Lisa Guerrero, PhD, BCBA-D

Lisa Guerrero, Ph.D., BCBA-D, (Center Director at Weston, FL), is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst who has been working with children with developmental disabilities for nearly 10 years. Dr. Guerrero comes to us with extensive expertise in the assessment and treatment of pediatric feeding disorders, and has spent a great deal of time working with young children that are experiencing these challenges. Prior to joining Little Leaves, Dr. Guerrero worked at the Pediatric Feeding Disorders Intensive Program at Children’s Specialized Hospital and Rutgers University. She earned her Ph.D. in School Psychology at the University of Florida and completed her pre-doctoral internship and post-doctoral fellowship at the Munroe-Meyer Institute. She is a member of the Association for Behavior Analysis, International, and the Florida Association of Behavior Analysis. Her research has been presented at regional and national conferences and published in peer-reviewed journals.

Facts About Lisa

  • Originally From: I was raised in Cali, Colombia; when my family moved to the United States, we lived in Weston.

  • Time with Little Leaves: 2 months

  • Educational Background: I got my doctorate in School Psychology from the University of Florida. Go Gators!

  • Favorite Hobbies: I love going on adventures with my dog, exploring parks, going on hikes,  and cooking–I love to cook!

  • Dream Vacation: A food tour of Italy!

  • Center: Weston, FL

We sat down with Lisa to learn more about her professional history, her background in pediatric feeding disorders, and more!

Why did you choose to pursue ABA therapy as a profession?

Between undergraduate and graduate school, I was looking to gain clinical experience to apply to graduate school. I got a job as an ABA tech, and something just clicked for me. It’s like behavior theory made sense to me and I wanted to learn more about it, so I sought to do that. Then I specialized in behavioral feeding interventions, and I love integrating ABA into the complexity of mealtime and eating.

What drove you to Little Leaves initially?

I have a specialized background in pediatric feeding disorders, and my passion is to teach BCBAs and RBTs in the community how to treat feeding problems. There is a high prevalence of feeding problems in children with ASD (autism spectrum disorder), and treating these problems is a skill-set that isn’t widely taught. The commitment that Little Leaves has to high-quality clinical services really appealed to me, as well as their interest in training their therapists in best practices for feeding problems!

What makes Little Leaves special to you?

I love the sense of community that we have, like the fact that we have professional development trainings with staff from all the different centers. It makes you feel like you are a part of something big.

To be promoted to center director really shows me that Little Leaves wants to embed feeding interventions into their model of high-quality clinical services. It means to me that I will be able to do what I love—help in the ongoing training of BCBAs and teach people about the assessment and treatment of feeding problems.

Lisa on what it mean's to be a center director for Little Leaves

What is the most rewarding part of your role with Little Leaves?

I have a passion for teaching and training. I have seen so many BCBAs and RBTs that don’t know how to treat severe food selectivity or rigidity surrounding mealtime. The most rewarding part of my role is being able to teach clinicians how to treat a problem that is so prevalent in the autism population and make services more accessible to children.