story and commitment
Our Story
Dr. Leah Gongola founded Proactive Behavior Services in 2008 to respond to the needs of families and schools in northeast Ohio. At that time, Dr. G was transitioning from being an Intervention Specialist in a public school system to becoming a professor in the Special Education Program at Youngstown State University. In order to continue working with children, Dr. G started Proactive Behavior Services. The business grew gradually by word of mouth. Graduate students at the university began to take positions as behavior technicians and over time, these graduate students went on to become BCBAs and doctoral students. These folks remain on the Proactive team today.
The Proactive team works hard to create normalized and meaningful experiences across settings and in collaboration with families and service providers. At our core, we are invested in the clients we work with and take great care and concern to provide the best programming available. Our gradual growth, long-term team members, and relationships with the families and communities we work with are a testament to the values of our team and to our service to the field.
Commitment to our clients
First and foremost, we work tirelessly to improve skills and decrease problem behavior for our clients. As a team, we troubleshoot together to ensure that every client reaches their potential.
Commitment to our communities
Our staff live throughout the greater Cleveland, Youngstown, and Akron areas. Through school and other agency consultations, we work to make our communities more inclusive for our clients.
Commitment to the field of behavior analysis
Disseminating the simplicity and power of behavior analysis is intrinsic to our work in our Chesterland Clinic, homes, schools, and communities. We continue to work toward the benefit of the field through mentorship and supervision of other BCBAs in addition to presenting at conferences related to our areas of expertise.