Research Associate Professor of Psychology

Yanerys Leon, PhD

Dr. Yanerys León is a Research Associate Professor in the University of Miami Department of Psychology. She serves as Assistant Chair of Academic Affairs for the department and Director of Applied Research and Professional Learning at UM’s Center for Autism and Related Disabilities. She is also the Director of the Learning and Behavior, Research and Training lab. In the context of these roles, she oversees two clinical research programs that provide focused behavioral intervention to individuals with Neurodevelopmental Disorders. These programs fill services gaps in the community by (a) providing specialized services to minimally verbal children with profound autism and (b) training opportunities for individuals pursuing clinical research experience in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). Dr. León has mentored young professionals seeking experiential training in ABA across a variety of clinical practice areas (e.g., assessment and treatment of problem behavior, skill acquisition for learners with ASD) and research topics (e.g., conditioned reinforcement, staff performance). In research, she was the 2021 recipient of the BF Skinner Foundation Applied New Researcher award presented by Division 25 of the American Psychological Association. In service, she serves on the Board of Editors of the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis and on the Board of Directors of the Florida Association of Behavior Analysis, currently in the role of President. Dr. León’s clinical, research, and service roles align closely with the Mailman Center’s mission to eliminate barriers and expand access to evidence-based services for individuals with Neurodevelopmental Disorders.