Naima Bhana-Lopez, PhD, BCBA-D

Dr. Naima Bhana-Lopez (she/her/ella) is an assistant professor of special education and a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA-D) at Utah State University. Her research focuses on developing naturalistic interventions and caregiver-implemented strategies to enhance social-communication skills of young children with developmental disabilities, particularly those who benefit from augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) system. Additionally, Dr. Bhana-Lopez seeks to amplify and serve the needs of ethnically diverse students and families, with a particular emphasis on Latino communities. This work extends to researching and implementing strategies for recruiting and retaining professionals of color, ensuring a more inclusive and representative educational workforce.

Naima received her doctorate in special education from Penn State University and her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Florida State University. Before joining Utah State University, she was a faculty member at Niagara University in Lewiston, NY. She has published and presented at national and international conferences in English and Spanish on the topics of Autism Spectrum Disorders, Diversity and Equity in Special Education, and Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC).