In Session II of our Transition Tuesday series, following Sandy Storer's introductory remarks, the audience of 90 divided into small discussion groups, each led by an educational advocate supported by someone from NESCA. This format proved so popular and productive that we have decided to use it again on March 13th, in Session III: Transition Assessment.
As this is written, some of our favorite advocates have already signed on, several of them veterans of Session II. Once again we'll have Martina Roy Lynde and Catherine Mayes, joined by Terry Sauro, Leslie Tsui, Trish Orlovsky and others. They can tell you how to use your child's assessment most effectively to obtain whatever services he/she may need.
As usual, this workshop will take place at the Westin Waltham Hotel, from 7:00 - 9:00pm on Tuesday, March 13th. Sandy Storer and Dr. Jason McCormick will explain our protocol for transition assessment, which can be highly individualized.
Admission is $20 per person, ideally paid in advance; if you pay at the door, we accept exact change or personal checks only. Seating is limited. To reserve space, please call Ty Curran at 617-658-9800, or email tcurran@nesca-newton.com.
Saturday, February 18, 2012
Friday, February 17, 2012
Save the Dates May 4-5, 2012: Lesley U's 5th Annual Focus on Autism Conference
"Unlocking Potential Through Assistive Technology"
Leslie University today announced their 5th annual Focus on Autism Spectrum Disorders conference. A remarkable panel of experts at the pinnacle of their respective professions will discuss the most advanced assistive technologies and their applications to autism spectrum disorders.
All proceeds from this event will be donated to Massachusetts Advocates for Children (MAC), an organization NESCA wholeheartedly supports and through which we provide a range of pro bono services.
Drs. Ann Helmus and Stephanie Monaghan-Blout are active participants in MAC's Trauma and Learning Policy Initiative (LTPI), and were among the authors of Helping Traumatized Children Learn (available here for purchase as a bound book or to download free as a PDF).
On behalf of the LTPI, Dr. Helmus also teaches Harvard Law School students MAC’s signature multi-strategic approach to systemic change, harnessing their talents to represent families and participate in this powerful policy agenda.
Where: Lesley University Graduate School of Education,
University Hall, 1815 Massachusetts Avenue,
Cambridge, MA 02138
When: 7:00 - 9:30pm, Friday May 4 (Author Reading and
Book Signing with Susan Senator)
A wine and cheese reception featuring Local Author and Acclaimed Autism Blogger Susan Senator reading from her latest novel, Dirt: A Story of Gardening, Mothering and Other Messy Things. Senator is the author of three acclaimed books on autism.
8:00am - 5:00pm, Saturday, May 5, 2012 (Autism
and Assistive Technology)
Dr. Rosalind Picard (MIT Media Lab), Marie Duggan (Technology for Autism Now), Russell Ewell (Hope Technology School/Quicktalk), Dr. Brenda Matthis (Lesley University), Russell Ewell, CEO, Digital Scribbler (via Skype) and Jennifer Leighton (Communication and Technology Lab, Spaulding Rehabilitation at the Lurie Center).
Admission to this event is $75. All proceeds go directly to support the Mass. Advocates for Children Autism Legal Support Center.
Both Days: Artism: Art + Autism
Artism: art + autism will be an art show featuring the art of people with autism. Artism will be jointly curated by Dr. Robert Shreefter of Lesley University’s Creative Arts in Learning Program, and Elizabeth Stringer Keefe, faculty in the Graduate Special Education Program. Art will be displayed during the month of April for Autism Awareness month and for sale during the conference this year, with all proceeds benefitting MAC.
Who Should Attend: Special ed teachers, paraprofessionals, teaching assistants, principals, administrators, parents, social workers, school psychologists, speech-language pathologists, physical and occupational therapists, consultants, advocates, and other specialists.
For additional information, please contact Elizabeth Stringer Keefe by calling 617-349-8206 email to: estringer@lesley.edu.
To register for Susan Senator's book signing only ($25), click here. To enroll in the full-day Autism and Assistive Technology conference ($75) only, click here. For both ($100), click here.
Leslie University today announced their 5th annual Focus on Autism Spectrum Disorders conference. A remarkable panel of experts at the pinnacle of their respective professions will discuss the most advanced assistive technologies and their applications to autism spectrum disorders.
