About Us

Denise Barnes works in the College of Behavioral Community Sciences, Center for Autism and Related Disabilities at USF. As a consultant for CARD, she travels throughout 6 of CARD-USF’s 14 county area providing direct and technical assistance to families, agencies and educational facilities relating to Autism. Denise holds a Master’s Degree in Rehabilitation and Community Inclusion from Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, and an undergraduate degree in Behavioral Sciences from Northern Michigan University. Click here for more on Denise Barnes.

Beth Boone is a professional dedicated to working with individuals with autism and related disabilities and their families. She is the Executive Director for the Center for Autism and Related Disabilities at USF and The Learning Academy. Beth received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Florida in 2001, completing a dissertation on the training and support needs of medical foster families. Click here for more on Beth Boone.

Maura joined FCIC in July of 2014. Before coming to FCIC she worked in the Division of Human Resources here at the University of South Florida. Maura is part of the Admin group that supports all the projects and grants under FCIC. In her role as Administrative Specialist, Maura assists with recruitment and payroll among other duties.

Heather Peshak George is a Research Professor in the Department of Child & Family Studies at the University of South Florida within the Florida Center for Inclusive Communities (FCIC), a University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD).  Her areas of interest include positive behavior support, school-wide discipline, systems-level change, implementation and function-based behavior support planning, and international applications of PBIS. Heather is the director of the Florida Center for Inclusive Communities and a Primary Investigator or Co-Primary Investigator on a number of Positive Behavior Support Projects.  Click here for more on Heather Peshak George.

Sam provides computer and other technical related support to all FCIC programs. He has worked as an enterprise IT professional for the past 19 years. Sam wanted to use his skills to provide support to those in need and joined us to help support FCIC’s purpose and passion of promoting the independence, productivity, and community inclusion of individuals with developmental disabilities.

Dayanara Hudson supports the marketing and dissemination efforts of the National Center for Pyramid Model Innovations through the Center’s publications, website, and social media outlet information distribution. She completed her BA in Communications in New York in 2000, and MA in Publications Design in Maryland in 2006, and earned her TEFL Certificate from the University of Central Florida in 2015 and continues to tutor international English learners online. She has worked and volunteered for non-profit organizations on and off over the past 20 years and spent six years as a park photographer with Disney Parks Florida.

Lorna Henley is the Fiscal and Business Analyst for the Florida Center for Inclusive Communities (FCIC) at the University of South Florida. She brings her fiscal expertise of thirty years of experience to FCIC. Her work at FCIC involves fiscal oversight of multi-year, complex extramural awards from Federal, state, and local agencies. She also provides financial support for research initiatives, USF Foundation, and auxiliary accounts. Lorna reviews sponsored projects and internal account expenditures for compliance with federal cost accounting standards and USF regulations and practices. She provides detailed review and analysis of expenditures and payroll activities to accountable officers and principal investigators. She manages day-to-day expense transactions involving personnel, travel, purchasing, and other expense activities.

Don Kincaid is a professor in the Department of Child & Family Studies at the University of South Florida and co-directs The Florida Center for Inclusive Communities, a University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities. His professional interests include the areas of person-centered planning, positive behavior support, disabilities, and school and systems change. He is a Primary Investigator or Co-Primary Investigator on a number of Positive Behavior Support Projects. Click here for more on Don Kincaid.

Laura Rodríguez López is the Training Director for the Florida Center for Inclusive Communities, the University of South Florida’s Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities. She has a B.A. in Psychology & Political Sciences from the University of Puerto Rico, an MA.Ed. in Educational Leadership & Administration from Argosy University, and an Ed.D. in Program Development & Educational Innovation from the University of South Florida. Laura’s work at FCIC involves leadership of the interdisciplinary training program, which includes the Graduate Certificate in Positive Behavior Support. Laura is a family member of persons with disabilities. Click here for more on Laura Rodriguez Lopez.

Bob Lutz is the Director of Instructional Technologies for The Florida Center for Inclusive Communities (FCIC). He is responsible for and oversees all aspects of web development, multimedia, desktop publishing, and computer support for over 100 faculty and division staff. Bob comes to FMHI from the USF Division of Student Affairs where he was the assistant to the Associate Vice-President for Enrollment, Planning and Management. During his tenure at Student Affairs, he was tasked with the creation and development of the university's Faculty Lecture Program, which provided lectures from over 60 tenured faculty members to any high school in the five-county area surrounding USF. Bob's duties also included Webmaster for the FLP, as well as the National Student Exchange, and University-Wide Councils and Committees. Bob received his Master's degree in instructional technology from USF after having received his bachelor's degree in Psychology. He has worked as an instructional design consultant for Nielsen Media Research, and the Pinellas County School System. Click here for more on Bob Lutz.

Kimberly Read is Assistant Chair of Operations for the Department of Child & Family Studies, the organizational home for FCIC. She has worked at USF for almost twenty-five years, garnering extensive experience in business, research administration, and human resources. She received her PhD from USF in higher education administration and holds an MBA from the University of Maryland. She is a member of the Child & Family Studies Leadership team and supervises the administrative team. She oversees CFS’s financial portfolio and directs the department’s human resources. She also coordinates communication and marketing for the department.

Janet is the Contracts and Grants Manager for the Department of Child and Family Studies. Her main responsibilities are to lead the pre-award team on grant proposals and submissions as well as post-award contract renegotiations, modifications and extensions. She is also responsible for post-award reconciliation of complex awards as well as pay distribution for the department.

Daniel Souders is the Data Management Analyst for The Florida Center for Inclusive Communities, the University of South Florida Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities. Click here for more on Daniel Souders.

Dana is a Fiscal & Business Specialist within the Department of Child & Family Studies (CFS) at USF. She is responsible for assisting Rehabilitation and Mental Health Counseling Programs, Florida Center for Inclusive Communities, and the USF Rightpath Research and Innovation Center with all purchasing and travel transactions needed. She also manages the Faculty work assignments reporting for all divisions within CFS and assists with other projects as needed.

Selecia serves as an Administrative Specialist for Child & Family Studies, with her work concentrated in FCIC. She has worked for the department for more than 30 years. She is a transactional professional who handles travel arrangements and reimbursements, purchase orders and corporate card purchases, vendor setup and maintenance, and contracts. She also assists with data entry for projects as the need arises.