Therapy services for all ages in Ventura and LA Counties

Services

Click on each arrow to explore the services in detail

We specialize in helping those with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and their families, as well as individuals with other developmental and behavioral disorders.

  • ACT specializes in diagnosing neurodevelopmental disorders (e.g., intellectual disability, communication disorders, autism spectrum disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, specific learning disorder, and motor disorders) along with conduct disorders (e.g., oppositional-defiant disorder) and mood disorders (e.g., anxiety, obsessive-compulsive and depressive disorders). Specific recommendations are provided. ACT also provides functional behavior assessment (FBA/FAA) to inform behavior change procedures and skill assessments to facilitate new skill acquisition.

  • Testing may occur across time and a variety of locations and be both direct and observational. Comprehensive assessment may include evaluation of cognitive, language, educational, social, play, self-care and motor skills, along with behavior and select neuropsychological skills (executive functions, processing and memory).

  • ABA therapy involves multiple steps that help address challenging behaviors and teach socially significant skills.

    Through a comprehensive assessment, we get to know your child to be able to develop treatment plans tailored to their individual goals and needs.

    Our services are designed to be implemented in the home, community, and school settings. Our team, composed of BCBA’s and RBT’s, use a variety of interventions and techniques to help your child reach their full potential. Areas targeted in our ABA programs include:

    Communication

    Imitation Skills

    Play Skills

    Social Skills

    Executive Functioning

    Daily Living Skills

    At ACT, we focus on making socially significant and life-lasting change in the lives of our children and their families.

  • Our goal is to provide your child with the support they need to participate in their daily classroom activities, engage in social interactions, and become independent learners. With support from their 1:1 aide, your children will work toward meeting their IEP and/or treatment goals, as well as developing the skills they need to be successful in the school environment.

Our Team

Aimee Anderson, Ph.D., BCBA-D

  • Clinical and Executive Director

    Licensed Psychologist, PSY 18781

    Board Certified Behavior Analyst

    1-06-3193

    Dr. Anderson has been working in the fields of Autism Spectrum Disorder and Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) since 1993. She earned a Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology in the area of Applied Behavior Analysis with an emphasis on Autism Spectrum Disorder from the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). Dr. Anderson subsequently served as a Research Scientist in Dr. Geraldine Dawson’s Autism Laboratory at the University of Washington, and held a clinical post-doctoral position under the supervision of Dr. Aubyn Stahmer in the Children’s Autism Intervention Center (CAIC) at Rady’s Children’s Hospital, San Diego. Dr. Anderson is a Licensed Psychologist as well as a Board Certified Behavior Analyst – Doctoral Level (BCBA-D). She founded ACT in 2002 and is the acting Director.

Amanda Damico, BCBA

  • Board Certified Behavior Analyst

    1-20-46003

    Amanda is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) and the Intake Specialist at ACT with 4 years of experience in the field of ABA. Amanda attended Teachers College, Columbia University for her Masters Degree in Applied Behavior Analysis. Amanda has also worked as a teacher in both New York and California for 6 years before pursuing behavior analysis full time. During her time as a BCBA she has helped children acquire new academic, social and self-help skills improving the daily lives for each child and family she works with. She also specializes in parent training, working closely with parents to ensure an understanding of ABA principles, behavior modification tactics to use at home and offers support as families acquire new skills. Using her knowledge of developmental milestones and best practices, Amanda writes the initial behavior reports, which determine programing, behavior modification goals and teaching techniques used in therapy. Her love for working with children and families is demonstrated daily.

Julie Knutson

  • Julie joined ACT in 2005 and managed the office until 2015. After being gone for several years, she is happy to be apart of the team again! Julie plays a key role in managing company projects and working alongside the office team to ensure the day to day operations of the office run smoothly and effectively.

