ABC clinical council & leadership team

Hersh sets Action Behavior’s strategic vision and culture, ensuring the delivery of high-quality ABA therapy for the children and families we serve. Hersh is also dedicated to supporting the autism community at large. He helps to lead ABC's public policy efforts to improve and expand access to care for every person diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. His career in healthcare spans over 20 years, including serving as a business unit president for DaVita Kidney Care and a consultant and operations leader at Strategy& and GE Healthcare. Outside of work, Hersh is active in family and patient advocacy and enjoys spending time with his family and being outdoors. He earned his MBA from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business and his B.S. in industrial engineering from Purdue University.

Chris joined Action Behavior in 2018. In his role, Chris sets the processes and tempo that ensure teammates in our centers have the tools and support they need to provide the best care possible to our families. Before joining ABC, Chris served as a director of operations at other major healthcare organizations for over a decade. Prior to that, Chris served as a combat medic for the U.S. Army, establishing treatment and triage protocols for emergency situations (QRF), monitoring security and counter-insurgency operations in Iraq, and training over 500 foreign military and police personnel.

Ryan joined Action Behavior with over 15 years of financial and strategic leadership experience in some of the world's leading publicly traded healthcare and energy companies. Currently, he oversees Action Behavior's financial and operations strategies, managing various central teams, including Finance, New Centers/Real Estate, FP&A, Strategic Planning, IT, Growth Marketing, and Strategy.  Previously, Ryan was vice president of finance and head of VS Next at Vision Source, a subsidiary of Essilor-Luxottica, where he led the creation of a new business division. He also spent over five years at Chevron, managing strategic investments and key programs in the Venture Capital & Innovation arm. Outside of work, Ryan enjoys spending time in the great outdoors with his wife and kids, playing piano, and reading a good book. He earned a B.B.A in finance and accounting with distinction from the University of Washington and an M.S. in applied economics from Johns Hopkins University.

Dr. Mintz leads all clinical delivery and management for Action Behavior and directs our clinical research efforts. She leads the Action Behavior clinical council, oversees regional clinical teams, and ensures processes align with BACB ethical standards. Additionally, she manages the collection and analysis of clinical data for research in partnership with our clinical council members. In the clinical community, Dr. Mintz is a board member of the Association of Professional Behavior Analysts (APBA), including a presidential term that concluded in 2023. She previously served as the president of the Washington Association for Behavior Analysis (WABA). She co-chaired its legislative committee, overseeing the successful passage of a behavior analyst licensure bill into law in 2015. Before joining Action Behavior, Dr. Mintz held significant roles, including vice president of clinical operations for the Pacific Northwest for a multistate autism services organization and chief BCBA at a large adult residential facility. Earlier in her career, she served as a school consultant and clinical director for a private autism early intervention program. Dr. Mintz has been a BCBA since 2004. She received her master's and doctorate in behavioral psychology from the University of Nevada, Reno.

Sharon is responsible for ongoing human resources operations at Action Behavior and attracting, developing, and retaining new talent. She collaborates with clinical and business leaders to develop career pathways, continually evolve the investments made in the ABC teammate experience, and support best-in-class teammate growth and development. Sharon has over 15 years of multisite HR experience, including roles at NBC Universal and DaVita Kidney Care. When she's not at work, Sharon enjoys spending time with her family, supporting her older daughter's softball team, and all things fitness-related. She earned a B.S. in finance from the University of Florida with high honors and an M.S. in human resources from Troy University. Additionally, she holds Senior Professional in Human Resources (SHRM-SCP) and Professional in Human Resources (PHR) certifications.

As the Chief Marketing Officer at ABC, Matt leads the organization's marketing strategy to connect families with life-changing autism therapy services. He brings a unique ability to blend data-driven insights with creative storytelling, making marketing not just a tool for growth but a means to communicate the profound impact of ABC's mission. With over 25 years of experience in multi-site healthcare and retail marketing, Matt has a proven track record of transforming brands and driving meaningful results. Prior to joining ABC, he served as the Chief Marketing Officer at Affordable Care, where he focused on improving accessibility and providing solutions for an underserved patient population. His leadership helped to strengthen Affordable Care’s position as a trusted provider of dental care. Before that, Matt served as EVP of Marketing for Tailored Brands, where he successfully guided customer-centric strategies for major retail apparel brands. Matt is passionate about mission-driven organizations and believes marketing should tell the story of the difference a brand makes in people’s lives. He is excited to bring this philosophy to ABC and play a role in amplifying its mission to support children with autism and their families. In addition to his professional achievements, Matt enjoys spending time with his family, traveling to new destinations, playing golf, and following his favorite sports teams. Matt holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies and English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Brian brings 20 years of broad healthcare experience to Action Behavior in legal, compliance, and investigation functions. As General Counsel, Brian serves as a strategic thought partner and trusted C-suite advisor. Brian is responsible for Action Behavior’s legal strategy and operations, including the company’s healthcare compliance and privacy programs and all internal investigations. Brian also leads Action Behavior’s public policy and advocacy efforts. Before joining Action Behavior, Brian spent nine years at DaVita Kidney Care, where he served as vice president and associate general counsel. In this role, he supported and developed a team of attorneys and legal professionals who provided legal, compliance, and investigation support to DaVita’s subsidiaries. Brian has also served as counsel to research and development groups within several global pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. He holds a J.D. from Delaware Law School - Widener University and a B.S. in economics from Penn State University.

Dr. Hanley has 35 years experience in behavior analysis. After attending the University of Florida and becoming tenured at the University of Kansas, he developed the Behavior Analysis Doctoral Program and Life Skills Clinic at Western New England University (WNEU). A Fellow of the American Psychological Association, Dr. Hanley has served as editor for several behavior analysis journals and has published over 100 articles focused on problem behavior, life skills, and sleep issues. In addition to serving on ABC's clinical council, he advises doctoral candidates and leads FTF Behavioral, an international training and consulting group.

Dr. LeBlanc served on the clinical council before stepping into her full-time role as the Executive Director of the Action Institute. She leads our efforts to improve quality, transparency, accountability, and equity in treatment services while advancing our scientific understanding of treatment outcomes and the variables that influence those outcomes. She works with our clinical leadership team to integrate our findings into ongoing clinical processes to ensure improvement in our delivery of services to families.