All proceeds from this event will be donated to Massachusetts Advocates for Children (MAC), an organization NESCA wholeheartedly supports and through which we provide a range of pro bono services.
Drs. Ann Helmus and Stephanie Monaghan-Blout are active participants in MAC's Trauma and Learning Policy Initiative (LTPI), and were among the authors of Helping Traumatized Children Learn (available here for purchase as a bound book or to download free as a PDF).
On behalf of the LTPI, Dr. Helmus also teaches Harvard Law School students MAC’s signature multi-strategic approach to systemic change, harnessing their talents to represent families and participate in this powerful policy agenda.
Where: Lesley University Graduate School of Education,
University Hall, 1815 Massachusetts Avenue,
Cambridge, MA 02138
When: 7:00 - 9:30pm, Friday May 4 (Author Reading and
Book Signing with Susan Senator)
A wine and cheese reception featuring Local Author and Acclaimed Autism Blogger Susan Senator reading from her latest novel, Dirt: A Story of Gardening, Mothering and Other Messy Things. Senator is the author of three acclaimed books on autism.
Admission to this event is $25. All proceeds go directly to support the Mass. Advocates for Children Autism Legal Support Center.
8:00am - 5:00pm, Saturday, May 5, 2012 (Autism
and Assistive Technology)
Dr. Rosalind Picard (MIT Media Lab), Marie Duggan (Technology for Autism Now), Russell Ewell (Hope Technology School/Quicktalk), Dr. Brenda Matthis (Lesley University), Russell Ewell, CEO, Digital Scribbler (via Skype) and Jennifer Leighton (Communication and Technology Lab, Spaulding Rehabilitation at the Lurie Center).
Admission to this event is $75. All proceeds go directly to support the Mass. Advocates for Children Autism Legal Support Center.
Both Days: Artism: Art + Autism
Artism: art + autism will be an art show featuring the art of people with autism. Artism will be jointly curated by Dr. Robert Shreefter of Lesley University’s Creative Arts in Learning Program, and Elizabeth Stringer Keefe, faculty in the Graduate Special Education Program. Art will be displayed during the month of April for Autism Awareness month and for sale during the conference this year, with all proceeds benefitting MAC.
Who Should Attend: Special ed teachers, paraprofessionals, teaching assistants, principals, administrators, parents, social workers, school psychologists, speech-language pathologists, physical and occupational therapists, consultants, advocates, and other specialists.
For additional information, please contact Elizabeth Stringer Keefe by calling 617-349-8206 email to: estringer@lesley.edu.
To register for Susan Senator's book signing only ($25), click here. To enroll in the full-day Autism and Assistive Technology conference ($75) only, click here. For both ($100), click here.
MRI Sees Brain Changes in Young At-Risk Infants Later Diagnosed with Autism
Autism may be detectable in infants as young as 6 months old, according to a study published February 17th in the American Journal of Psychiatry, suggesting the condition has a strong genetic and biological root.
The study, which tracked MRI images of 92 infants from six to 24 months, found that infants who went on to develop autism may have had brain abnormalities visible on MRI at 6 months of age, before the development of clinical symptoms.
To read about this study in greater detail, click here.
According to Dr. Nancy Minshew, director of the NICHD Collaborative Program of Excellence in Autism at the University of Pittsburgh, "This adds to the evidence that autism develops on its own, so to speak, and not because parents did or did not do something to cause autism."
The study's authors acknowledge that because they investigated only infants with a family history of autism, a significant risk factor, the validity of their results might be limited to babies already known to be at high risk.
While more systematic tracking of developmental changes in the brain might someday lead to earlier autism screening and intervention, it would be premature to regard MRI scans as conclusive diagnostic tests for autism spectrum disorders.
http://gma.yahoo.com/mri-brain-changes-seen-early-infants-autism-060124656--abc-news.html
The study, which tracked MRI images of 92 infants from six to 24 months, found that infants who went on to develop autism may have had brain abnormalities visible on MRI at 6 months of age, before the development of clinical symptoms.
To read about this study in greater detail, click here.
According to Dr. Nancy Minshew, director of the NICHD Collaborative Program of Excellence in Autism at the University of Pittsburgh, "This adds to the evidence that autism develops on its own, so to speak, and not because parents did or did not do something to cause autism."
The study's authors acknowledge that because they investigated only infants with a family history of autism, a significant risk factor, the validity of their results might be limited to babies already known to be at high risk.
