Meet Our Team

Kimberly Sakrison is the founder and Head of School at Little Leaps Academy and the owner of Little Steps, Big Leaps, an applied behavior analysis (ABA) practice in Durham, North Carolina. She is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) and a Licensed Behavior Analyst (LBA) in North Carolina, with more than 20 years of experience supporting children with autism and other developmental differences. She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2002 with a double major in Psychology and Recreation Therapy. She began her career teaching in a public school special education classroom before transitioning to private education, where she provided individualized instruction and developed educational programs for children with autism and related disabilities. She later served as a Clinic Supervisor and Program Coordinator, overseeing ABA services in school, clinic, and home settings. Kimberly earned her initial certification in behavior analysis in 2006 and completed her master's degree in Psychology with a concentration in Behavior Analysis in 2013, becoming a Board Certified Behavior Analyst in 2014. Through her years of experience in both education and behavioral services, Kimberly recognized the need for a school that combines strong academic instruction with individualized support. She founded Little Leaps Academy to provide a learning environment where small class sizes, flexible teaching methods, and individualized academic goals allow students to receive the support they need while being appropriately challenged to reach their full potential. Kimberly believes that a child's educational experience should be shaped by their individual strengths and needs rather than a one-size-fits-all approach. At Little Leaps Academy, she oversees school operations, student admissions and support, and the development of an educational environment that promotes academic growth, independence, confidence, and meaningful progress. Her vision is to create a school where every child is understood, appropriately challenged, and given the opportunity to succeed.

Laurie is Is the Chief Administrator for Little Leaps Academy. She obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education from Daemen College in NY and went on to earn her Master’s Degree in Special Education from Georgia College and State University. She taught elementary, as well as middle school-aged children with special needs, in public school systems in NY, GA and NC for a total of 11 years. After working in the classroom, she became a Special Education Program Facilitator for the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools where she worked with parents, teachers and other service providers to develop Individual Education Plans to help students reach their educational, behavioral, and social goals. In 2017, Laurie obtained NC certification to work as a Developmental Therapist and provided individualized therapy in home and in community settings to young children and their families. She joined the Little Steps, Big Leaps team as the Operations Manager in 2019. Laurie looks forward to sharing her school system expertise with Little Leaps Academy.

Placeholder bio — describe your experience guiding families through the enrollment process, your expertise in curriculum design for students with autism and learning differences, and your approach to individualized instruction.

Placeholder bio — describe your teaching background, your approach to small-group and individualized instruction, and what you love most about working alongside students with autism and learning differences each day.

Placeholder bio — describe your experience supporting students in a co-teaching model, your strengths in differentiated instruction, and how you build trusting relationships with students and their families.