Our Story

Sonia and Reena met in 2012 while working as instructor therapists at an IBI/ABA centre in Toronto. They quickly realized that they share a lot of the same values and passions in creating meaningful and positive changes, not only in their client's lives, but also within the larger community as well. Over many years, their friendship turned into family, and their passionate discussions turned into business ideas. Supporting one another through school (Sonia) and starting a family (Reena), they realized that no one should have to tackle this crazy thing called life alone.

This company, Impact Village, is their starting point. This is their home. It is a way to connect with and support individuals, to connect individuals to resources, and to provide services to those in need. It is their dream to continue to expand services within Impact Village that will allow them to provide support to individuals across all aspects of life – from early childhood to vocational and job support, and everything in between. They want to work with your child, and with your entire family, to create a network of support that will allow everyone to flourish.

They say it takes a village to raise a child. Welcome to our village.

Our Team

Dr. Sonia Levy, PhD ABA, BCBA

Owner/Clinical Director of ABA Services

Sonia is a behaviour analyst and aunt extraordinaire. After acquiring her H.B.Sc in Kinesiology (McMaster University) and a certificate in Autism and Behavior Sciences (Seneca College), she completed her M.S. in Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) and PhD in ABA at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology and set her sights on applying her knowledge to better serve her community. Since becoming a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) in 2015, she has advanced into supervisory roles which allow her to support more clients, as well as provide training and supervision for the next generation of behaviour analysts. She is an active member of her ABA community: attending and presenting at conferences, writing and publishing various research and theoretical papers, and volunteering with the Ontario Association of Applied Behaviour Analysis (ONTABA). She has experience working with children of various ages and developmental abilities, across a range of diagnoses, as well as a diverse range of cultures and backgrounds. Using her knowledge and experience, she strives to work with individuals to create a personalized approach to care, using the science of behavior to create meaningful change in the lives of her clients.

Sonia truly believes that behaviour analysis is one of many fields that can be used to make this world a better place. Her passions include animal rights, social justice, education, and helping all individuals live happy, healthy, and empowered lives.

Sonia is a BCBA and an approved Clinical Supervisor for the Ontario Autism Program (OAP).

Contact: Sonia.Levy@impactvillage.ca

Reena Lewis, B.Sc

Owner/Mom Mindset Coach

Reena is a Parenting Coach. Her services with Impact Village, as well as her online coaching business (Reengineering Motherhood), are a culmination of her University of Toronto education, her experience working as an Instructor Therapist (IT) in the Intensive Behaviour Intervention (IBI) program at an autism centre in Toronto, running her own home daycare when her first son was born, and now being home full-time to homeschool her four children (ages 9, 6, 4, and 1 years). All of her kids have very different strengths and personalities, so there’s never a dull moment and always a learning opportunity that she’s able to draw insight from and share with other parents. Reena sees the benefit of ABA as it applies to parenting, and is passionate about teaching, supporting, and sharing her wisdom with other moms who also strive to be calm, confident, and compassionate leaders in their home.

Her interests include: reading, journalling, experimenting with new recipes, mindfulness, educating children, and finding and sharing ways to lighten the load of parenting through managing meltdowns.

Contact: Reena.Lewis@impactvillage.ca

ABA TEAM

Meet some of our amazing clinical team members!

Megan Winter

MPEd, BCBA

Senior Therapist

Megan is one of our Senior Therapists (ST) and mother-to-be! Growing up, she always had a passion for working with children and wanted to be a teacher. After completing her Bachelor's Degree in Psychology at Ryerson University and gaining some experience working with children on the autism spectrum, she decided she wanted to pursue a job in the ABA world, where she could teach new skills and better the lives of individuals and teens in her community. Since entering the field in 2016, Megan gained valuable experience from her mentors and obtained a Masters Degree in Professional Education, with a focus in Applied Behaviour Analysis from the University of Western Ontario, and became a Board Certified Behaviour Analyst in 2023. Megan has worked closely with Dr. Sonia Levy since 2017 and has worked at Impact Village since it opened in 2020. She has experience working with children of all ages, different abilities, and dual-diagnoses. Her passion and experience with implementing individualized programs that teach clients skill to promote safety and independence in their environment greatly sets her clients up for success in school, in the community, and at home.

Since entering the ABA world, Megan is truly amazed by the growth she has seen as a direct result of ABA therapy, and the meaningful relationships she has watched some of her clients build. Her passions in the field include: decreasing challenging behaviour, teaching emotional regulation, providing staff and parent training and consultation, facilitating social skills and teen groups, teaching her clients advocacy skills, helping them understand their diagnoses and helping her clients create a positive and confident self-image.

Her hobbies outside of ABA consist of reading, spending time with her family and dog, walking and going on hikes, and going out to eat and the movies!

Bekki McLean

Senior Therapist

Bekki is one of our Senior Therapists (ST) who is passionate about learning more effective ways to support and teach children with exceptionalities! At Impact Village, she not only supports individual learning, but also plans and leads our social skills groups (e.g., school break social skills groups, school readiness groups, and our after school social skills groups).

She completed the Social Service Worker program through Sheridan College, and worked as an Educational Assistant with the Peel District School Board, supporting children on the Autism spectrum for five years. Bekki then completed the Autism Behaviour Science course through Seneca College and started working as an Instructor Therapist, and a Lead Therapist soon after. It was in this position that Bekki first worked with Dr. Sonia Levy and others, who inspired a deeper understanding and love for Applied Behaviour Analysis as a way to understand and teach others. When the clinic shut down during the Covid-19 pandemic, she chose to further her education, completing her Bachelor's Degree in Psychology at York University in 2023. During this time, Bekki also began working for Impact Village and developed the Breathe and Focus program in response to the increased anxiety and emotional support needs of clients while managing the stressors of a worldwide pandemic.

Bekki is now working towards her Masters of Professional Education, with a focus on Applied Behaviour Analysis through Western University. She continues to focus on providing client-centered, neurodiversity-affirming care for clients, while encouraging therapists to focus on building positive client relationships, rather than teaching compliance while working on challenging skills. She finds great joy in developing a foundation of trust with her clients and being able to use that to promote independence, autonomy, and engagement while working towards each client's goals. Other areas of focus include helping clients with understanding their diagnoses, collaborating with teachers and schools while advocating for client's support needs, and providing support and training to parents.

Outside of ABA, Bekki enjoys spending time with her nieces and nephew, taking pictures, and cooking.