I am thrilled to announce the promotion of Karen Kus to Senior Behavior Clinician among our Therapy Services Department. Karen has been with Paladin since September of 2021, but her expertise goes beyond that. Karen received a Master’s degree in Mental Health Therapy with a 4.0 GPA. In 2015, Karen started her career path as a Behavior Clinician with Dungarvin. She provided services to individuals in the ESN (Extended Service Need) homes. These homes consisted of individuals who were highly behavioral and not ready for a community supported living setting. A lot of our referrals came from locked facilities, institutions and/or jails from across the state of Indiana. Karen provided services in 4 homes, supporting a total of 16 individuals. Karen assisted them in learning emotional regulation, coping skills and basic social skills so they in turn could live a more quality life in a community setting. She also provided certification training in Handle with Care, a crisis intervention model used for therapeutic restraints. Countless individuals who received therapy from Karen are currently living with the CIH waiver, thriving in our community. In 2018, Karen made the switch from ESN homes, to waiver behavioral supports. Quickly, throughout Lake County her name became known and her reputation was (is) highly respected. In 2020, Karen achieved the standard of RBC (Registered Behavior Consultant) through IN-ABC (Indiana Association of Behavior Consultants), where she has been an active member since 2015. The designation of Registered Behavioral Consultant has been created as a way of ensuring consistently high standards among providers of Behavior Management services. You can find her name registered here! http://inabc.org/registered-behavioral-consultants/registered-behavioral-consultants-list/
In 2021, Karen was a part of the National Task Group for Dementia/Alzheimer’s. Karen has also been affiliated with:
- Chi Sigma Iota Counseling Academics & Professional Honor Society International
- American Counseling Association
- NWICA
- IN*SOURCE
- Alzheimer’s Association
Karen is an essential part of the behavior management team, and she has played a large role in the growth of the department. It is an honor to work beside her. With great pleasure, Karen Kus, our first Senior Behavior Clinician will provide administrative supports to the department as well as continue to carry a smaller caseload. Please join me in congratulating Miss Karen Kus!!!!!
