Association for Positive Behavior Support

What Association for Positive Behavior Support does

The Association for Positive Behavior Support (APBS) is a US-based nonprofit professional membership association founded in 2007 and headquartered in Bloomsburg, PA, operating with 11-50 employees under Executive Director Cheretta Clerkley, MBA (appointed 2024). APBS is the recognized international authority on Positive Behavior Support (PBS) and Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), serving a multidisciplinary community that spans educators, behavior analysts, school psychologists, university researchers, social workers, physicians, families, and self-advocates across school, family, community, and systems settings. The organization operates a membership-based digital platform comprising a protected Digital Library Hub, a Virtual Community networking platform, webinar delivery infrastructure, and regional/thematic networks serving at least 10 countries including the US, Canada, the UK, the Netherlands, Australia, Japan, Korea, China, and Taiwan.

APBS's core offerings are anchored by three flagship products: the Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions (JPBI), an academic journal published by SAGE/Hammill Institute on Disabilities; the annual International APBS Conference (24th edition scheduled April 21-24, 2027 in San Diego, CA); and the 2023 APBS Practice Guidelines developed by a 15-member multidisciplinary team. Supporting member resources include CEU-eligible webinars (drawing 350+ registrants), members-only archived conference presentations, and thematic networks such as the Home and Community Network, PBIS High School Network, and PBIS State Leaders' Network.

The organization's revenue model combines recurring membership dues, transactional conference registration and exhibitor/sponsor fees, webinar sponsorship, and continuing-education (CEU) programming delivered through partnerships with organizations such as Black Men in Behavior Analysis (BMBA) and Black Women in Behavior Analysis Inclusive Alliance for Development (BWIBAAD). Go-to-market is community-led and event-driven: the annual conference serves as the primary acquisition and retention event, supplemented by webinar programming, member stories, a monthly newsletter, and organic social engagement via the Virtual Community. APBS does not disclose pricing publicly and does not pursue external funding as a nonprofit association.

Name

Association for Positive Behavior Support

Legal name

Association for Positive Behavior Support

Website

https://apbs.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Association for Positive Behavior Support (APBS) is a US-based nonprofit professional membership association that provides education, training, and resources on Positive Behavior Support to educators, behavior analysts, researchers, families, and self-advocates across school, home, community, and systems settings worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Behavior Intervention Planning (BIP) & Positive Behavior Support (PBS) (EDAKAHAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Special Education, Disability Support & Inclusive Education Nonprofits (BPAGADAH)

Keywords

• Positive behavior support
• Behavioral intervention training
• Professional membership association
• Continuing education webinars
• School-wide PBIS resources

Headquarters

HQ city

Bloomsburg

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership fees providing access to member resources, digital library, webinars, conference discounts, and network participation.
2. Annual Conference Revenue: Conference registration fees for the annual international conference, including exhibitor and sponsor fees. The 2027 conference in San Diego is the 24th International Conference.
3. Webinar Sponsorship: APBS webinars draw over 350 registrants from multidisciplinary professionals. Organizations can sponsor webinars for brand visibility and CEU offerings, with archived on-demand webinars providing continuous exposure.
4. Continuing Education Units (CEUs): CEUs offered for webinars launching October 2024, in partnership with organizations like Black Men in Behavior Analysis (BMBA) and Black Women in Behavior Analysis Inclusive Alliance for Development (BWIBAAD).
5. Exhibitor/Sponsor Fees: Exhibitor and sponsorship opportunities at the annual conference designed to facilitate engagement, enhance brand awareness, and position organizations as thought leaders.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Association for Positive Behavior Support (APBS) is a nonprofit professional membership association that provides education, training, and resources on Positive Behavior Support (PBS) to multidisciplinary practitioners, researchers, families, and self-advocates. Its core deliverables include annual membership with access to a Digital Library Hub and the JPBI journal, an annual international conference, CEU-accredited webinars, the 2023 APBS Practice Guidelines, and curated resources for implementing PBS in school, home, community, and individualized settings.

Product overview

The Association for Positive Behavior Support (APBS) operates as a membership-based professional organization offering a platform of interconnected products and services centered on advancing positive behavior support (PBS) practices. The core offerings include the Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions (JPBI) academic journal, the annual international APBS Conference, and the APBS Practice Guidelines. These are supported by member resources including webinars with CEUs, a Digital Library Hub, and access to specialized APBS Networks (thematic, local, regional, and international). APBS also provides practice-specific resources for PBS at Home, PBS in Schools, PBS in the Community, and Individualized PBS, along with an online Virtual Community platform for member networking and collaboration.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions (JPBI) An academic journal published by Hammill Institute on Disabilities and SAGE in association with APBS, focused on expanding knowledge and practice of effective behavioral support in school, home, and community settings. Aimed at APBS members and the broader research and practitioner community in PBS.
• APBS Annual International Conference International conference bringing together practitioners, researchers, families, and self-advocates to advance the science and practice of Positive Behavior Support. Includes exhibitor and sponsorship opportunities and a call-for-proposals portal.
• APBS Practice Guidelines Comprehensive guidelines endorsed by APBS in 2023, serving as broad guideposts for positive behavior support practice across school, home, and community settings. Developed by a multidisciplinary team of 15 contributors.
• Member Webinars (CEU-accredited) Live and on-demand webinars featuring subject matter experts on topics related to positive behavior support, with CEU credits available. Sponsorship opportunities available for organizations. Webinars draw over 350 registrants from multidisciplinary professionals.
• Digital Library Hub Members-only repository of archived conference presentations, webinars, and curated resources for APBS members at every career stage.
• APBS Networks (Thematic, Regional, International) Thematic, local, regional, and international networks connecting members with PBS expertise for collaboration, professional development, and localized access to APBS resources, including HCPBS, PBIS High School, PBIS State Leaders', PBSA.Asia, UK PBS Alliance, PBIS-SCP Canada, PBS-Europe, SWPBS Nederland, APBS Japan, Korea, China, Australia, and Taiwan networks.

