UB's Department of Counseling, School and Educational Psychology to Co-Sponsor Conference on Autism

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Nationally recognized experts on autism, the country's third most common developmental disability, will speak at a regional conference, "Autism/Asperger's 2001," to be held June 14-15 in the Buffalo Convention Center.

Programs will be held from 8:15 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. each day.

Co-sponsored by the Department of Counseling, School and Educational Psychology in the Graduate School of Education at the University at Buffalo, the conference will be hosted and presented by Future Horizons Inc., Arlington, Texas.

The conference is designed for educators, psychologists, occupational and speech therapists, and patients and their parents.

Autism covers a spectrum of neurologic disorders that interfere with the brain's normal development in the areas of reasoning, social interaction and communication skills.

The program on June 14 will address issues that include developmental aspects of autism and appropriate intervention, basics of applied behavior analysis, issues facing parents and challenges of sensory issues, such as visual, auditory, olfactory and other sensory difficulties.

The keynote address, "The Autism Continuum!" will be presented at 8:30 a.m. by Temple Grandin, Ph.D., one of the most noted, high-functioning individuals with autism in the world and author of "Emergence: Labeled Autistic" and "Thinking in Pictures."

At 10:30 a.m. Eustacia Cutler, Grandin's mother, known for her award-winning documentaries on retarded and emotionally disquieted children, will speak on her personal experience with and observations on autism.

Lynn M. Hamilton, the mother of a son diagnosed with autism, will present a lecture at 1 p.m. on "Facing Autism: Giving Parents Reasons for Hope and Guidance for Help."

At 3 p.m., Chris Alterio, a certified occupational therapist, instructor at Keuka College and vice-chair for certification-examination development for the National Board for Certification for Occupational Therapists, will discuss "Sensory Processing and Integration."

On June 15, the program will focus on appropriate behavior and developmental-intervention practices and activities; assessing and recording improvement, and aspects of dysfunction in sensory integration (DSI).

At 8:30 a.m., Kathleen A. Quill, Ed.D., director of the Autism Institute and author of several best-selling books, will present "Do-Watch-Listen-Say: Social and Communication Intervention."

Keynote speaker at 1 p.m. will be Carol Kranowitz, who will discuss "The Out-of-Sync Child," which also is the title of her best-selling book. A music, movement and drama teacher, she has developed a curriculum that integrates sensorimotor activities for pre-school children.

One-day registration fee for the conference is $130 for professionals; $95 for students and family members, and $70 for individuals with autism.

Registration for both days is $165 for professionals; $135 for students and family members, and $120 for individuals with autism.

Fees include lunch and handout materials.

Special group rates also are available.

For some professionals, attendance at the conference may count as continuing education credit or satisfy state licensing requirements.

For additional information or to register, call 1-800-489-0727. Major credit cards are accepted.

To register on-line, go to http://www.FutureHorizons-autism.com.