Valerie J. Clack, MA, BCBA, LBA (she/her)  is an enrolled member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe raised in Northern California where, aside from her Lakota tiospaye, she learned indigenous protocols more specific to the Wintu and Pit River nations in an intertribal context. Valerie’s BA is in Organizational Communication with a minor in Marketing from Pepperdine University’s Seaver College. She has her MA in ABA with an Emphasis in Autism from Ball State University’s Teachers College. Valerie is an alumnus of the Hawaiʻi Maternal & Child Health Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (MCH LEND) Program facilitated through the University of Hawaiʻi John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM).

Valerie acted as a clinical director in Evans, Georgia and again in Kailua, Hawai'i before shifting to her current role as Behavior Services Manager in Waipio, Hawai'i where she continues to work together with the ASD community. Thanks to the mentorship of Dr. Jo Qina'au, Valerie began collaborating with indigenous research teams at the Pilina Center for Wellbeing in 2024 thus creating new avenues for the application of her unique skill set to support native Hawaiian self-advocacy across the pae 'āina.

With more than 20 years' experience working with children in different capacities to improve quality of life and increase opportunities for the empowerment and growth of those she serves, Valerie is passionate about the field of ABA and its applications across the lifespan. Just as she endeavors to be a good relative supported by ʻāina and Kānaka ʻŌiwi, Valerie strives to practice supervision and mentorship in a good way. In her roles as a community member, researcher, behavior analyst, and parent, Valerie approaches coaching through the Lakota values of waóhola, wóksape, and wówauŋšila to envision a more equitable and empowered learning process. Collaborating with teams across Hawai'i, California, South Carolina, and Georgia has inspired Valerie to be a good relative and e mālama pono by improving verbal communications, adaptive skills, and social strategies in a pursuit toward lasting behavioral change.