Behavioral Transformations, Family-Owned Therapy and Counseling Centers

By Annette Brooks

Sometimes a single event inspires people to follow their life path. For Angie Klutts, M.Ed., BCBA, co-founder of Behavioral Transformations, it was her entire childhood.

“I grew up in a non-traditional home and was in a difficult situation. Both of my parents were addicts. I began raising my younger siblings when I was five years old and walked to food banks looking for food. Honestly, I felt orphaned due to my parent’s addiction,” Angie confides. “Then, when I was in high school, my mom was murdered — a drug-related event — and my grandparents adopted me.”

Angie’s difficult childhood gave her a personal understanding of the complexities many families and children face every day, and she developed a profound desire to help them. She put herself through college at the University of North Texas, proudly becoming the first college graduate in her family.

“I’d been dealt a certain deck of cards in life, but I believed in my potential and knew I had the freedom to choose a different path,” says Angie. “Going to college was a step onto that path.”

Angie also met her husband, Ben Klutts, at UNT. Ben, now the president of Behavioral Transformations, is a Rockwall native and former airline pilot, Realtor, and law enforcement professional with deep roots in the community.

Discovering Her Ultimate Calling

After college, Angie worked at Mesquite ISD for 15 years as a special education teacher and loved every minute. She became an autism specialist and a licensed Board-Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA), and as time went on, she saw an opportunity to help a broader span of families in need. She began working evenings and weekends providing in-home therapy for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). These families, along with her husband, encouraged her to open the doors to a new chapter, a better way to serve the underserved – thus finding her true purpose – Behavioral Transformations.

“Children with ASD touched my heart. With therapy, I could see changes in them right before my eyes and felt that helping them and their families was my ultimate calling,” Angie says.

In June of 2015, Angie and Ben opened their first clinic on Goliad with six clients and six therapists. By the end of the summer, the clinic was serving more than thirty clients, with a growing staff, all with the same passion. Today, the couple has opened and oversees seven locations. Their most recent, a 6,500 square foot facility in Forney, opened in November 2020.

Leaders Creating Leaders

Not only has Angie spent time creating clinics to serve the community’s needs, but she’s also proud of the caliber of Behavioral Transformations’ nearly all-female team of clinicians, corporate, and executive staff. Of the executive team, three of the four vice presidents are women. Cassidy Mansell, Heather Bianchi, and Laura Christoph (Pictured here with Angie Klutts) are defying odds to create one powerhouse of leadership within the company. Only 3.4% of their employees are men, with all BCBAs, Speech-Language Pathologists, and Licensed Professional Counselors being women. Angie has an amazing eye for seeing the potential in her staff. In fact, Behavioral Transformations has produced several BCBAs and Board-Certified Assistant Behavior Analysts (BCaBAs) by providing free supervision and support to provide a path to success, much like the path Angie created for herself.

“Angie’s story inspires so many to continue pushing forward to accomplish their goals. Her passion for helping the community radiates off onto our employees, creating a team that is both dedicated and passionate about providing the best therapy possible.” Says Vice President Cassidy Mansell.

Supporting the Community

Dedicated to serving Rockwall and surrounding areas, Behavioral Transformations provides ABA Therapy, Speech Therapy, Counseling and has contracted with independent school districts in the area to provide behavioral assessment services. In addition to their growing ABA program, Behavioral Transformations has seen exponential growth in their speech program and is one of the leading speech therapy providers in the area. In the past two years, they have onboarded four additional Speech-Language Pathologists to the team to better serve the community’s need for services. Vice President and BCBA Heather Bianchi also provides training and assistance to law enforcement and first responders in the surrounding areas, so they know how to best handle older children exhibiting extreme maladaptive behaviors.

Starting Services

To learn more information about the services Behavioral Transformations offers and to schedule an appointment, please call (469) 458-9021 or visit their website at bttexas.com.