Melissa Christopher, CFO & Director of External Affairs
Melissa wanted children diagnosed with autism and other learning differences, like her son Bowie, to have a place where they can develop friendships and thrive in a community where they are nurtured and accepted by caring people, who understand the importance of recognizing the individual spirit in each person. Melissa is a F.E.A.T. parent mentor, Outreach Coordinator for the Canary Party, former Montessori teacher and a strong advocate in the community, ensuring that autism is treated as a top priority.

Katie Steele, Assistant Director

Katie Steele is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. She has worked with families and children for over 12 years. While receiving her Bachelors and Masters degrees in Psychology and Marriage and Family Therapy, she worked with the special needs community through a local church that provided respite support to families. Katie is passionate about MAPS and provides support to both clients and staff.

Lisa Heitzler, Clinical Supervisor

Lisa began her career in the field of Special Education working as an Aquatic Therapist and Instructional Assistant for individuals with special needs. These experiences eventually lead her to the role as a Special Education teacher where she developed and taught a class for high school students with Autism. In this position, Lisa discovered a strong interest in the field of Applied Behavior Analysis and Autism treatment programs. In 2003, Lisa accepted a position as Behavior Specialist with Alta California Regional Center and began her career as an Applied Behavior Analyst. Her position there allowed her to support families of children who had received a diagnosis of autism by providing consultation, parent training, and assessments for autism services. At the same time, Lisa was advancing her education and received a Master’s Degree in Special Education in 2006 and became a Board Certified Behavior Analyst in 2008. In her desire to work more directly with clients, Lisa accepted a position with a company providing in-home ABA services specializing in Pivotal Response Therapy (PRT), a child lead natural teaching approach. She spent nine years working one on one with clients, providing parent training, and supervising cases. This experience led her to her current position as Clinical Supervisor at MAPS.

Kayle Torres, Clinical Supervisor

Kayle Torres has worked with children and families for over 15 years. Kayle comes from an early childhood education background and has worked as a preschool and school aged teacher along with many years as a director of a childcare. While earning a Bachelors in Child Development she volunteered with the National Coalition for Down Syndrome and provided respite care to families of children with Autism. Kayle also has a Masters in Psychology, Marriage Family Therapy from Brandman University and is a Licensed Marriage Family Therapist.

Melinda Owens, Clinical Supervisor

Melinda originally thought she wanted to be an American Sign Language interpreter and received a Sign Language certificate in 2003. However, in 2004 she started volunteering at a camp for children with emotional, physical, and developmental disabilities. Enthralled by the honesty and energy shown by the children, she knew this was the field she wanted to work in. Since then, Melinda has worked with children on the autism spectrum. She was employed by a non-public school in Orangevale, CA for three years where she provided one on one instructional assistance to students and, in addition, she supervised and trained educational aides. She also worked for Albany Unified School District where she created individualized behavior plans for students and transitioned special education students to general education classrooms. In 2008, she began working for an ABA company who provided in-home, play-based therapy utilizing the Pivotal Response Training (PRT) model.  While there, she worked closely with families to create and implement functional goals and behavior plans to suit the family and child’s needs and provided tailored parent training sessions with caregivers. During her nine years working with this company, Melinda completed her master’s degree in special education with an emphasis on Autism and she also received her BCBA certification.

Shelbie Robinson, Clinical Supervisor

Shelbie began working in the field of Applied behavior analysis in 2012 while completing her bachelor’s degree in psychology. She immediately discovered her passion for working with children and families with special needs. She continued to expand her professional experience by working with her clients across environments including at school, at home, at ABA centers, and in the community. While working towards her master’s degree, Shelbie, took a position with an ABA company that utilized Pivotal Response Treatment (PRT), play-based therapy, and natural environment teaching practices. This position reignited her passion for the field and how ABA can be utilized functionally to provide meaningful support to families and significant benefits to the children. Shelbie received her master’s degree in education and applied behavior analysis is 2018. The following year she became a certified BCBA. Shelbie joined the MAPS team in October 2019 and enjoys being able to continue utilizing play-based and natural teaching methods to support children and families in the community.

Jocelynn Lenz, Clinical Supervisor

Jocelynn Lenz began her career working with children and families in the home and school settings.  She discovered MAPS when she moved back to northern California in 2016 and immediately discovered a love for working with individuals with special needs and neurodivergence. She has since pursued her master’s degree in ABA and became a BCBA shortly afterwards. Jocelynn’s experience at MAPS has supported her passion for ensuring that the children she serves are supported in naturalistic environments and through play-based opportunities. She appreciates the Montessori approach to child-led play and learning, and hopes to further her training in this area.

Heather Kuhl, Clinical Supervisor

While pursuing her Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education, Heather was introduced to ABA in 2012. Soon after working in the field, Heather changed her career path from Teacher to BCBA. Heather completed her Masters program in 2019 and became a BCBA in 2021. Heather enjoys utilizing naturalistic techniques which has led her to MAPS where she has enjoyed learning and growing alongside her clients.