Quantifiable outcome

• Webinars reach over 350 multidisciplinary professionals

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Black Women in Behavior Analysis Inclusive Alliance for Development (BWIBAAD)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 21 February 2025BWIBAAD offers APBS members 40% off conference registration and panels. Special invitation to submit speak and nominations extended to APBS members.
• Black Men in Behavior Analysis (BMBA)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 October 2024BMBA offers APBS members 40% off BMBA conference registration and panel events using promo codes. Partnership provides CEU earning opportunities for APBS members through BMBA events.
• Home and Community Network (HCPBS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThematic APBS Network focused on home and community settings. Provides resources, webinars, family chats, and support for families and professionals in community-based PBS. Led over 350 members.
• PBIS High School NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThematic APBS Network focused on PBIS implementation at the high school level across educational settings.
• PBIS State Leaders' NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThematic APBS Network connecting PBIS state-level leaders for sharing knowledge and professional development.
• PBSA.AsiacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational APBS Network serving the Asia-Pacific region for positive behavior support practice.
• UK Positive Behavior Support AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational APBS Network operating in the United Kingdom, part of the bild Association for Residential and Community Care.
• PBIS-SCP Canada NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational APBS Network serving Canada with positive behavior support resources and community.
• PBS-Europe NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational APBS Network based at Fontys University in the Netherlands serving the European region.
• SWPBS NederlandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDutch-language international APBS Network focused on school-wide positive behavior support in the Netherlands.
• APBS Network JapancoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational APBS Network serving Japan with positive behavior support resources and community.
• Korea APBS NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational APBS Network serving South Korea with positive behavior support resources and community.
• APBS China NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational APBS Network serving China with positive behavior support resources and community.
• Association for Positive Behaviour Support AustraliacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational APBS Network serving Australia with positive behavior support resources and community.
• APBS Network in TaiwancoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational APBS Network serving Taiwan with positive behavior support resources and community.
• Manchester Grand Hyatt San DiegominorOthersVenue for the 2027 APBS 24th International Conference. Located at 1 Market Place, San Diego, CA 92101 on the San Diego Bay waterfront.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Council for Exceptional Children (CEC): Larger, broader special education professional association serving many of the same educators and behavior specialists APBS targets, with overlapping content on behavior interventions and inclusive education.
• National Association of School Psychologists (NASP): National membership association for school psychologists — a core segment of APBS's professional audience — with overlapping CEU, conference, and behavior-intervention content.
• Council for Children with Behavioral Disorders (CCBD): A division of CEC focused on children with behavioral disorders, addressing an overlapping practitioner audience and behavior-intervention content area as APBS.

Direct peers

• Association for Behavior Analysis International (ABAI): ABAI is the global professional association for behavior analysis, directly overlapping with APBS's practitioner and researcher audience in behavior support, BCBA/BCaBA credentialing, and annual conference programming.
• Association for Positive Behaviour Support Australia: Australian counterpart of APBS, explicitly named as an affiliated APBS network, serving the same PBS practitioner audience in the APAC region.
• Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS): The federally funded technical assistance center for school-wide PBIS, sharing APBS's mission, audience (educators, school psychologists, behavior specialists), and resources for Tiered Fidelity Inventory and PBIS implementation.
• International Association for Positive Behavioural Support (IAPBS): UK-based sibling association for Positive Behavioural Support, sharing APBS's terminology, evidence-based practice focus, and international network mission across the PBS community.

Emerging players

• SEDL/Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation (PIRE) — PBIS-related work: Research organization involved in PBIS evidence base and school improvement, with overlapping research-to-practice pipeline serving APBS's practitioner and policy audiences.

Others

• SAGE Publications — JPBI co-publisher: Co-publisher of the Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions (JPBI) with APBS and the Hammill Institute; an ecosystem partner rather than a competitor, but directly tied to APBS's scholarly content distribution.

Regional players

• bild Association for Residential and Community Care: Parent body of the UK Positive Behavior Support Alliance (an APBS affiliate), providing regional PBS training, certification, and community care focus comparable to APBS's UK programming.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/theapbs
• Facebookfacebook.com/associationforpbs
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/association-for-positive-behavior-support

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Association for Positive Behavior Support