My passion for teaching comes from my belief that everyone has the potential to learn and that all people deserve a dignified and admirable life.
Assistant Professor
My primary line of research focuses on evaluating mechanisms of change related to developing critical behaviors for life for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The critical behaviors for life I currently study are communication and toilet training. Currently I am examining the effects of various parameters of reinforcement on response variability across communication modalities. I plan to develop a systematic protocol for transitioning individuals who primarily communicate with AAC to spoken words or more advanced forms of AAC. My secondary line of research focuses on toilet training individuals with ASD and ID in school and home environments.
Before completing my Ph.D., I was a public school teacher. I am a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. My research addresses the educational needs and life skills of individuals with severe autism and intellectual and developmental disabilities.
When I was 4 years old I declared at my preschool graduation that I wanted to be a teacher. My passion for teaching comes from my belief that everyone has the potential to learn and that all people deserve a dignified and admirable life. For the MAT in Special Education program, my teaching is focused around preventing and responding to challenging behavior so P-12 students can be successful at school. My class is focused on clarifying common misconceptions around challenging behavior and preparing teachers to prepare students for school and life.
I find one of the most interesting aspects of this field to be shrinking the research-to-practice gap by conducting applied research in natural contexts and preparing educators to implement evidence-based practices with ease and fidelity.
I hope students learn evidence-based strategies for preventing and responding to challenging behavior and feel confident in implementing those strategies in their future classrooms.
Outside of the classroom, I enjoy camping at the Georgia State Parks with my family, walking, listening to podcasts and audiobooks, traveling, and listening to live music.
Learn more about Rachel Cagliani