Emerald Behavior & Education Specialists was founded by Behavior Analyst William Henkel, PhD / BCBA, and Education Specialist April Kelly in 2013.  Our mission is to provide quality, individualized service to students, with the goal of continued independence in the least restrictive educational environment. We provide Functional Behavior Assessments, consultation, and curriculum modification support in a variety of settings including public schools, non-public schools, day programs, homes, and residential settings.

Our Mission

The mission of Emerald Behavior and Education Specialists is to provide the students we serve with comprehensive behavioral and educational assessments, expert consultation, and highly-qualified paraprofessional services that lead to each student meeting their educational goals and leading healthy, productive, and fulfilling lives.

This is accomplished by providing individualized support, instruction, and feedback to students, teachers, staff, and caregivers in regard to managing challenging behavior and teaching effective replacement skills. 

William Henkel, Ph.D

Board Certified Behavior Analyst

Executive Director


About our Professional Team

W​hat We​ Offer

April Kelly

Senior Education Specialist

Office Manager

  • Functional Behavior Assessments and Positive Behavior Intervention Plans

  • Behavior Consultation to IEP Teams

  • Student / Classroom Consultation services to support the success of students with behavioral and academic challenges

  • Educational Consultation and Curriculum Modification support​
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  • Highly qualified Paraprofessionals to support students on a daily basis

  • In-service Training & Presentations for teachers and paraprofessional educators

  • Home-to-school and home based behavior and instructional support

Our Values and Philosophy

Emerald believes that all students must be afforded dignity, respect and the right to participate in an appropriate education to the greatest degree possible. 

​Emerald believes that all behaviors have a “function”, something that they communicate. If you can determine the function of the behavior you can structure an environment that weakens the functionality of a problem behavior and rewards a better, alternative behavior. This is the foundation of Emerald’s behavioral programming.

​Emerald believes that the single most important way to reduce a student’s problem behavior is by providing an engaging and appropriate educational curriculum.