Autism Awareness Month arrives this year with a package of new, important research findings. Below I describe a few of these. The field is moving so rapidly that, by the end of April, there will likely be yet a new crop of findings—so this is, at best, a progress report for the beginning of Autism Awareness Month.
The CDC announced today that autism effects One in 44 individuals under the age of 21 living in the U.S.; every day children and adults with autism are putting  their daily well being in the hands of a teacher or caretaker. Despite the thousands of professionals working in the area of autism, it is an unregulated profession. This means that state licensing boards do not regulate the profession in terms of standard of practice or continuing education.
What has inspired your current career path?
In 2005, our grandson Christian was diagnosed with autism and we discovered how little there was out there about autism – what steps to take, what doctors to see, what therapies to try. This lack of information was unacceptable. Here we were very informed people. Bob was CEO of NBC Universal and our daughter, Katie, who is Christian’s mom, was basically sent home to fend for herself.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, diagnoses of autism continue to escalate. Currently, the prevalence of autism is 11 children for every 1,000 births — which amount to about one autism diagnosis out of 68 newborns. This means that there are numerous families coping with a new autism diagnosis every day. The numbers of children with ASD are increasing; thus, parents, educators, and professionals must work together in order to provide, study, or implement quality, evidence-based services that expand communication skills, increase independence, and improve quality of life.
A new study from researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found that children treated with stimulants for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) experienced slower body mass index (BMI) growth than their undiagnosed or untreated peers, followed by a rapid rebound of BMI that exceeded that of children with no history of ADHD or stimulant use and that could continue to obesity.
I recently had a conversation with one of my clients (see below for information about her company) about Autism Awareness month. While it’s not quite April yet, during the month of April it is common to see banners, commercial spots, print ads, blue light-bulbs, parades, etc., all focused on spreading awareness of Autism. Across communities, parents, educators, professionals, and regular Joe’s join together to help spread the word about Autism.
It’s April and you know what that means, time to spread Autism Awareness throughout the schools and community. This month allows professionals, parents, and people living with autism to educate the public about this disorder.
City/State: Williamstown, MA
School/ Organization: Berkshire Speech and Language
In the eight years that Charlene Green has spent with Nevada’s Clark County School District, she’s seen the number of children with autism spectrum disorders in her charge increase from 96 to more than 1,000. Green, the associate superintendent for student support services in the Las Vegas-area district, oversees those children’s education–an expensive, complicated task.
City/State:Â Hope, Arkansas
School/Organization: Texarkana Arkansas School District, Southwest Arkansas Educational Cooperative, Hope Public Schools, and Private Practice
