Meet Team Reach

Kristine Racina is the director of the Expatriate Archive Centre. She was born in Riga, but was raised, lived, studied and worked in different countries. She settled ten years ago in the Netherlands and resides with her husband and son in The Hague. She is an experienced consultant and manager of projects and teams in government roles, NGOs and local organizations. Kristine has two Master’s degrees in Economics from the University of Latvia and Financial Management from the Centre Européen Universitaire de Nancy.

Since her move to the Netherlands in 2011, she was part of fundraising activities for organizations supporting children with autism spectrum disorder. Kristine is passionate about creating an environment where children can thrive, feel safe and supported to enable them to reach their potential. She is excited about the unique opportunity to contribute to the further development of REACH Holland.

After moving to the Netherlands from the United States in 2011 with her son, who had been diagnosed with autism, Catherine was disappointed to find that the quality of care was not what she expected. Believing firmly that each child has the right to highly effective services, she got to work.
On April 2, 2016 – World Autism Awareness Day – she opened Stichting REACH Holland, the only English speaking care center in The Hague which helps children on the autism spectrum reach their full potential.

Ceren Akarsu is originally from Istanbul, Turkey. In 2018, she moved to the Netherlands for her Bachelors in Psychology at Leiden University. After finishing her bachelors in Psychology, she completed her masters in Child and Adolescent Psychology also at Leiden University. She specialized in Applied Behavior Analysis as part of her masters internship. During her studies, she voluntarily engaged in various extra-curricular activities within various study and non-study related organizations that made her develop organizational skills. Caren is now working as an Office Manager at Reach. In her free time she is developing her Dutch skills and enjoys doing yoga.

Upon completing her degree in clinical child psychology at the University of Amsterdam, Alexa Bremer moved to London and began a career in ABA therapy at Ambitious about Autism (formerly known as TreeHouse). In her five years at Ambitious about Autism, Alexa worked with children across developmental needs. Activities included: facilitating early intervention, working with children with highly challenging behaviours, shadowing in mainstream classrooms, and teaching self-help skills to adolescents. Additionally, Alexa has experience working in home programmes. Finding her efforts both professionally and personally rewarding, she decided to continue her career in autism therapy with a postdoc in ABA at the University of Bangor in Wales.

Alexa’s Dutch roots eventually led her back to the Netherlands. Being a mother of three has made her a better therapist as she clearly understands and appreciates the perspective of the parent, and the relationship between child, parent, and therapist. In her spare time, she loves to be outdoors and has a broad interest in the development and education of children. Currently, Alexa is working towards her BCBA certification.

Sophia is an Australian BCBA and Social Worker who has been working in the field of behavior analysis and Autism therapies for over 8 years. Sophia has a bachelor degree in psychology, a master of Education in ABA and a master of Social Work, she has worked in Australia, New Zealand, Malta and now in the Netherlands! She has experience working in clinics, homes, kindergartens and schools with children and adolescents between 2-14 years old.

Sophia has a keen interest in integrating mental health supports and interventions into her ABA programming, developing emotional intelligence and resilience in young children through behavioral interventions. She loves to have fun in therapy and focuses on the skills that make children’s lives better, communication, leisure and play skills, relationships and social skills and more.

Outside of work, Sophia enjoys walking in nature with her dog Rupert, making ceramics, eating pastries and travelling with her husband.

Kelsey has been practicing Applied Behavior Analysis in the United States since 2012. She earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology in 2013 from the College of Charleston Honors College and became a Board Certified Assistant Behavior Analyst in 2016. She specializes in Verbal Behavior, Discrete Trial Instruction, Natural Environment Teaching, and Behavior Skills Training. In 2019, Kelsey and her husband relocated to Leiden where she hopes to continue providing the highest quality of care and services to children with learning differences. She is currently enrolled in the master’s program at Florida Institute of Technology, one of the world leaders in ABA, to earn her master’s degree in Professional Behavior Analysis and to become a Board Certified Behavior Analyst.

Anna Christodoulou is originally from Athens, Greece. Anna started her studies in the department of history and archaeology but quickly decided to pursue her dream of becoming a psychologist. She graduated from the University of Crete with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology in 2020 after completing her internship in an institution for children on the autism spectrum. She continued educating herself by attending seminars and workshops regarding child psychopathology and she volunteered in a child’s hospital in Athens.

