“I just started looking and said, ‘Where are ABA centers located, and where are there not any,’” she said. “At the time, there were none here in Coppell.”
SOS’s goal is to teach valuable life skills that help clients become productive and fulfilled adults in mainstream society, according to the center's website. SOS provides one-on-one instruction to children who are not learning like their peers.
“The ABA therapy is this play-based therapy, and it's one-on-one, so there's always a therapist with a child,” Reyes said.
Clients are typically at the center 20-40 hours per week, Reyes said. Caregivers are able to livestream their child’s therapy sessions in the center’s lobby.
“This isn't like you go in for an hour of therapy and then you leave,” she said.
The Coppell center has a board-certified behavior analyst and 16 board technicians. The BCBA assesses each child and tailors the program to their needs, Reyes said. The BCBA trains the behavior technicians, who are hands-on with the children. The center’s BCBA also meets with caregivers for weekly or biweekly training where they will teach them how to provide ABA at home.
“We do require that parents be engaged because we want to hear how things are going at home,” Reyes said. “They'll say, ‘Well, this is something I saw; do we need to work on this’ or we'll say, ‘Hey, we found that this works with your child; try this at home.’”
There are plans to grow the center’s staff and space, Reyes said. An outdoor play area will be installed soon, and Reyes said she is looking into adding more office space to the existing location. After-school care could be offered as early as this fall, and the center is expected to get more BCBAs.
SOS has contracts in place with select universities that allow discounted tuition for students working to become BCBAs, Reyes said.
“We want good employees who want to help the kids,” she said.
- 546 E. Sandy Lake Road, Ste. 100, Coppell
- https://successonthespectrum.com/location/coppell-texas
