The Ins and Outs of Effective Behavior Support Plans (Series Begins Jan. 12, 2026)

For this webinar series, participants will automatically be enrolled in all 5 sessions.

Speaker

Alex Hirshberg, Psy.D., Hirshberg Behavioral Services, LLC

Description

This webinar is designed for school counselors who are responsible for developing behavior support plans. Participants will learn a process for developing a case conceptualization that understands the variables contributing to the presenting behavior challenge. Participants will also learn about different types of interventions, including antecedent supports, skill building interventions, and reinforcement.  Specific case examples will be utilized throughout the training to aid in participant understanding.

To receive PDPs and CEUs, participants must attend all 5 sessions and successfully pass a quiz following Session 5. Within 24 hours of the live webinar, registrants will be emailed a link to view the recorded webinar. The recording will be made available for 7 days after each session. If you are not eligible for PDPs and/or CEUs, you may apply for a Certificate of Attendance.

Developing a strong behavior support plan requires a strong understanding of the variables that contribute to and maintain the problem behavior. This session will introduce counselors to the components of a Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA), including setting events, antecedents, maintaining consequences, and hypothesized function. We will also discuss the role that lagging emotional and behavioral regulation skills play in the target behavior and how to assess this.

The best behavior support plans seek to both build skills and modify the environment so that the problem behavior is less likely to occur. This session will focus on functionally informed antecedent interventions.  Participants will understand how to utilize knowledge about setting events and antecedents to create supports that address these issues and reduce vulnerability to problem behavior.

It is hard to change habits and develop a new and more adaptive behavior. This is especially the case when the old behavior was being reinforced.  Extrinsic reinforcement is utilized to incentivize this change. The challenge for a school counselor is choosing the appropriate reinforcement plan that meets the students needs. This session will discuss different types of reinforcement approaches and walk through how to determine the frequency and intensity of reinforcement that is needed to adequately shape a new behavior.

Creating a strong behavior support plan is the easy part! The challenge is helping the adults working with the student to implement the plan with fidelity, including taking data to help inform future planning.  This session will discuss strategies for consulting and collaborating with teaching staff, utilizing observations to conduct fidelity checks, and developing feasible data collection tools that allow you to modify plans as needed.

There are some behavioral challenges that are trickier to plan for. One example is school refusal. This is difficult because the problem behaviors are taking place at home. This session will review best practices for designing behavior support plans for school refusal behavior and other complex behavior problems.  

About the Speaker

Alex Hirshberg, Psy.D., (he/him) is the founder and executive director of Hirshberg Behavioral Health Services, LLC in Hadley, Massachusetts. Dr. Hirshberg is a clinical psychologist who provides behavioral consultation, professional development, and psychological assessment services to schools across Massachusetts. He also has a small outpatient therapy practice focused on using Cognitive Behavior Therapy for individuals with anxiety and mood disorders. His interest areas include Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS), Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) in schools, trauma informed practices, and developing in-district social-emotional programs.

Membership Information

Most MPY webinars are available ONLY to current staff from member districts and organizations. Public school memberships include police and fire personnel. Former and retired employees and members of committees, including but not limited to, PTO/PTA, PAC, School Improvement Councils, Health Councils, Drug/Alcohol Councils, and school volunteers, are not considered MPY members.

PDPs and CEUs

MPY is an approved Professional Development Provider through the Massachusetts Department of Elementary & Secondary Education (Provider No. F20180079). Professional Development Points (PDPs) are offered for most MPY professional development webinars. PDPs are issued in 10 hour increments, per DESE requirements.

Continuing Education Units (CEUs) are available for clinical staff through the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) and the Massachusetts Mental Health Counselors Association, Inc. (MaMHCA). The NASW and the MaMHCA approve each event individually. CEUs may be given in hourly increments.

To receive PDPs and CEUs, participants must pass the quiz following Session 5.

Event Cancellation Policy

If you are unable to attend a MPY webinar you must cancel, through Bonnie Mullen at bonnie@mpyinc.org, one business day before the webinar.

For MPY hybrid conferences, the date in-person registration closes will be posted on MPY’s website. Virtual conference registration will close one business day before the hybrid conference. You cannot cancel or switch your registration from in-person to virtual after in-person registration closes. Please email Bonnie Mullen at bonnie@mpyinc.org with any questions regarding registration.

 

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If you are seeking to receive CEUs and/or PDPs, please click Register Now. Once you complete the webinar series, you will be able to take quizzes for CEUs and/or PDPs. Upon completion of each quiz, you will receive a certificate.

All sessions are 12:00 pm – 2:00 pm.

  • Session 1: January 12, 2026, A Counselor’s Guide to Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA)
  • Session 2: January 26, 2026, Determining Effective Antecedent Supports to Prevent Challenging Behavior
  • Session 3: February 9, 2026, Leveraging Extrinsic Reinforcement in a Behavior Support Plan
  • Session 4: February 23, 2026, Implementation and Progress Monitoring
  • Session 5: March 9, 2026, Special Populations/Target Behaviors