Who we are
The team at Horizons Behaviour Consulting is made up of a small diverse group of professionals. It was founded in 2018 by Matt Derkach with the hopes of helping clients and their parents learn in their natural environment. Matt wanted to open an agency that provided in-home services that was professional, ethical, and had a family-focused approach.
Today Horizons Behaviour Consulting continues to integrate the latest ABA research and technology to offer the best options to our clients. Led by a talented team of clinicians, Horizons Behaviour Consulting utilizes evidence-based practices to develop practical and family-focused approaches to ensure the best possible results.
Mission
Every child and adult has the potential to reach their hopes and dreams, regardless of their diagnosis or abilities. Horizons Behaviour Consulting believes in providing both the child or adult, and their parents or caregivers with an individualized program that is based on the research-based methodologies of Applied Behaviour Analysis.
Clinical Team
Our clinical team consists of a Clinical Supervisor, a Senior Therapist, Senior Therapist Assistant, and Instructor Therapists.
Clinical Supervisor: The role of the Clinical Supervisor is to assess, develop, and recommend individualized evidence-based behaviour strategies to help your child. In addition, the Clinical Supervisor is responsible for supervising the Senior and Instructor Therapists as they implement the behaviour intervention and attend your child’s therapy sessions as needed.
Senior Therapist: The role of the Senior Therapist is to work in collaboration with the Clinical Supervisor and the Instructor Therapists. This may include directly attending your child’s therapy sessions, providing supervision and training to the Instructor Therapists, and monitoring your child’s progress.
Senior Therapist Assistant: The role of the Senior Therapist Assistant is similar to the Senior Therapist except the Senior Therapist Assistant works more directly with the individuals and has less of a supervisory role.
Instructor Therapist: The role of the Instructor Therapist is to provide direct therapy with your child and to assist the Clinical Supervisor and Senior Therapist in activities related to your child’s assessment and the development of the behaviour intervention plan. In addition, the Instructor Therapist provides behaviour training to the parents and assists the clinical supervisor in monitoring the different behaviour programs.
Matt Derkach
Clinical Director
Matt Derkach is a Board Certified Behaviour Analyst (BCBA) who has been working in the field of Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) for over 11 years. Matt’s interest in the field of ABA began when he first started working as a Direct Support Professional with children and adults with autism and other developmental disabilities. His love for ABA quickly grew and he decided to further education in the field of ABA and he obtained a Masters in Applied Disability Studies (MADS) at Brock University.
Matt is passionate about working in the special needs community and has extensive experience working with children and adults with severe behaviour problems, which includes having worked in centre and in home settings at CHEO’s Development and Rehabilitation Department and the Autism Program.
Lauren Camellato
Senior Therapist
Lauren has been working in the field of ABA for 5 years and is a Board Certified Behaviour Analyst (BCBA). Lauren first began working with children with ASD through providing support at summer programs teaching children with exceptionalities to swim and bike. She has since gained experience working with young adults in Life Skills programming, as well as providing IBI and tutoring services to children. Lauren went on to obtain an Autism Behaviour Science certificate and further her education in the field of ABA and pursue a degree through Florida Institute of Technology’s Masters of Behaviour Analysis Practice program. Lauren is passionate about practicing ABA through compassionate care and strives to create environments that foster each child’s unique learning style.
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Megan Shaw
Senior Therapist Assistant
Meaghan has been assisting children and their families for nearly a decade. She obtained a Masters degree in Creative Arts Therapies, specializing in art therapy at Concordia University. While completing her graduate studies, her research focus was treating children living with specific learning disabilities such as dyslexia who were experiencing emotional and behavioral difficulties. Meaghan's interest in the field of behavior analysis grew after serving as a Behavioral Technician working with young children living with ASD. She has been serving as an Instructor Therapist, providing ABA therapy for 6 years. She is currently completing her Behaviour Analysis Graduate Certificate at Florida Institute of Technology to fulfill her dream of becoming a Board Certified Behaviour Analyst.
Meaghan believes that every individual deserves to live a happy and fulfilling life. She is passionate about providing empirical based treatment that is both ethical and uniquely tailored to meet the needs and circumstances of her clients.
Zak Armengol
Senior Therapist Assistant
Zak has been working with children with ASD for over 6 years and is a Registered Behaviour Technician (RBT). He continues to be passionate about the field of Applied Behaviour Analysis from seeing the positive impact it has for his clients and their families. He is currently pursuing his Board-Certified Assistant Behaviour Analyst (BCaBA) certificate through the University of New Brunswick.
Autumn Oliver-Giasson
Lead Instructor Therapist
Autumn has been working in the field of ABA for two years as a registered behaviour technician (RBT). She recently obtained her certification as a Board Certified Assistant Behaviour Analyst (BCaBA) after completing the Applied Behaviour Analysis certificate program at the University of New Brunswick. Before joining the field of ABA, she worked in group homes, which spurred her desire to enter the area. Autumn has experience working with children with complex behaviours, including teenagers with FASD, conduct disorders, autism and aggressive behaviours towards self and others. Driven by her passion for the field, she enrolled at the Florida Institute of Technology and is taking her Master's in Behaviour Analysis Practice. In her spare time she enjoys hiking with her dog and playing outside with her son.
Annalise Sander
Lead Instructor Therapist
Annalise has been working in the field of Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) for 3 years. She is a Registered Behaviour Technician (RBT) and is passionate about working with children and getting to see the positive impact she can have on their lives. She completed her undergrad in Biology and Psychology at McMaster University and then completed the Behavioural Science program at St Lawrence College. Annalise is now completing her Masters in Applied Disability Studies through Brock University with plans to become a Board Certified Behaviour Analyst (BCBA).
Mikayla Lewis
Lead Instructor Therapist
Mikayla is a Registered Behaviour Technician (RBT) with 2 years of experience working with children diagnosed with autism. Her interest in the field sparked from her undergraduate degree in Human Behaviour with a specialization in autism. Mikayla is passionate about improving the lives of her clients and leading them to live independent lives. She hopes to build on her ability to do so by pursuing her Masters in Speech Language Pathology. In her down time, Mikayla loves to read and crochet!
Emily Anderson
Instructor Therapist
Emily is passionate about helping others reach their full-potential through personal empowerment. She has practical experience as a crisis responder, Social Psychology teaching assistant, and peer support worker.Emily is a magna cum laude graduate, with a Bachelor of Science (honours) in Psychology, from Saint Mary’s University. Her honours project involved developing computer software to better understand attentional capacity and the human experience. Emily is passionate about helping others reach their full-potential through personal empowerment. She has practical experience as a crisis responder, Social Psychology teaching assistant, and peer support worker. Emily is currently in the process of becoming a Registered Behaviour Technician (RBT).