The Star Academy is proud to announce that all our staff members across South Africa and Africa have participated in an international ABA Board Exam, achieving certification as Board Certified Autism Technicians (BCAT). This certification further validates the autism-specific skills of our team members and their competencies in using the principles and procedures of applied behaviour analysis.

The certificate is awarded by the Behavioural Intervention Certification Council (BICC), a nonprofit organisation founded in America to promote top-quality, evidenced-based autism treatment and to ensure consumer safety. BCAT certificate holders meet specified education, training, and experience standards, adhere to a code of ethics, and demonstrate mastery of the knowledge required to treat the deficits and behaviours associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

The BICC, an independent and autonomous governing body for the BCAT certification programme, was established in 2013 to promote the highest standards of treatment for individuals with ASD through the development, implementation, coordination, and evaluation of all aspects of the certification and certification renewal processes.

“Not only did our staff meet the eligibility requirements for exam entrants — which included a certain number of supervised experience hours, education, and training — we are thrilled that they also achieved top marks for the BCAT certification,” says Ilana Gerschlowitz, Director of The Star Academy, commenting on the BCAT as an ongoing means of evaluation where technicians must obtain continuing education credit units in order to retain their certification. With the pass mark for the exam set at 80% or above, this is no mean feat.

The BCAT examination was developed by a diverse group of practitioners in partnership with test development experts in a manner consistent with generally accepted psychometric principles and best practices for certification using an internationally recognized process to identify the roles and responsibilities of autism technicians. It is the first and only autism-specific credential that is accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA), an independent body accredited by the American National Standards Institute as a Standards Developer.

“The NCCA regulates the standard of certification professionals in developing and managing high-quality certification programs, the same credentialing authority that accredits Board Certified Behaviour Analysts,” continues Ilana.

We are not accredited, yet. We submitted the application and should hear that we are accredited by the end of October or early November. We are members of the parent organization, the Institute for Credentialing Excellence. The psychometrician and test consultant who worked with us to develop the exam sit on the NCCA board, so we are confident that we have a strong application and will hear good news.

Furthermore, all BCAT technicians are registered on the BICC registry, providing consumers with the means to identify qualified technicians. This further enforces the BICC’s rigorous standards, which includes monitoring of the technicians’ educational backgrounds, training, credentials and additional certifications. This is done in the interest of public safety, and the information is accessible to parents, caregivers, educators, funding agencies, and other interested parties, dovetailing with The Star Academy’s commitment to the highest standard in facilitating cutting-edge instruction.

“Some of the key reasons that our staff excelled in the exam can be attributed to the level of expertise and experience of our staff at The Star Academy and the expertise, support and on-going training and quality assurance of our USA affiliate CARD, world leaders in autism treatment,” explains Ilana. “We have a commitment to a strong work ethic where we work together as members of a team, dedicated to improving the lives of the children entrusted to our care.”

Congratulations to all of our outstanding staff members who have been inducted as BCAT certifcants. We look forward to many more productive and successful years as we continue our contribution in making a difference to our children and families with ASD.

We are certified in Johannesburg, Tshwane , Durban and across Africa (Ghana, Mauritius and Zimbabwe).