Zihomara Abrego, BA

  • Zihomara began her career in the field of Applied Behavior Analysis in 2019 as an in-home Registered Behavior Technician (RBT) and later became ABA Training Manager to provide support for aspiring RBT’s. She provided training and continued education for staff on ABA principles. After graduating with a Bachelor's in Psychology from California State University, Fullerton she began working alongside several Board Certified Behavior Analysts to provide support in the field. Areas of ABA expertise include Discrete Trial Teaching, Natural Environment Teaching, and Adaptive and Social skills in community settings. Most experience comes from individuals ages 2-18 years with Autism and Intellectual Disabilities. In her free time, she enjoys exploring different restaurants, going to the gym and spending time with family and friends. She is passionate about providing support to clients and their families to make a positive change.

Shayna Niles, BCBA

  • Board Certified Behavior Analyst

    1-20-46662

    Shayna has been working in the field of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) for 6 wonderful years. Shayna received her Masters of Science degree in Applied Behavior Analysis from California State University, Northridge (CSUN) in 2020, and began her career as a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) that same year. Shayna was introduced to the field as a registered behavior technician (RBT), and worked with families across Santa Barbara and Los Angeles County. Her expertise in ABA ranges from early intervention to adolescence/early adulthood. She is passionate about advocating for clients and families, while working on socially significant and individualized goals for each learner. She looks forward to working with your family!

Jasmine Vega

  • Jasmine joined the ACT team in May 2022 as our office administrator. She is responsible for the day-to-day office operations and is excited about being the person that connects our ACT families with the services and resources we provide.

Registered Behavior Technician

  • Each of our instructors come to ACT with varying degrees of experience. Our instructors demonstrate a passion and commitment to working with your children in a fun and effective manner. At ACT we carefully screen and match our instructors to best fit your child’s needs and individual personality.

    All of our instructors have passed the Behavior Analyst Certification Board’s certification exam to become Registered Behavior Technicians (RBT’s) and have been provided with rigorous training and assessments to best support each of the children they work with. Our RBT’s receive continued support from their supervisors and are encouraged to attend our Continuing Education classes, which cover multiple topics in the field of ABA.

Support for ACT

  • “Dr. Anderson and her team of therapists provided highly professional services to our non-verbal autistic son for four years. Their personalized and committed intervention greatly improved the quality of our son’s life. We felt fortunate to have services from dr. Anderson and her staff whose relentless efforts taught our son communication and self-help skills which otherwise seemed to us impossible to teach.”

    -K.M.

  • “ACT has been a blessing to my son and our entire family for that matter. They have a great team of therapists that were willing to move mountains to achieve our set goals. My son was non-verbal with very limited adaptive skills when we first started with ACT, but because of their support, we are very proud to say that he is now able to speak some words, communicate his needs and do most of his daily living skills by himself.”

    -C.B.

  • “I am really impressed with the methodical documentation provided by ACT’s therapists. Other therapists that we engaged prior to ACT were talented, however, they did not take the time to document the challenges and successes of each session. Too, I am impressed with the positive energy that ACT’s therapists brought to each session. These professionals have a tough job but it was always nice to see them enjoy the challenges they face.”

    -S.C.

  • “I’m very pleased with the level of service that ACT provides. I appreciate their integrity and commitment. The therapists were very professional, reliable, kind, warm and caring with my child.”

    -T.M.

  • “I have been referring autistic patients to Aimee Anderson, Ph.D. at ACT for over 4 years. I have been consistently impressed with Dr. Anderson’s ability to utilize multiple effective behavior therapies and adapt these to the unique needs of each child. Her careful supervision and training of staff, combined with close oversight of each child’s progress, result in this being one of the best facilities for behavior intervention for autistic children in Southern California. I continue to unhesitatingly refer patients to ACT.”

    -Stephen Kundell, MD, Developmental Pediatrician

  • “ACT and Dr. Aimee Anderson provide the highest quality of ABA intervention and behavior support services to their clients. I always know that when I refer my patients to them, that the families and their children will have careful, in-depth evaluations of their needs, and that services will be provided by experienced psychologists and well trained behavior therapists. In addition, they will receive comprehensive, on going management of all their interventions.”

    -Audry E. Griesbach, MD, FAAP, Developmental Pediatrician

  • “Dr. Anderson and her group are one of the providers to whom I can consistently and confidently refer children on the autistic spectrum and their families. She is knowledgeable about a range of interventions and is able to individually tailor these to effectively meet the needs of each child, whether providing a program for a few hours a week or up to full-time. The positive feedback I hear from families who are working with her, along with the changes I have observed in children over time, is further evidence for the efficacy of the work that she does.”

    -Mary Large, Ph.D., Neuropsychologist

  • “Dr. Aimee Anderson provided an excellent service to several children in my classroom. I felt I could better serve my students by communicating with Dr. Anderson on a routine basis. She empowered me as a teacher to feel more informed and confident when dealing with autistic children.”

    -Mrs. Raja Padhi, Teacher

  • “ACT provides service through professional care. They use a human and humane model for the provision of objective care to children with autism.”

    -Syed Naqvi, MD, Psychiatrist

  • “Our office has utilized the professional services of ACT for over 4 years. During that time they have provided excellent assessments for all of our clients. In fact, they are so competent in their field that I requested Dr. Anderson to be an independent educational evaluator (IEE) for my own 16 year old son with high functioning autism. After the conclusion of my son’s behavior assessment she met with the entire IEP team to review her findings and provide assistance for the development of an appropriate Positive Behavior Support plan. Her professionalism and thoroughness enabled the IEP team to work together cohesively for the best interests of my son. That has been the consistent experience that we have had with ACT on behalf of our clients.”

    -Jane DuBovy, Esq., Attorney, A2Z Educational Advocates

  • “We had our son assessed by Dr. Anderson and it was a wonderful experience for us as well as our son. He looked forward to and enjoyed the sessions and her evaluation was extremely thorough. She’s kind, professional, thoughtful and cared about the well being of our son.”

    -G.E.

  • “Dr. Anderson is a caring professional who took her time to listen and understand our concerns with our 6 year old son. She has been very easy to work with for both us and our son! The diagnostic process was completed in a timely fashion and our son even had fun, too! Dr. Anderson has provided a thorough review and several recommendations for us as next steps. We highly recommend her!”

    -G.R.

  • “Dr Anderson is extremely detail oriented and takes time to listen to you and your concerns. We had a very positive experience with her and her diagnosis and recommendations helped us immensely. I definitely recommend her!"

    -P.R.

  • The process of working with Dr. Anderson from start to finish was extremely professional and thorough. Dr. Anderson was so great with my son; he is still asking to go back to her office and play. By the end, she provided a thorough report and diagnosis explaining the results with evidence explaining why, as well as recommendations going forward so that we could make a plan.

    -MW

  • Working with Dr. Anderson was a wonderful experience for our family. She was thoughtful, caring, kind, an expert in her field, and our daughter actually enjoyed the evaluation process, which I believe says a lot about Dr. Anderson's approach.

    -TK

Join Our Team

Interested in joining ACT? We’re looking for passionate individuals who have worked or want to work in the field of therapy. Please fill out this quick form and we will be sure to get back to you as soon as possible!

Contact us

21550 Oxnard St. Suite 940
Woodland Hills, CA 91367

(818) 707-1717 (office)
(818) 707-1719 (fax)

  • z.abrego@act4autism.com

  • There are several funding sources for getting ABA therapy covered and our office can assist you in determining the best option for your family. Sometimes using more than one funding source is possible.

  • ACT is currently an in-network provider with several health insurance carriers, which include:

    * Anthem Blue Cross

    * Magellan

    * Cigna

    * Aetna

    Please call our office to start the intake process. Each insurance policy can be very different and not all plans fund ABA therapy. Our staff can help navigate your insurance by contacting your provider to determine your benefits/coverage.

  • ACT is certified by California's Department of Education as a Non-Public Agency (NPA) and holds a Master Contract with the SELPA.

    Our Master Contract allows ACT to contract directly with local school districts to provide one-on-one aide support, behavior intervention development, curriculum development, training and assessment.

    The need for NPA support is determined during the IEP process with your school district.