Occupational Therapists

Cynthia Welch, MS OTR
Upon completing her Bachelor’s Degree from Saint Mary’s in 1974, Ms. Welch chose to pursue a career in occupational therapy as it incorporated all of her areas of major interest. Ms. Welch attended San Jose State University and graduated in 1999 with a Masters of Science Degree in Occupational Therapy. She immediately began post graduate training in pediatrics and has since studied and practiced in this area, primarily as a school based clinician.

Ms. Welch is a an expert pediatric occupational therapist specializing in Sensory Integration, Therapeutic Listening, Perceptual Enrichment Program, Interactive Metronome, Vision Training, and other specialized techniques. Ms. Welch was integral in helping Anova Center for Education develop their occupational therapy program and continues to work as a clinician, trainer, and mentor in carrying the message and providing the benefits of occupational therapy to all those in need.
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Betsy Mischke, MA OTR/L
Betsy Mischke graduated from the University of Southern California in 1993 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Sociology. Upon graduating she worked with severely handicapped infants and then with adults and children with both physical disabilities and developmental delays. It was this work that led her to return to graduate school to earn a Masters Degree in Occupational Therapy from Samuel Merritt College in 1998.

Ms. Mischke has worked in diverse environments including public school districts, private pediatric clinics and pediatric rehabilitation both in the hospital and outpatient treatment clinic. She has worked extensively with children with neurological impairment, orthopedic impairment, sensory based feeding problems, fine and gross motor delays, visual motor and sensory motor dysfunction. Ms. Mischke is an expert clinician and skilled collaborator who enjoys working with other specialists as a member of a multidisciplinary team to create beneficial and meaningful treatment sessions for her students. She will be practicing her skills as the Occupational Therapist at the ACE School campus in Santa Rosa where she will practice and continue to refine the Anova Method of Education.
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Speech & Language Pathologists

Cheryl A. Larson, M.A., CCC-SLP
Cheryl Larson received her Master’s Degree in Communication Disorders and Speech Science from the University of Colorado in Boulder, Colorado. Ms. Larson completed her undergraduate work at the University of Kansas in Lawrence obtaining a Liberal Arts degree with the emphasis in speech, language, and hearing disorders. She has also completed a graduate level course in the theory and application of Sensory Integration Strategies. She has over 13 years of experience working extensively with the pediatric population providing services primarily to children with developmental disabilities, and working in a variety of settings including special education preschools, home-based services, pediatric hospitals, and private clinics. In these settings, Ms. Larson has provided evaluation services, individual and group therapy, parent and staff training, and supervision. Some of her continuing education credits include training in the Lindamood Bell Visualizing and Verbalizing and Seeing Stars programs.
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Behavior Analysts

Wendi Toland, MA
Wendi Toland has worked with individuals with developmental disabilities for over 14 years, beginning with her experience as a paraprofessional and then as a behavior analyst for the past decade. Ms. Toland is an expert in developing positive behavior intervention plans, supervising paraprofessional assistants, facilitating social skills groups, and providing training on behavioral methodologies to parents, teachers, and paraprofessionals. She currently works in the public schools with a diverse population of consumers and educators. Ms, Toland attended Sonoma State University where she earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology in 1993 and a Master of Arts Degree in Counseling in 1998. Ms. Toland was the first Behavior Analyst hired by Anova during our early years and has been instrumental in helping our agency achieve the high standards that we have set for ourselves.
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Marc Pieper, MA
Marc Pieper is an experienced Behavior Analyst who has worked in the field of education for many years as a paraprofessional, teacher, and consultant. Mr. Pieper graduated with honors from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1980 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Art and received a Master of Arts Degree in Education from San Francisco State University in 1995. He was a member of the Phi Kappa Phi National Honor Society and received the Hilda Taba Scholarship for academic excellence. Mr. Pieper is an expert in the area of Video Modeling and the use of video technology in the training and education of developmentally disabled individuals. He has presented his work at numerous conferences throughout California and has provided consultation to many parents, educators, and professionals over the past decade. Mr. Pieper is currently working to provide a range of behavior analysis services to consumers of all ages in both school and community settings, with an emphasis on the reduction of severe behaviors and the use of technology in education.
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Jill Furuoka, MA
Jill Furuoka has over 10 years of experience in the field of autism and special education both as a paraprofessional and behavior analyst. She is an expert in the development and application of autism early intervention programs for pre-school age students using the principles and practices of applied behavior analysis. Her current work includes the development of positive behavior intervention plans, supervision and training for staff, parent education, and professional consultation to educators in public school districts throughout the North Bay area. Ms. Furuoka attended Humboldt State University where she graduated with Honors, receiving a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology in 1998 and a Master of Arts Degree in Psychology in 2001. Ms. Furuoka presented her work regarding Autism and Full Inclusion at the 2003 Annual Conference of the California Association for Behavior Analysis.
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ACE Staff

