Oregon Institute of Technology, “Oregon Tech,” has announced a generous community investment of $150,000 from Cascade Health Alliance (CHA), for the critical expansion of Oregon Tech’s Behavior Improvement Group Applied Behavior Analysis (BIG ABA) clinic. Focusing primarily on the treatment of children with autism or pervasive developmental disorder diagnosis, the Oregon Tech BIG ABA clinic began serving local families in May 2018 as the only ABA clinic within 75 miles of Klamath Falls. The BIG ABA clinic and training center also provides high quality training and supervision for Oregon Tech bachelor’s and master’s students in the ABA degree programs.
This investment from CHA supports the BIG ABA clinic’s goal of increasing treatment hours by 300 percent over the next five years, serving the needs of the community and helping to address shortages of qualified interventionists. The clinic expansion will help build solutions to the hurdles preventing patients from receiving treatment, expand community outreach efforts, and add in-home support for families, increasing overall services for youth in our regional communities.
“At CHA we believe that by investing in our community we are also investing in the members we serve,” said Tayo Akins, President and CEO at CHA. “Our partnership with Oregon Tech is a natural fit since we are both highly engaged in serving our community. The BIG ABA clinic is a shining light in the behavioral care services provided to our members. We take pride in being a partner to empower the most vulnerable residents of Klamath County.
“The shortage of Applied Behavior Analysis professionals is very significant in Oregon, let alone Klamath that has a significant demand for this service for the population we serve. This investment will allow CHA to develop and have adequate access to Applied Behavioral Analysis providers and hopefully attract providers that will stay in Klamath once they finish this program,” Akins added.
The BIG ABA clinic has been identified as a priority project in the Rural Communities Development initiative of the $4 million Foundational Campaign for the Future at Oregon Tech. This initiative focuses on creating strong partnerships which provide students unique applied experiences, improving the health and capacity of community partners, and building projects which bring the campus into the community for the benefit of both.
“The community investment from Cascade Health Alliance demonstrates their passion and commitment for the Klamath Community,” said Oregon Tech president, Dr. Naganathan. “CHA has been a strong community partner for Oregon Tech in a variety of important initiatives, and this is one more example. We thank CHA for investing in our students’ education and practical experiences as we build the region’s rural health care workforce.”
To learn more about the BIG ABA clinic, visit bigaba.oit.edu or contact the clinic leadership team at abaclinic@oit.edu or 541.885.1675.
For more information about how you can help support students at Oregon Tech contact Tracy Ricketts, associate vice president for Development and Alumni Relations at 541-885-1118 or Tracy.Ricketts@oit.edu.
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About Cascade Health Alliance
As Cascade Comprehensive Care (CCC, the parent company of CHA) and CHA celebrate 26 years of providing health care services to its members, the company pledges its continuing support to them and the Klamath community as a whole. CHA serves the Oregon Health Plan (Medicaid) members in Klamath County. The company also serves Medicare members through its partner, ATRIO Health Plans.
About the Oregon Tech Foundation
The Oregon Tech Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization that promotes and funds the educational, cultural, charitable, and service functions of the Oregon Institute of Technology.
