ABOUT THIS EPISODE
What happens when two ABA podcasts walk into the same recording space and just start talking? In this special crossover episode, Nicole and Christina sit down with Mike Rubio and Dan Lowery, the longtime co-hosts and co-owners behind ABA on Tap, for a conversation so packed with good stuff that you'll have to catch Part 2 on their feed.
Mike and Dan have been in the ABA world together for nearly 20 years, starting from the kind of first-day-on-the-job story that nobody forgets. They built their company, Ascend Behavior Partners, two years ago after watching corporate buyouts quietly chip away at their clinical values, and they have been putting their money where their mouths are ever since. Seven seasons and counting, and they show up every Sunday like clockwork. The four of them have more in common than you might expect, and this episode is proof that the best conversations happen when you stop talking at people and just start talking with them.
Why You Can't Miss This Episode:
🎙️ Get a behind-the-scenes look at what it actually takes to build and sustain an ABA podcast across multiple seasons, and why Mike and Dan keep showing up.
💼 Explore what it means to go out on your own in this field, including the real costs, the growing pains, and the surprising rewards of betting on yourself.
🏫 Dig into one of the field's most honest debates: center-based services versus inclusive settings, and how clinical recommendations can get tangled up with billing incentives.
🌎 Learn how BCBAs are expanding outside the medical model through dissemination, digital products, independent evaluations, community consulting, and even specialized transportation.
⚖️ Hear about Christina's push to get BCBAs recognized as Guardian ad Litems in Connecticut family court, and why BCBA licensure is way overdue.
Connect with ABA on Tap:
Listen Now: Part 1 is right here. Part 2 drops May 10th on the ABA on Tap feed, so make sure you follow them wherever you get your podcasts. This one is too good to leave half-finished.
Like, subscribe, and share. It's the best way to support the work we're doing:
📧 rf.conversations@gmail.com
Season 3 is made possible with support from the New England Center for Children, the worldwide leader in autism education and research for over 50 years.
