FACULTY PROFILES

Melanie R. Martin Loya

Research Assistant Professor
Counseling and Special Education

Office Building: Education Building
Office Room: 704
Phone: (915) 747-8687
Email: mrmartin@utep.edu

Bio

No info available.

Awards and Honors

2026 Health Disparities Research Institute Scholar - National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (08/07/2026)
Dissertation Research Award: Mixed Methods - Council for Exceptional Children, Division for Research (03/01/2025-03/31/2025)
2023-2024 Goldstick Family Doctoral Fellow in Communication Disorders - University of Illinois Urbana Champaign (09/01/2023)
Hardie Dissertation Award - University of Illinois, College of Education (08/01/2023-08/31/2023)
2022-2023 Goldstick Family Doctoral Fellow in Communication Disorders - University of Illinois Urbana Champaign (09/01/2022)

Education

Ph D in Special Education, University of Illinois Urbana Champaign (2024)
MA in Applied Behavior Analysis, Ball State University (2016)
BA in Sociology/Cultural Anthropology, Lewis & Clark College (2010)

Publications

Artificial intelligence in practice: BCBAs’ attitudes, concerns, and needs Education and Treatment of Children (2026), Hedda Meadan, Rayan Alqunaysi, Yan Xia, Melanie R. Loya, Jinjun Xiong.
Characteristics of Qualitative Research in Behavior-Analytic Journals: A Scoping Literature Review Behavior Analysis in Practice (2026), Melanie R. Martin Loya, Richard A. Price, Rayan Alqunaysi, Alyssa Barrera-Lansford, Elaine M. Gilmartin, David R. Miranda, Eric N. Shannon.
Cultural Adaptation of a Caregiver Training Program for Arabic-Speaking Families: Feasibility and Social Validity Behavior Modification (2026), Ban Haidar, Rayan Alqunaysi, Hedda Meadan, Melanie R. Martin Loya, Menaka De Alwis.
Exploring Facilitators and Barriers to Research Participation in ABA Agencies: Early Insights from the PALMS Project Behavior Analysis in Practice (2026), Melanie R. Martin Loya, Melissa Mello, Sarah Vejnoska, Carrie A. Lewis, Ana-Maria Iosif, Marie Rocha, Heather Brown, Aria Zuloaga Walker, Sarah Dufek, Aubyn C. Stahmer.
It Should Support, Not Replace: BCBAs’ Perceptions of AI and the Test Content Domains Behavior Analysis in Practice (2026), Rayan Alqunaysi, Hedda Meadan, Melanie R. Loya.
Professional Development in Autism and Multilingualism for Behavior Analysts: A Randomized Waitlist Control Trial. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders 56 7 (2026), Melanie R. Loya, Hedda Meadan, Xun Yan.
A quality appraisal of cultural adaptation of caregiver-implemented interventions for young autistic children Transcultural Psychiatry 62 6 (2025), James D. Lee, Hedda Meadan, Michelle M. Sands, Adriana K. Terol, Melanie R. Martin Loya, Christy D. Yoon.
Experiences and Needs of Leaders Supporting Multilingual ABA Staff: A Qualitative Exploration Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders (2025), Melanie R. Martin Loya, Hedda Meadan, Elaine M. Gilmartin.
The ethical landscape of behavior analysis forums on reddit Behavior Analysis in Practice 18 3 (2025), Richard A. Price, Melanie R. Martin Loya, Rebecca Folkerts, Ban S. Haidar.
“More Than Just Taking Off Your Shoes”: A Mixed Methods Study of Cultural Adaptation Practices in the Autism Service System Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders (2025), Duenas, Ana D, Gomez, Laura R, Melanie R. Martin Loya, Naima Bhana-Lopez, Richard A. Price, James D. Lee.
Development and evaluation of a training in autism and bilingualism for behavior analysts: A mixed methods randomized controlled study University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2024), Melanie R. Martin.
Impact of challenging behavior on marginalized and minoritized caregivers of children with disabilities Topics in Early Childhood Special Education 44 2 (2024), Nicole B. Adams, Stacy N. McGuire, Hedda Meadan, Melanie R. Loya, Adriana K. Terol, Ban Haidar, Andrea S. Fanta.
It’s our job to bridge the gap: Perspectives of bilingual autism providers on heritage language care Autism 28 10 (2024), Melanie R. Martin Loya, Hedda Meadan.
I’m one person, I can’t be everywhere: Challenges and needs of bilingual behavior analysts Behavior Analysis in Practice 17 3 (2024), Melanie R. Martin Loya, Hedda Meadan.
The Cultural Adaptation Checklist (CAC): Quality indicators for cultural adaptation of intervention and practice International Journal of Developmental Disabilities 70 7 (2024), James D. Lee, Hedda Meadan, Michelle M. Sands, Adriana K. Terol, Melanie R. Martin, Christy D. Yoon.
An intersectional examination of disability and race models in behavior-analytic practice Behavior and Social Issues 32 1 (2023), Rocco G. Catrone, Natalia A. Baires, Melanie R. Martin Loya, Jasmine P. Brown-Hollie.
Online training for parents of children with developmental disabilities in a low-resource community: A pilot feasibility study Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities 20 1 (2023), Adriana K. Terol, James D. Lee, Melanie R. Martin Loya, Hedda Meadan.