Daniel Sousa
ACE School Coordinator
Before joining the Anova administrative team as the ACE School Coordinator, Mr. Sousa was the high school teacher and was instrumental in starting ACE’s high school program. Mr. Sousa has been involved with Special Education at a number of non-public schools serving special needs children ages 5 – 18. He also has extensive experience in youth recreation where he has led wilderness group outings for both developmentally disabled and at-risk, inner-city adolescents. Throughout Mr. Sousa’s career in youth development, he has regularly received continuing education and training in creating and implementing behavioral programs for children with special needs.

Mr. Sousa played collegiate baseball at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, New Mexico before transferring to California State University at Long Beach, where he completed his degree in Sociology. In addition, he has completed graduate level coursework in Special Education. As the School Coordinator, Mr. Sousa’s primary interest is to provide a safe learning environment that addresses the specialized needs of both ACE’s students and families.
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Alicia Honn, MA
Master Teacher
Alicia Honn has been working with children with Developmental Disabilities since she was 15 years old. After answering an advertisement in a local newspaper she began working as a paraprofessional in San Diego with the Association for Retarded Citizens.

Ms. Honn continued working with ARC while living in Chico and earning her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Rehabilitation Therapy from Chico State University in 1986. Ms. Honn went on to work as a Rehabilitation Therapist at the Sonoma Developmental Center for nine years, during which time she realized that her true love was in special education of children. After completing her Masters Degree at Sonoma State University, Ms. Honn earned several teaching credentials which she currently maintains in her role as Master Teacher at the Ace School. Ms. Honn has worked in a number of capacities in education over the past ten years, including SDC teacher at Children’s Day Treatment Center, Behavior Analyst for a local agency and full-inclusion case manager for a public school district. Ms. Honn has emerged from these experiences as an extremely highly skilled and effective educator and mentor of children. Ms. Honn was instrumental in developing the curriculum and classroom management models being implemented at the ACE School and has played a large role in the success of our program. Ms. Honn was the first teacher at the ACE School and served as teacher of the middle school class and Master Teacher of the Santa Rosa campus, until her recent move to our new campus in Napa County.
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April Kelly
April Kelly is a credentialed Special Education teacher who has spent the past ten years of her life working with children with special needs and their families. Ms. Kelly received her Bachelors Degree in Sociology from Sonoma State University and is currently completing her Masters Degree in Special Education. Ms. Kelly has extensive experience that includes work in school, home, and community settings and has been with Anova for the past five years, including her work as a paraprofessional assistant.

She has been instrumental in implementing the Anova Method of education at the ACE School over the past two years as the early elementary teacher. Ms. Kelly was born and raised in Sonoma County and continues to make her home here with her 5 year old son.
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Mesa Whitt
Mesa Whitt is an experienced educator who has been working with children for 15 years as a paraprofessional, residential treatment provider, group home manager and special education teacher. Ms. Whitt has attended the University of Alabama and been involved with a number of human service organizations, including the Special Olympics. She graduated with honors in 1994 from Athens State University with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Special Education. Ms. Whitt has earned teaching credentials in both Alabama and California and is currently serving as the teacher of the middle elementary grades at the ACE School. Ms. Whitt has worked in a highly regarded treatment milieu for emotionally disturbed children and has served as an educator and mentor for many children in Sonoma County over the past decade. Ms. Whitt has been with Anova for the last two years and has been instrumental in the success of our school program and in developing and implementing the Anova Method of education at the ACE School.
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Peter Engle
Peter Engle channeled his interest in art into a career in industrial design after receiving degrees from the University of San Diego and the Art Center College of Design. After eight years working for Kawasaki Motors Peter augmented a subsequent freelance career with work as a paraeducator in Long Beach, California. Over the course of several years his interest in education grew and after moving up to Sonoma County found work with Anova, Inc. as a paraeducator.

In 2004 Peter enrolled in the Teaching Credential program at Sonoma State University and has been attending classes while continuing to work for Anova. In 2004 Peter also started to work as a paraeducator in the high school class at Anova’s ACE School. Two years on Peter is finishing his last semester at SSU, has received his intern credential and is now the teacher in the high school class. In an effort to encourage the development of well-rounded young adults Peter is incorporating arts and life skills curriculum into the academic program within his room.
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Gloria Garner
Check back for an updated bio.
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