While more systematic tracking of developmental changes in the brain might someday lead to earlier autism screening and intervention, it would be premature to regard MRI scans as conclusive diagnostic tests for autism spectrum disorders.
http://gma.yahoo.com/mri-brain-changes-seen-early-infants-autism-060124656--abc-news.html
From WBUR's Radio Boston - CommonHealth: When Doctors Do Yoga
WBUR's Valentine's Day gift to us was a report, compiled for its excellent CommonHealth audio blog, on the medical benefits of yoga practice. Evidence is mounting that yoga not only relieves stress and elvates mood, but also can help to alleviate chronic back pain and other physical conditions.
The research is persuasive enough that Boston University School of Medicine is now offering an elective course in yoga to medical students. “(Students) learning to be doctors are under incredible pressure and so, for one thing, need to sort of de-stress,” explains Rachel Zimmerman, co-host of WBUR’s CommonHealth blog. “But the neuroscience element is so they can ultimately be so comfortable with the science behind yoga that they prescribe it to patients or at least discuss it.”
Joining the discussion with Radio Boston Host Meghna Chakrabarti were Rachel Zimmerman and Dr. Rob Saper, the director of integrative medicine in the Department of Family Medicine at Boston University, who used yoga to cope with his stress while attending medical school and says that yoga now informs how he practices medicine.
You can listen, here: http://radioboston.wbur.org/2012/02/14/doctor-yoga
Hannah Gould, CYT Speaks on Yoga Therapy 3/28
Why this interest in yoga? Because we see daily the value of yoga practice for many of the children we evaluate. Working with yoga therapist Hannah Gould, M.Ed., CYT, by increasing self-awareness they are often enabled to lower their arousal level, relieve anxiety, control behavior, extend attention span and improve executive function.
Hannah will be speaking about her work from 7:00 - 9:00pm on Wednesday, March 28th in our offices. RSVP by email to Ty Curran at tcurran@nesca-newton.com
More from CommonHealth
Read CommonHealth's complete story, Downward-Facing Docs: Med Students Study Yoga To Help Patients, Selves, here: http://commonhealth.wbur.org/2012/02/downward-facing-docs/
In it, Researcher Dr. Chris Streeter, an Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Neurology at BU School of Medicine describes how yoga impacts levels of Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid (GABA), a key neurotransmitter in the brain.
Streeter’s latest research, done in collaboration with doctors at McLean Hospital in Belmont, MA and published in The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine in 2010, compared two groups of exercisers: people doing yoga and people walking. The bottom-line findings: After 12 weeks, the folks in the yoga group showed greater improvements in their mood and anxiety levels compared to the walkers, and there was a positive correlation between increased GABA levels, measured through brain imaging, and improved mood.
The research is persuasive enough that Boston University School of Medicine is now offering an elective course in yoga to medical students. “(Students) learning to be doctors are under incredible pressure and so, for one thing, need to sort of de-stress,” explains Rachel Zimmerman, co-host of WBUR’s CommonHealth blog. “But the neuroscience element is so they can ultimately be so comfortable with the science behind yoga that they prescribe it to patients or at least discuss it.”
Joining the discussion with Radio Boston Host Meghna Chakrabarti were Rachel Zimmerman and Dr. Rob Saper, the director of integrative medicine in the Department of Family Medicine at Boston University, who used yoga to cope with his stress while attending medical school and says that yoga now informs how he practices medicine.
You can listen, here: http://radioboston.wbur.org/2012/02/14/doctor-yoga
Hannah Gould, CYT Speaks on Yoga Therapy 3/28
Why this interest in yoga? Because we see daily the value of yoga practice for many of the children we evaluate. Working with yoga therapist Hannah Gould, M.Ed., CYT, by increasing self-awareness they are often enabled to lower their arousal level, relieve anxiety, control behavior, extend attention span and improve executive function.Hannah will be speaking about her work from 7:00 - 9:00pm on Wednesday, March 28th in our offices. RSVP by email to Ty Curran at tcurran@nesca-newton.com
More from CommonHealth
Read CommonHealth's complete story, Downward-Facing Docs: Med Students Study Yoga To Help Patients, Selves, here: http://commonhealth.wbur.org/2012/02/downward-facing-docs/
In it, Researcher Dr. Chris Streeter, an Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Neurology at BU School of Medicine describes how yoga impacts levels of Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid (GABA), a key neurotransmitter in the brain.