Anna moved to The Netherlands in August 2020 to pursue her master’s degree in clinical child and adolescent psychology at the University of Utrecht which she completed in July 2021. During her master’s she worked as an intern at REACH. She enjoyed her internship so much that she began working, in September 2021, as an assistant and currently as a junior therapist.

Anna is currently pursuing her Registered Behavior Technician (RBT), as well as Cognitive Behavioral Therapist (CBT) certifications.

At a very young age, Anna began studying music and obtained her classical guitar diploma in June 2014. She loves music, sports, and traveling.

Funmi Bamidele-Walboomers completed her Master’s program at Universiteit Utrecht, The Netherlands, specializing in Development and Socialization in Childhood and Adolescence. While in the Master’s program she received the ‘Utrecht Excellence Award.’ She completed her undergraduate degree in Psychology with Honors at the University of Lagos, Nigeria where she received the highest GPA of all graduating Psychology students.
Funmi received her RBT (Registered Behavior Technician) Certification from Relias Academy in January 2016. She has been working with children on the autism spectrum in 2015. After completing our nine week orientation/training course on ABA techniques, Funmi began working as an ABA specialist/begeleider at Stichting REACH Holland in November 2016.

Mariasi Matzor is originally from Volos, Greece. She moved to the Netherlands in August 2020, to start her Master’s in Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, in Utrecht University. During her master’s program, Mariasi worked as an intern at REACH. She enjoyed her experience so much that she began working as an assistant in September 2021. Mariasi has begun her RBT certification training and is working as a junior therapist.

In March 2020, Mariasi obtained her bachelor’s degree in psychology from The University of Crete. During her Bachelor program she interned in a Center for Creative Activities for children of the autism spectrum, in Rethymnon, Greece. Mariasi volunteered as a psychologist in the child psychiatry department of the Mental Health Center of Volos (December 2020 – July 2021) and at the same time she attended two autism – related seminars (Autism: Symptoms and Treatment, Special Education: Interdisciplinary Convergences Practices) from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens.

In her spare time, Mariasi loves cooking and photography.

Stephanie Falanka is originally from Aberdeen, Scotland. In 2008, she received her first Masters degree (with honors) in Behavioral studies from The University of Aberdeen. She completed a post-graduate course in family counseling and social work (level 12 SCQF), in 2014, from Robert Gordon University Aberdeen. In 2018, Stephanie completed her second Masters in Pedagogical Sciences for Youth at Risk (MSc) from The University of Amsterdam.

Stephanie is passionate about working with children and families affected by autism spectrum disorder and understands that no single method is the right one for every individual. Thus, she has been trained in a variety of approaches including; Verbal Behavior (social language learning for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder), Applied Behavior Analysis, individual focused counseling and Youth at Risk prevention.

She has over 10 years of working experience in remedial education, academic assessments, and support for children with autism spectrum disorder. Stephanie has worked at the International School Delft, The American School of Kinshasa, and the University of Amsterdam Family Lab.

Stephanie is a mother of two boys. She is fluent in English and French.

Eddy Even is originally from Israel and moved to the Netherlands in 2019. Eddy is a certified fitness instructor who, in 2017, received his Health and Fitness Instructor certification from the Wingate Institute’s School for Coaches and Instructors.

Eddy has his own business, providing fitness services to different organizations and private clients. Eddy is currently working towards receiving his bachelor’s degree in social sciences & International relations.

In addition to his work and studies, Eddy enjoys playing the guitar & the piano. Eddy also loves practicing photography while travelling around the world.

Elena Clò, is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) based in Italy. She is currently enrolled in her final year of a PhD program at the Queen’s University of Belfast under the supervision of Katerina Dounavi and Karola Dillenburger. Her research interest relates to conditioned reinforcement and early, pre-emptive intervention in high-risk populations.

Elena’s area of interest is with children on the autism spectrum of different ages and supporting their learning in comprehensive and focused behavioral programs. In addition, she runs Association Pane e Cioccolata, offering training to parents and professionals and social skills groups for children diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder. She also supervises behavior analysts in their professional practice and teaches Ethics and Verbal Behavior in different University programs in Italy.