The South Dakota Association for Behavior Analysis (SDABA) will hold its first conference on Friday, October 16, 2026, at the University of South Dakota Center for Disabilities in the Wegner Library building in Sioux Falls. The one-day, in-person event is designed for practitioners, educators and students working in behavior analysis across the state.
Under the theme Planting Roots, Shaping Behavior, the morning is anchored by keynote speakers Ryan O’Donnell, MS, BCBA, and David J. Cox, PhD, BCBA-D, who will lead a three-hour, workshop-style session on building professional repertoires for AI-augmented practice. Afternoon sessions include Stephen Walker, BCBA-D, comparing blocked and mixed-trial methods, a panel on ethical considerations in using AI in ABA, and Angela Williams, BCBA, on matching reinforcement to the function of staff behavior. The program carries 6 BACB CEUs, including 1 ethics CEU, included in registration for BCBA and BCBA-D attendees. Member rates started at $75 and non-member rates at $125, and an evening social follows at Remedy Brewing Company.
SDABA, an affiliate of the Association of Professional Behavior Analysts (APBA), says the conference will focus on the realities of practice in South Dakota, including serving both urban centers and widespread rural school districts and communities. As the association’s first conference, it gives the state’s behavior analytic workforce a local venue for continuing education and networking.