When the COVID-19 pandemic began, many doctors and other providers adapted to a telehealth model to provide care. Even as in-person treatment options are again becoming widely available, telehealth still offers unique benefits for autistic children and their families when receiving medical care and/or autism services. Those benefits include: Increased access to care (including more…
“Do you remember the story about the Little Red Hen?” “Yes, I do.” “That story is why I want to learn to cook and want to learn to shop more. We can’t expect to eat if we don’t do our part. That’s a kid’s story but it’s really true for all of life.” “So true.…
Sometimes, it is necessary for us to fail. I believe that failure is just a symbol of not picking myself off the ground hard enough. My experience volunteering for autistic kids by teaching them chess went through a lot of ups-and-downs, but I stayed confident and invested in my vision for success. If you want…
The employment prospects for autistic adults are grim, as a recent Politico article noted, with only about one-third of autistic adults in paid jobs for more than 15 hours a week. However, there are encouraging signs in the news that promise change. Federal Initiatives One of those, also noted in the Politico article, is…
In September, OAR hosted two webinars, which are now available for viewing. The first, Supporting Paraprofessionals to Implement Functional Communication Training (FCT) to Address Challenging Behavior, was held on September 16 and presented by Drs. Virginia Walker, PhD, BCBA-D, and Megan Carpenter, PhD. The second webinar, The Impact of COVID-19 on Families of Children with…
With the end of the year rapidly approaching, job seekers are on the hunt to secure part-time and full-time opportunities before 2022 begins. Our newest navigator cohort is ready to help. Sixteen incredible volunteers make up this cohort, the largest to date. Congratulations to our newest navigators: Alyssa Figgins, Amber Elias, Corey Cecchini, Dvorah Richman,…
If you are an autistic job seeker, an employer, or the parent of a young adult interested in resources to assist with finding and applying for a job, OAR’s Hire Autism employment program has free, comprehensive resources for you, such as: A Guide to Job Searching: The guide explains how to navigate online job portals…
As a transition specialist, I had observed young adults falling off “the services cliff” — when legally mandated services are discontinued after they finish high school — and becoming disconnected from education, work, and other supportive services. When I learned of the work that the A.J. Drexel Autism Institute, specifically the Life Course Outcomes Research…
Autistic people often have complex healthcare needs that increase their risk of poorer health outcomes. For the roughly one-quarter to one-third of transition-age autistic youth who are minimally verbal and who are living in a low-income household, the transition from pediatric to adult healthcare is often tumultuous. In order to improve that transition, a one-year…
