Katie’s commitment to enhancing the wellbeing of individuals in an effort to build thriving communities has guided her career. Whether she is working to improve special education, train resilience skills to soldiers in the United States Military, boost engagement alongside corporate leaders, or improve the performance of professional athletes, she has one goal – cultivate growth through joy and connection. In 2008, Katie founded Proof Positive, originally a professional consulting firm focused on improving the wellbeing, resilience, and performance of individuals, families, schools, and organizations. In 2021, Proof Positive evolved to become a national nonprofit whose mission is to spread the science and skills of happiness.

Katie has over 20 years of clinical experience working with individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders. She held tenure at three of the world’s leading behavioral institutions (i.e., Sheppard Pratt Mental Health Institute, Kennedy Krieger Institute, and Princeton Child Development Institute). She’s widely recognized as a creative force when it comes to autism intervention, developing strategies and tools that fuse Positive Psychology with Applied Behavior Analysis to improve wellbeing. Katie has authored articles on the topics of Goals Setting, Hope Theory, and Learned Happiness. She has served on numerous advisory boards, is a Global Representative at the International Positive Education Network, was a founding board member at The Global Autism Project, and holds a seat on the MAPP Alumni Board at U of Penn.

Katie holds a Masters of Applied Positive Psychology (MAPP) from the University of Pennsylvania and a Bachelors of Psychology from Towson University. Her unique use of and passion for both the evidence-based findings of positive psychology and principles of behavior allows her to draw out the best in all she works with.

Financial: Katie’s conference registration has been paid. Non-Financial: No non financial disclosures