Department Chair
Email: vknapp@daemen.edu
Office: TRC 204
Phone: 716-839-7290
Vicki Madaus Knapp, Ph.D., BCBA-D, LBA (NY) is an Associate Professor and serves as the Chairperson and Executive Director of the Behavioral Science Department at Daemen University. The Daemen University Behavioral Science Department has registered programs to provide licensure-qualifying coursework in NYS and programs designated by the Association for Behavior Analysis International as Verified Course Sequence (VCS). Dr. Knapp holds a Doctorate in Developmental and Child Psychology from the University of Kansas with a specialization in ABA. She obtained her Master’s Degree in Clinical Behavioral Psychology from Eastern Michigan University and her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from Western Michigan University. She is an NYS Licensed Behavior Analyst (LBA) and a Board Certified Behavior Analyst at the doctoral level (BCBA-D). She has been practicing in ABA to help people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, including ASD, meet their goals for more than 30 years. Dr. Knapp is a member of the NYS Board for Applied Behavior Analysis. She recently served as Secretary of the New York State Association for Behavior Analysis (NYSABA) and has held other positions, including Representative-at-Large, Education Chairperson, Conference Chairperson, and President. She has multiple scholarly publications and has provided several invited presentations at regional conferences and events.
Faculty
Email: abrehm@daemen.edu
Office: TRC 207
Phone: 716-839-7285
Ashley Brehm joined Daemen University in February of 2019 as an assistant professor in the Department of Applied Behavior Analysis after serving as an adjunct faculty member since the fall of 2018. After graduating from Gannon University with a Bachelors of Arts in Elementary and Special Education she served as a preschool autism teacher for 3 years in Fairfax, Virginia. Ashley has her Masters in Special Education from Canisius College. Upon moving back to Buffalo she served a variety of roles, including leadership roles, at a school for children with developmental disabilities in the area. Ashley also has experience working as a clinical supervisor providing insurance-based services to individuals with autism spectrum disorder.
Her primary professional and research interests include early intervention for children with developmental disabilities and autism spectrum disorder. Additionally, increasing functional communication skills of individuals with disabilities and training special education staff to use evidence-based practices within the public school system.
Ashley resides in Collins, NY with her husband and 3 daughters. They enjoy camping and spending time outdoors all year around.
Email: mhickman@daemen.edu
Office: TRC 202
Phone: 716-839-8339
Dr. Michelle Hickman is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Behavioral Science Department at Daemen University, where she teaches in the graduate Applied Behavior Analysis program. She joined Daemen in 2018 after serving as an adjunct faculty member and as the Director of Curriculum, Instruction, and Training at The Summit Center. She holds a doctorate and master’s degree in special education from The Ohio State University and a bachelor’s degree from SUNY Cortland. She is a BCBA-D and a Licensed Behavior Analyst in New York.
With more than 25 years of experience in applied behavior analysis and special education, Michelle has worked across clinical, school, and higher education settings. Her teaching and scholarship emphasize evidence-based practices in educational settings, with interests in generalized learning, the intersection of behavioral science and the science of reading, and training educators to implement data-based instructional strategies.
In addition to her work at Daemen, Michelle is a co-founder of BRIDGE Learning, a consulting and professional development organization that partners with schools and professionals to provide evidence-based training, coaching, and online learning opportunities.
Email: kkotwick@daemen.edu
Office: TRC 206
Phone: 716-839-7225
Kellie Kotwicki is a Clinical Assistant Professor and Experiential Learning Coordinator in the Behavioral Science Department at Daemen University. In addition to teaching, her experience has focused on providing behavior analytic services to individuals across the lifespan in the home, school, community, and both inpatient and outpatient settings. She has a special interest in ethical, high-quality supervision programs for students pursuing coursework in applied behavior analysis (ABA). As Experiential Learning Coordinator, she is committed to guiding students toward meaningful and effective supervision experiences.
Her current clinical work focuses on integrating behavior analytic services into hospital settings, with an emphasis on interprofessional collaboration with medical teams. She provides education and training to healthcare staff and families to support patients with behavioral needs.
Email: dnapolit@daemen.edu
Office: TRC 201
Phone: 716-839-8545
Deborah Napolitano Ph.D., BCBA-D, LBA-NY is a Professor in the Behavioral Science Department at Daemen University. Debbi joined the Behavioral Science faculty at Daemen University in October of 2018. Debbi previously was on faculty as an Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Rochester School of Medicine where she still retains a Courtesy Clinical Associate Professor appointment.
Debbi has published with mentors and students in the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and behavior analysis in some of the field’s premier journals such as the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis and the American Journal on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. Debbi also serves as an editorial board member for the Journals Behavior and Social Issues and the Journal of Mental Health Research in Developmental Disabilities as well as a Guest Associate Editor on Special Sections for the journal Behavior Analysis in Practice. Debbi’s research interests are in the areas of interprofessional collaboration particularly in Child Welfare and Juvenile Justice, innovative interventions for severe rigid and repetitive behavior in individuals with autism, drug and behavior interactions, and a particular focus on advocacy and public policy.
