Meaningful, measurable behavior change for schools, families, and organizations.

How we match expertise to need

Reading the rapids

Like whitewater, challenging behavior comes in classes. Each class needs a guide with the right training and experience. We match the clinician to the intensity of the case.

We work with children in every class, 1 through 6. Our specialty is Classes 3–6: serious, high-intensity, complex, and life-threatening behavior, where the risk of harm is rising and experience matters most.

1. Class1

   Mildly disruptive

   Minor stereotypy, mild verbal protest, off-task behavior. No risk of harm.

   RBT® or BCaBA®Token economies, prompting, differential reinforcement
2. Class2

   Moderate

   Moderate property destruction (slamming doors, throwing small items) or noncompliance. Low chance of injury.

   BCBA®FBA and a behavior intervention plan built on antecedent strategies and functional communication training
3. Class3

   Serious

   Frequent elopement in open settings or low-intensity self-injury. Risk of harm is rising.

   BCBA®, 2+ yearsHighly structured proactive plan and crisis intervention training (e.g., TACT2™)
4. Class4

   High intensity

   Severe aggression toward peers or staff, or intense self-injury (e.g., head-banging) causing tissue damage. Harm is likely.

   BCBA®, 3+ yearsSenior analyst collaboration, continuous data, and an approved emergency crisis protocol
5. Class5

   Complex, multi-variable

   Severe aggression or self-injury layered with psychiatric or medical factors (trauma, psychosis, epilepsy). Serious safety risk.

   BCBA®, 10+ years, or BCBA-D®Collaboration with psychiatry and neurology to separate behavioral function from medical effects
6. Class6

   Life-threatening crisis

   Imminent threat to life or limb: running into traffic, wielding a weapon, severe unabated self-injury.

   Expert crisis response teamMulti-person response, emergency medical protocols, and coordination with community safety

Adapted from the whitewater rafting metaphor in Bailey & Burch (2022), Ethics for Behavior Analysts (4th ed.), applied here to the intensity of challenging behavior.