Brendan Coyle ’26 learned in childhood that getting the right support at the right time matters. Now he’s using his leadership degree to propel him into graduate school to become a BCBA.
Some people find their career and calling by taking a long journey. They talk to mentors and teachers, learn through jobs and internships and explore different fields through academics.
Brendan Coyle ‘26 needed his childhood to know where he wanted to make a difference.
Coyle, a graduate from ODU’s online Bachelor of Science in Leadership, was diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) when he was in kindergarten. Alongside struggles with attention and hyperactive behavior, he experienced speech delays in early childhood. Coyle was labeled a “behavioral kid,” but he now knows he was just struggling to communicate his needs.
Speech therapy made a big difference. By third and fourth grade, he was placed in the gifted children program, an achievement that came with a cost. He described it as “gifted kid burnout,” a feeling of overwhelm from the extra demands that didn’t always accommodate his needs as a neurodivergent child.
“I definitely feel like I could have had more support,” he said. “I was always advanced in the academic sense, but the behavioral side never really got worked on.”
From personal experience to professional success
Coyle’s goal today is to help kids just like him succeed in the classroom and in life as a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA). He’s been working as a Registered Behavior Technician (RBT), a role in applied behavior analysis that requires special training and certification. He currently works in a clinical setting but hopes to work in a school long-term.
“As I've gotten into the field of special education, I've learned within the past two or three years that I'm interested in solely the behavioral aspect of it, and that's what ABA therapy is. It takes the time and builds all these key skills—communication, social skills, and academic goals—while managing and eliminating the problem behaviors.”
RBTs like Coyle work under the supervision of BCBAs. Now he says he’s ready to move up into the role that oversees his work. Once he started mapping out a path forward, he could see what he needed to do next.
BCBA certification has a few eligibility pathways, all requiring graduate-level work. That meant Coyle needed to earn his bachelor’s degree first. It wasn’t a linear process. He entered ODU as a transfer student and a special education major, but after some personal and academic hardships, Coyle decided to change his major.
He needed a flexible academic program, like classes that fit into the best study times for his brain and a more independent learning experience with individualized support. Switching to online learning was the first step. That also came with the comprehensive resources available to ODU’s online undergraduate students.
Changing his major to leadership was next.
“I learned a lot of good principles that can allow me to be an effective leader in whatever clinic I end up in,” Coyle said. “As a BCBA, I can take those leadership principles from my undergrad and still do the day-to-day behavior analysis with clients, help with parent trainings, and supervise other RBTs like myself.”
Earning a bachelor’s degree also qualified him to move forward into graduate-level work and start building hours toward his BCBA certification.
Why studying leadership mattered
Leadership studies aren’t just for people who want to focus on business careers. ODU’s online leadership program can be adapted to jobs in any industry. Coyle chose it because he was actively working in a field he loved, and learning online gave him a high-quality education that moved his career goals forward without asking him to quit his job. Leadership also teaches communication, ethics and legal issues, with electives in multiple disciplines to help students focus on what interests them.
Coyle hopes to carry forward the core principles he learned in the program, especially around communication and feedback in the workplace. But the most important thing he learned at ODU was what he is capable of achieving.
“I went through a lot of personal hardship and was struggling with my mental health for quite some time,” Coyle said. Early in the program, his GPA suffered alongside his mental health. He reached out to his parents and brother for support. “It wasn't, ‘You need to go to school. You need to still finish this.’ They were focused solely on me as a human being, who was also engaged in academics.”
Coyle had a complete turnaround in the last few semesters of his program. With support and a better balance between work, school and life, he celebrated making the dean's list in Fall 2025 and Spring 2026.
Graduate school is his next step toward BCBA certification, and this fall he starts his master’s degree in special education with a concentration in applied behavior analysis. He hopes his education and experience with ADHD will make a difference in the lives of kids who are facing the same struggles.
“If I was younger and had someone like me tell me you can manage your ADHD and still get a college degree, continue your education, continue to work in a field with like-minded individuals—and if I could just connect to at least one person and inspire them to succeed, then I’m doing good in the world.”
More about ODU’s online BS in Leadership
The online Bachelor of Science in Leadership program offered through ODUGlobal is an agile degree that can help you bridge the gap to your next promotion, career, or academic pursuit. It’s an excellent option for people who have already earned some college credit. This degree completion program allows up to 90 transfer credits, and with the military pathway, service members can convert qualifying military experience into college credit.
