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Meet Our Team
Brooklyn Autism Center is proud to offer the highest quality instruction using Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) for individuals with Autism. Each of our instructors holds a Bachelor’s degree in related fields along with prior experience working with individuals with Autism. The staff and classrooms are supervised throughout the day by Clinical Supervisors who have extensive backgrounds working with individuals with Autism and utilizing ABA. All staff are overseen by our Directors who are Board Certified and Licensed Behavior Analysts in New York State.
Board of Directors
Board President
Tom has extensive experience in both the non-profit and private sectors. He’s been involved with BAC for 10 years and is a very active member of the Brooklyn community where he lives and works. He is currently in a senior role at a Brooklyn based technology company. Tom also serves on the Board of Fast Feet NYC and manages a family foundation focused on helping charitable organizations across New York City and Charleston, South Carolina. He is an honors graduate of Lehigh University with degrees in International Relations and Economics.
Board Treasurer
Matt is a portfolio manager for the Financial Institutions Group within BlackRock’s Global Fixed Income platform. He manages corporate credit portfolios on behalf of global insurance clients. Before moving to New York in 2011, Matt grew up in Scotland and earned a BA degree, with honors, in Business Economics from The University of Dundee. Matt also holds his FINRA series 7 and 63 certifications, and is a qualified Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA). With teachers as parents, and a family member with autism, Matt has a true passion for working to provide educational opportunities for students with autism and is proud to be part of the BAC community.
Board Secretary
Dr. Anica Camela Mulzac is a licensed clinical psychologist with expertise in human behavior and group dynamics. As the Executive Clinical Director and Provost at Resilience Lab (www.resiliencelab.us), Dr. Anica leads the clinical director/supervisor team and spearheads the development of the Resilience Lab Institute for professional staff. Through her work with Race (+) Positive, LLC, Dr. Anica combines her passion for Race + Diversity with years of clinical training, research, and experience to help leaders and educators dismantle all expressions of racism, prejudice, and bias in their unique spheres of influence. Learn more about Dr. Anica’s work by visiting www.doctoranica.com
Ty is a residential real estate broker with The Corcoran Group and a commercial real estate attorney at Goldstein Hall PLLC. Ty’s interest in education began prior to law school, while he was working in a high school classroom instructing students with Autism. In the years that followed until law school, he spent each summer in the high school or middle school setting working as a teacher’s assistant for the extended school year program. Ty brings his experience as an attorney assisting organizations with corporate governance and his passion for educating students with autism to assist BAC in its continued growth and success.
Alex is a Partner in PwC’s Deals Strategy practice focused on the Technology, Media, and Telecom (TMT) sectors. He leads commercial diligence and growth strategy work for operators and investors. He is passionate about New York City and is involved in the startup community and local charities. He received his B.A. from Brown University and has long been interested in ways to improve education through the role of data and technology. Several of Alex’s family members have spent their careers in child development and he has a family member with Autism – as such, he is honored to be part of the BAC and find his own ways to give back to the community.
Rachel is currently in the Procurement Department at Johnson & Johnson. Rachel has always been interested in helping those with learning disabilities and volunteers every Friday at BAC. Rachel is the point of contact for the BAC Junior Board and is the liaison between the Junior Board and Board of Directors. The goal of the Junior Board is to bring awareness to the Autism community with fundraisers, local events as well as the BAC run that takes place in May.
Jillian Forman is the Co-Founder, Chair and Executive Director of the 501(c)(3) non-profit Pawsability Dog Club Inc. After witnessing developmentally disabled family and friends “fall off the cliff” while transitioning into young adulthood, she set out to build an organization that could provide vocational training and meaningful employment opportunities for autistic adults. Pawsability reimagines the neighborhood doggy daycare as a non-profit building a community focused on uplifting their team, their neighbors and of course, their furry customers. Jillian is from New York City and received her B.S. from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University.
Fernande Deguenon is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA), and a former Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) trainee at BAC. She has served individuals with autism and their families in different capacities for over 15 years. She is passionate about helping individuals achieve their highest potential and enjoy meaningful lives. In her free time Fernande enjoys spending time with family and friends, running, reading, watching documentaries, and listening to podcasts.
Talia Orband is a LMSW originally from Binghamton, NY. After completing her Masters of Social Work education at Columbia University in 2014, Talia began her career serving elder abuse survivors in family court, and later transitioned to the criminal justice system. Talia is passionate and dedicated to advocating for others who cannot do it for themselves.
Advisory Board
Sydnee Jorgl is a parent of a child with Autism. She is an advocate for the Autistic community and seeks to spread awareness and acceptance to our community and beyond.
Rishi Chelminski is a NYS licensed, board certified behavior analyst. His training in Applied Behavior Analysis began at The University of Florida, under the supervision of Drs. Brian Iwata, Timothy Vollmer and Jesse Dallery. He earned his masters from Northeastern University while working at The New England Center for Children, where received extensive experience addressing very severe special needs. After moving to New York City, Rishi served as an adjunct lecturer at Queens College, and a Chancellor’s Fellow at CUNY. For five years he served as Director of Behavior Services at Services for the UnderServed, where he adapted ABA-based clinical practices to support adults living in OPWDD certified group homes and developmental centers. Regarding this work, he has presented extensively at The Association for Behavior Analysis International, New York Association for Behavior Analysis, and the NYS Association of Community and Residential Agencies. Currently, Rishi’s work focuses on preparing young adults with intellectual disabilities for the transition from school to managed care settings. He also collaborates with crisis intervention teams to address the mental health needs of typically-developing children and adults.