Streeter’s latest research, done in collaboration with doctors at McLean Hospital in Belmont, MA and published in The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine in 2010, compared two groups of exercisers: people doing yoga and people walking. The bottom-line findings: After 12 weeks, the folks in the yoga group showed greater improvements in their mood and anxiety levels compared to the walkers, and there was a positive correlation between increased GABA levels, measured through brain imaging, and improved mood.
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Asperger's or NLD? A Free Guide to Getting Hired by Barbara Bissonnette
Getting Hired: A Primer for Individuals with Asperger’s Syndrome & NLD is a new guide designed for individuals with Asperger’s Syndrome or Nonverbal Learning Disorder, their family members and professionals. Topics include: how to determine what jobs you are qualified for; the difference between hard and soft skills; what it means to market yourself to employers; recognizing when you are stuck; creating a realistic job search plan; and more.
To request a free copy in PDF format, please email Barbara directly at Barbara@ForwardMotion.info, or visit www.forwardmotion.info/freeguides2.html#gethired
To request a free copy in PDF format, please email Barbara directly at Barbara@ForwardMotion.info, or visit www.forwardmotion.info/freeguides2.html#gethired
College to Career: Asperger’s and NLD Employment Intensive Starts 3/19
A new Spring, 2012 group is now forming for Barbara Bissonnette's College to Career: Asperger’s and NLD Employment Intensive workshop series beginning on March 19th. This is an 8-week program that combines weekly group meetings with individual coaching to guide participants through every step of the job search process.
The meetings take place at NESCA's offices on the second floor of 55 Chapel Street in Newton, MA, on consecutive Mondays from 6:00 to 8:30pm. Group size is limited to 8.
If you know of someone who would be interested, please pass on this link to information on my Barbara's website: www.forwardmotion.info/collcareer.html
Barbara Bissonnette is principal of Forward Motion Coaching, a certified coach and author, among many other significant publications, of The Asperger’s Workplace Survival Guide: A Neurotypical’s Secrets of Success. This book was a nominee for The Autism Society’s “Outstanding Literary Work of the Year” award.
The meetings take place at NESCA's offices on the second floor of 55 Chapel Street in Newton, MA, on consecutive Mondays from 6:00 to 8:30pm. Group size is limited to 8.
If you know of someone who would be interested, please pass on this link to information on my Barbara's website: www.forwardmotion.info/collcareer.html
Barbara Bissonnette is principal of Forward Motion Coaching, a certified coach and author, among many other significant publications, of The Asperger’s Workplace Survival Guide: A Neurotypical’s Secrets of Success. This book was a nominee for The Autism Society’s “Outstanding Literary Work of the Year” award.
Construction Update - Important Information About Accessing Our Offices
We're now a hard hat zone! (Just kidding.) But...
Our building and others in the ChapelBridge Park complex are undergoing extensive renovation, which is all to the good. The downside is that for the next several months, there will be work in progress which will necessitate changes in where you park and how you access our offices, as follow:
Please park in either of the two lots off Chapel Street, in any available spaces. They need not be marked "NESCA". Then, enter our building through the main ChapelBridge Park entrance at 55 Chapel Street.
Proceed straight ahead across the brick floor to the elevator on your left. You will see signs directing you to NESCA. Take the elevator to our reception area by pressing "2".
The stairway to our office has been closed temporarily for reconstruction. Likewise, the walkway from Bridge Street is now fenced, so you cannot enter our building from the west.
We apologize in advance for any inconvenience.
Our building and others in the ChapelBridge Park complex are undergoing extensive renovation, which is all to the good. The downside is that for the next several months, there will be work in progress which will necessitate changes in where you park and how you access our offices, as follow:
Please park in either of the two lots off Chapel Street, in any available spaces. They need not be marked "NESCA". Then, enter our building through the main ChapelBridge Park entrance at 55 Chapel Street.Proceed straight ahead across the brick floor to the elevator on your left. You will see signs directing you to NESCA. Take the elevator to our reception area by pressing "2".
The stairway to our office has been closed temporarily for reconstruction. Likewise, the walkway from Bridge Street is now fenced, so you cannot enter our building from the west.
We apologize in advance for any inconvenience.
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