We are halfway to the annual College Autism Summit, and it’s time to stop, catch our breath, and look around at the landscape of autism, neurodiversity, and higher education. Join us for two virtual half-day professional learning opportunities offering in-depth exploration of some of the most important topics of the day. Halfway to the Summit includes six important topics:  mental health, neurodivergent relationships, disclosure, employment readiness, student readiness and engagement, and working with faculty/creative accommodations. Each session will include useful content, presented live and…

Presenter: Mark Tapia, Ph.D. (Researcher) Presentation Title: Self-Advocacy at the University Level: Teaching Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder to Advocate for Their Needs Presentation Description: Research provides some evidence to support self-advocacy skills, but little has occurred to explore how best to teach these skills at the postsecondary level. To that end, there is a positive model that emphasizes the unique needs of persons with autism, and it is the video model. Video modeling has a solid evidence base; however,…

Presenters: Alex Newson, PhD (University of Oregon), Erin Hopkins PhD (Case Western Reserve University), Lauren Collier, MA (Associate Director for Disability Services at University of Massachusetts Amherst), Liam Whitney, MS Ed., (COMS, VRT), and Madeline Mueller (MSSW/MPH Candidate at Columbia University) Presentation Description: In their AIR-P-funded project, Double Burnout: Exploring the Experiences of Autistic and Educator Burnout Among Autistic Educators, they have purposefully curated a space where Autistic educators and researchers can collaborate effectively. Guided by principles of community-based participatory…

Presenter: Natalie Libster (Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Vanderbilt University Medical Center) Presentation Description: Sexual victimization is a critical and prevalent issue on college campuses, and undergraduate students with certain disabilities are more likely than students without disabilities to be sexually victimized. The current study examined whether autistic college students are more likely than non-autistic students to experience unwanted sexual contact and sexual assault, controlling for co-occurring diagnoses. This study further examined whether students with other disabilities, specifically ADHD, learning disability (LD),…

We'll be joined by parent coaches Colin Cass and Mary Hickey who are excited to meet with such a knowledgeable group. Here's their description: During this meeting we will introduce common parenting themes and how to meet the unique needs of families of neurodiverse students. The role of parents in this transition will be discussed, highlighting the challenges they face and the need to shift from being primary advocates to fostering their children's independence. Key components of what we have learned through a…

Presenter: Dana Kanhai (PhD Higher, Adult & Lifelong Education from Michigan State University; Talent Development Specialist) Presentation Description: Dr. Kanhai will share some key findings from their dissertation research which explored faculty perceptions of their supportive behaviors towards autistic college students and faculty beliefs about their behaviors. Using the Theory of Planned Behavior (Ajzen, 1991) as a theoretical framework to guide this qualitative research, they interviewed 15 faculty who shared how they supported students in different aspects of their work.…

This is an excellent opportunity to close your door to the outside world and join colleagues from across the land to share your thoughts, challenges and resources. It's also a chance to meet some new CAN members, and renew acquaintances with others. In order to structure our conversation just a little, I'd like to ask you to complete this short Google Form about what's going on for you right now. We can then discuss the results and go from there. Want…

October 13-16, 2024, Renaissance Marriott, Columbus, OH The College Autism Summit brings together scholars, practitioners, administrators, employers, and self-advocates to discuss evidence-driven strategies that help support college students with autism and related learning differences. Join us for an in-person event! We are offering a preconference workshop on building or improving a program, over 30 general sessions, excellent major speakers, and too many networking opportunities to count.