-assisted intervention for the Intensive Comprehensive Autism Program in Los Angeles Unified School District. Autism: The International Journal of Research and Practice, Online First - http://aut.sagepub.com/pap.dtl. |
| 2008 | Harper, C. Symon, J.B.G., & Frea, W.D., (2008). Recess is time-in: Using peers to improve social skills of children with autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. |
| 2008 | Liber, D., Frea, W.D., & Symon, J.B.G. (2008). Using time-delay to improve play andsocial skills for children with autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 38(2), 312-323. |
| 2008 | Symon, J. B.G., & Boettcher, M. A., (2008). Autism: Family Support and Participation. In J. K. Luselli, D. C. Russo, & W. P. Christian (Eds.) Effective Practices for Children with Autism: Educational and Behavior Support Interventions that Work. Oxford University Press. |
2006
| Openden, D., Symon, J.B., Koegel, L.K., & Koegel, R. L. (2006). Developing a Student Respite Provider System for Children with Autism. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions |
| 2005 | Symon, J.B., Koegel, R.L., & Singer, G.H.S. (2005). Parent Perspectives of Parent Education Programs. In Koegel, R.L., & Koegel, L. K. (Eds.) Pivotal Response Treatments for Autism: Communication, Social and Academic Development (pp. 93-115). Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes |
| 2005 | Symon, J.B. (2005) Expanding interventions for children with autism: Parents as trainers. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 7(3), 159-173. |
| 2001 | Koegel, R. L., Symon, J. B., & Koegel, L. K., (2001). Parent education for families of children with autism living in geographically distant areas. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 4 (2), 88-103. |
| 2001 | Symon, J. B., (2001). Parent education for autism: Issues in providing services at a distance. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 3 (3), 160-174. |
PhD Educational Psychology 2002
University of California, Santa Barbara
MA Special Education Disabilities and Risk Studies 2000 University of California, Santa Barbara
MA Child Study 1995 Tufts University. Medford, MA
BA Psychology 1992 University of California, Santa Barbara
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