HARRISBURG, Pa. – Tiffany Brezenski of Fayette Resources Inc., was named the PAR 2022 “We Are Worth It” Behavior Support Professional of the Year in September. PAR, which is the Pennsylvania Advocacy and Resources for Autism and Intellectual Disability, chose Ms. Brezenski out of numerous statewide submissions. Ms. Brezenski will accept the award at the annual awards ceremony in October.
PAR honors providers of IDD services throughout the state yearly. This year marks the first year this category has been offered, and the winner was chosen through review of nominations by an impartial committee.
Ms. Brezenski has worked for Fayette Resources Inc. for more than 17 years, and has held the role of Behavior Specialist for the agency for the past 4 years. She holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Rehabilitation through Clarion University, and a Master’s of Science in Applied Psychology, with a focus in ABA (Applied Behavioral Analysis). She is a Licensed Behavior Specialist through the state of Pennsylvania, and also holds a Specialist Certification through the National Association of Dual Diagnosis (NADD). As a behavior specialist, Ms. Brezenski develops behavior support plans to target and improve challenging behaviors and current skill levels, finds ways to develop new skills, and maximizes independence and quality of life for clients. She collaborates with others to build cross-functional plans with the medical team, support staff, family, and program managers to ensure quality care. She also supervises, analyzes, and evaluates the effectiveness of Behavior Support Plans for interventions. Additionally, Ms. Brezenski mentors and trains staff in order to carry out effective and ethical intervention strategies.
Her extensive training gives her the ability to utilize core ABA foundational practices alongside NADD principles, with a special focus on the bio-psycho-social model. Through this approach, team members look at the person as a whole: their lives through a social context; relationships; past trauma; current and past medical history; learning abilities; current state of mental health along with past psychiatric episodes. This approach views the person with a lens of empathy and aims to determine what the behavior is trying to communicate.
Ms. Brezenski will receive her award at the Annual PAR Solutions Conference to be held October 25. Every year, the PAR Solutions Conference brings together providers of Intellectual Disability and Autism (ID/A) services from across the state and country. Those who attend the conference are decision makers for their organizations (i.e. CEOs, CFOs, Directors) who are focused on solutions as they relate to intellectual disability and autism, and are interested in sharing their experiences and learning from others.
Fayette Resources Inc. is a non-profit agency that serves clients with intellectual and developmental disabilities in the west-central and southwestern regions of Pennsylvania in residential settings located in Jefferson, Clearfield, Indiana, Allegheny and Fayette Counties, and additionally supports life-sharing providers and offers services to clients at their Community Participation & Supports programs.