Dr. Cynthia M. Anderson Named Senior Vice President of Applied Behavior Analysis at May Institute; Joint Appointment as Director of the National Autism Center

Media Release / Randolph, Mass. — Cynthia M. Anderson, Ph.D., BCBA-D, has joined May Institute as Senior Vice President of Applied Behavior Analysis. Dr. Anderson holds a joint appointment as Director of May Institute’s National Autism Center (NAC). May Institute is a national network of programs and services for individuals of all ages with special needs; NAC is its Center for the Promotion of Evidence-based Practice.

[Read Dr. Anderson’s bio here.]

Dr. Anderson’s responsibilities include consultation and support to clinical staff members across the organization who provide services to individuals with challenging behaviors. In addition, she promotes research in and dissemination of evidence-based practices through the National Autism Center at May Institute.

“We are delighted to welcome Dr. Anderson to our executive leadership team,” said Deidre Donaldson, Ph.D., ABPP, May Institute’s Chief Clinical Officer. “She has an international reputation for excellence in the fields of applied behavior analysis and positive behavioral interventions and supports, two areas of critical importance for May Institute. Her research in these areas is supported by federal funding.”

Dr. Anderson’s research focuses on the development and evaluation of interventions for children with autism spectrum disorder and other developmental disabilities. She is particularly interested in the implementation of evidence-based practices in “real world” settings such as classrooms and the community and in helping educators and other community providers build capacity to support individuals with autism. She has published her work in many peer-reviewed journals including Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, The Behavior Analyst, and Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports.

She is a Principal Investigator for “Students with Autism Accessing General Education,” a 3-year, $1.5M grant funded by the Department of Education’s Institute for Education Sciences. This multi-site project is conducted in collaboration with researchers at University of South Florida and University of Rochester Medical Center. Previous funding came from the Department of Education’s Office of Special Education Programs.

Dr. Anderson currently serves as the Applied Representative on the Executive Council of the Association for Behavioral Analysis International, and is the Representative-at-Large for Division 25 of the American Psychological Association. She provides editorial support to numerous journals including serving as Associate Editor for School Psychology Review and Journal of Behavioral Education, and on the editorial boards of Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, The Behavior Analyst, and other journals.

Dr. Anderson received her Ph.D. in Clinical-Child Psychology from West Virginia University. She is a licensed psychologist and a board certified behavior analyst at the doctoral level.