About
The Behavior Detective
Our mission and purpose
The Behavior Detective empowers childhood professionals with the clarity and confidence to skillfully assess and meaningfully respond to children with challenging behaviors.
I have spent over a decade working alongside school administrators, teachers, educators, and parents who needed quick and effective solutions to extremely challenging behaviors.
My experience led me to be an advocate for staff and students, teaching de-escalation strategies and instructing our youth and adolescents in emotional problem-solving.
I AM SO HAPPY YOU ARE HERE!
Hey there, I'm Spencer
It wasn't until 6 months postpartum, that I was unexpectedly hit my first wave of post-traumatic stress and what I know now to be subconscious implicit memories. My body was stuck in a state of Despite my psychology background and a supportive family and workplace, I couldn't seem to grasp what was happening to me...
My first year of motherhood changed everything about how I approach and respond to challenging behaviors in children.
My Story
We are a firefighter family, born and raised in the Pacific Northwest. Being a first responder family, responding to emergencies and putting out fires is a familiar conversation within the walls of our home.
There is no doubt our homes and classrooms can feel like they are on fire when you have a child who is highly disruptive, unsafe, or destructive. Childhood professionals more than ever deserve the clarity and confidence to know exactly how to interpret and respond to a "behavioral fire" when they see it.
My Family
Starting at 19 years old, I ventured into the field of behavioral analysis as a registered behavior technician. Within these homes, I worked closely with families and children to bring clarity to some of our most vulnerable populations of children in Washington state. This journey all began while pursuing my bachelor's degree in psychology.
Upon graduation I became a research assistant at the University of Washington in Seattle where I had a lead role in collaborating with the Autism Center to understand differences in brain language processing in siblings of autistic children. Getting hands-on experience with brain imaging technologies MEG, EEG, and MRI, I met so many children and families and I quickly learned that I wanted to work more closely with them outside of the research setting!
That is when I accepted my all-time favorite position as a Title 1 School District behavior specialist and district-wide de-escalation instructor.
Since the start of my journey in behavioral analysis over 10 years ago, I have worked in over 100 classrooms (both General & Special Education), helping educators and parents navigate highly disruptive and unsafe behaviors.
My Background
on the blog
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- Leanne, National board certified teacher, district bcba
Spencer was always calm and reassuring in the biggest crisis and always found a way to bring the joy in. She was a very good listener. Validates how your learners feel (adults and kids) and also challenges them. People want to build capacity for her.
- Maxwell, special education teacher
Spencer enables people to feel confident in their own abilities and adds tools and tricks along the way. She approached each case and child with a clean slate to better understand the “why” behind the behavior.
Spencer supported me with debriefing after intense behavior escalations and helped me navigate the school systems as a whole during my first year in the district.
- Titrice, district board certified behavior analyst (bCBA)
- Holly, School administrator, LICENSED PSYCHOLOGISt
Spencer was responsive to the needs of our team, sought and conveyed information accurately and efficiently. She was warm and compassionate. She continues to be
someone who has the highest of professional and ethical standards.
- Maxwell, special education teacher
Working in these higher acuity settings, skills I learned from Spencer are helpful in not only defusing dangerous situations but also in adding that level of confidence that is so important.