Presentations

No info available.

Grants

No info available.

Current/Future Courses

No info available.

Past Courses

No info available.

Course Evaluations

No info available.

Bio

No info available.

Awards and Honors

2026 Health Disparities Research Institute Scholar - National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (08/07/2026)
Dissertation Research Award: Mixed Methods - Council for Exceptional Children, Division for Research (03/01/2025-03/31/2025)
2023-2024 Goldstick Family Doctoral Fellow in Communication Disorders - University of Illinois Urbana Champaign (09/01/2023)
Hardie Dissertation Award - University of Illinois, College of Education (08/01/2023-08/31/2023)
2022-2023 Goldstick Family Doctoral Fellow in Communication Disorders - University of Illinois Urbana Champaign (09/01/2022)

Ph D in Special Education, University of Illinois Urbana Champaign (2024)
MA in Applied Behavior Analysis, Ball State University (2016)
BA in Sociology/Cultural Anthropology, Lewis & Clark College (2010)

Publications

Artificial intelligence in practice: BCBAs’ attitudes, concerns, and needs Education and Treatment of Children (2026), Hedda Meadan, Rayan Alqunaysi, Yan Xia, Melanie R. Loya, Jinjun Xiong.
Characteristics of Qualitative Research in Behavior-Analytic Journals: A Scoping Literature Review Behavior Analysis in Practice (2026), Melanie R. Martin Loya, Richard A. Price, Rayan Alqunaysi, Alyssa Barrera-Lansford, Elaine M. Gilmartin, David R. Miranda, Eric N. Shannon.
Cultural Adaptation of a Caregiver Training Program for Arabic-Speaking Families: Feasibility and Social Validity Behavior Modification (2026), Ban Haidar, Rayan Alqunaysi, Hedda Meadan, Melanie R. Martin Loya, Menaka De Alwis.
Exploring Facilitators and Barriers to Research Participation in ABA Agencies: Early Insights from the PALMS Project Behavior Analysis in Practice (2026), Melanie R. Martin Loya, Melissa Mello, Sarah Vejnoska, Carrie A. Lewis, Ana-Maria Iosif, Marie Rocha, Heather Brown, Aria Zuloaga Walker, Sarah Dufek, Aubyn C. Stahmer.
It Should Support, Not Replace: BCBAs’ Perceptions of AI and the Test Content Domains Behavior Analysis in Practice (2026), Rayan Alqunaysi, Hedda Meadan, Melanie R. Loya.

Presentations

No info available.

Current/Future Courses

No info available.

Past Courses

No info available.

Melanie R. Martin Loya

Bio

Education

Scholarly and Creative Activity

Grants

Courses

Course Evaluations