Amanda Nicolson Adams

Amanda Nicolson Adams is the co-founder and Executive Director of the California Autism Center. She received her bachelor’s degree from Oklahoma City University, her M.A. in Psychology from The University of Nevada, and her Ph.D. from Florida State University. She became a Board Certified Behavior Analyst in 2000. Prior to moving to Fresno, she worked in a number of autism agencies and was the lead Behavior Analyst for a large school district. A faculty position at Fresno State brought her to the central valley, where she was an associate professor in the Psychology department and served as the program coordinator for the ABA Master’s program for six years. Dr. Nicolson also founded the Autism Center at Fresno State. She has served on the Board of Directors for the California Association for Behavior Analysis and was on the Cambridge Center for Behavior Studies Board of Advisors. She has published articles in peer-reviewed journals and chapters in several books and served as a reviewer for National Autism Center’s Standards Project. Dr. Nicolson has traveled to Bosnia and the country of Georgia to work on autism projects in those countries. She is happy to call the central valley home and even happier to call the California Autism Center home. The motivation for opening the CAC came from a desire to be able to create a place that could serve the real needs of families with skill and compassion. On a personal note, she loves yoga, wine tasting and the California beaches. Last (but not least), she is the proud mother of two wonderful children.