As a member of the New York State Association for Behavior Analysis’ Public Policy Committee and in her personal endeavors, Debbi has worked on important legislation and policy for the field of Behavior Analysis as well as centering advocacy efforts around improving appropriate, accessible, and responsive services in New York for all individuals with IDD. Debbi has been honored with the New York State Association for Behavior Analysis Public Policy Award and the Association for Professional Behavior Analysts Jerry Shook Award for Public Policy Advocacy.
Email: hpane@daemen.edu
Phone: 716-839-7344
Dr. Heather Pane joined Daemen University as an assistant professor in the Behavioral Science Department in September of 2022. Heather has over 26 years of experience specializing in applied behavior analysis (ABA). Her experience includes working at private not-for-profit schools for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), providing training and consultation to public-school programs, and providing direct instruction, training, and consultation in the home and community settings. Heather also served as an adjunct professor at Caldwell University for the Department of ABA and the Department of Psychology and Counseling. Heather completed her Master’s and Doctorate degree in ABA at Caldwell University. She also completed a Master’s degree in Special Education with a concentration in developmental disabilities at William Paterson University, and she has a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and Psychology from Rider University. She is a doctorate-level Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA-D), a NYS Licensed Behavior Analyst (LBA), and holds a teacher of the handicapped certificate in New Jersey. Heather has also presented at many local and national conferences, has peer reviewed research publications, and was the recipient of awards for both her thesis and dissertation research. Her research interests include teaching play and social skills to children with ASD, naturalistic teaching, and training special education staff to use evidence-based practices in the classroom.
Email: vpatrone@daemen.edu
Office: TRC 203
Phone: (716) 839-8233
Vanessa Patrone joined Daemen as a full-time faculty member of the Education Department in November of 2017 after teaching as an adjunct instructor for both the Psychology and Education departments since 2014. She is currently an Associate Professor in the Behavioral Science department teaching both online and on our Amherst campus in the graduate Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) programs and continues to teach undergraduate courses in behavioral science as well.
Originally from Olean, NY, Vanessa received her undergraduate degree in psychology from SUNY Geneseo and went on to receive a master’s degree from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County in Human Services Psychology with a concentration in Applied Behavior Analysis. While in Maryland, she worked with individuals with severe behavior disorders at the Kennedy Krieger Institute of the Johns Hopkins Medical Center. Upon moving to New York State, Vanessa worked as a Behavior Analyst and Consultant in clinical, residential and center-based settings and provided educational consulting services in both private and public schools.
Vanessa was Board Certified as a Behavior Analyst in 2003, was licensed in the State of New York in 2015 and completed her PhD in Curriculum, Instruction and the Science of Learning at the University at Buffalo in 2023. The focus of her doctoral research was the development and evaluation of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI) coursework for behavior analysis graduate students. In addition to her teaching responsibilities Vanessa currently consults in local hospital systems in support of patients with complex needs. Her research interests include behavioral medicine, intellectual/developmental disabilities, functional assessment of problem behavior in applied settings, and the impact of culture on behavior analytic service provision. Vanessa lives in Buffalo, NY with her husband and two daughters.
Adjunct Faculty
Email: ajenning@daemen.edu
Phone: 716-839-7346
Dr. Adrienne Jennings is an Adjunct Instructor in the Behavioral Science department at Daemen University and a doctoral-level Board Certified Behavior Analyst. Adrienne received her B.S. in psychology from Texas Christian University, M.A. in psychology with an emphasis in applied behavior analysis from California State University Sacramento, and her Ph.D. in applied behavior analysis from Caldwell University. As a doctoral student, Adrienne completed an externship at Kennedy Krieger Institute in the neurobehavioral unit. Additionally, she has over 10 years of experience in clinical settings working with individuals with developmental disabilities and their families. Most recently she has been consulting and providing staff training to local Boys and Girls Club groups. She serves as the chair and co-founder of the Consortium for AI in ABA. She also serves on the editorial boards for The Analysis of Verbal Behavior and Single Case in the Social Sciences. Adrienne completed a data visualization certification course through Rutgers University. Her research interests include the acquisition and development of verbal behavior, the role of verbal behavior in learning, emergent behavior, open science practices, and dissemination and cultural adaptations of behavioral services. Adrienne is also interested in artificial intelligence, ethics for artificial intelligence, and incorporating data science in behavior analytic research.
Email: jrumfola@daemen.edu
Jennifer Rumfola, MA, CCC/SLP, BCBA/LBA is a dually credentialed professional, licensed and certified as a Speech Language Pathologist and Behavior Analyst (BCBA/LBA) in NY. She possesses expertise and advanced skills in teaching language and prosocial behaviors to children on the autism spectrum. She has helped clients across the life span from Early Intervention, Preschool through School in both home, center-based, and public-school settings. Over the past 10+ years, she has successfully integrated strategies and techniques from both disciplines to help individuals with autism and their educational teams generate better student outcomes.
Jennifer works for an online company that provides continuing education and clinical products for a variety of professional disciplines. She serves as the CE coordinator that oversees ACE, QABA, ASHA, APA and AOTA certification. Jennifer conducts training for a variety of audiences including educators, related service providers, administrators, parents, para-professionals and undergraduate/ graduate students across disciplines. She serves as an adjunct faculty member in the Behavioral Science Department's graduate program at Daemen University in Buffalo, NY, and was formerly a part time graduate clinical supervisor and adjunct faculty at the University of New York at Buffalo in the Communication Disorders and Sciences Department.
