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Fifth Annual Ticket to Ride Brings Big Attention to AutismHarley-Davidson Family Member Featured at Event to Raise Autism Awareness
On May 5, the Autism Society of America (ASA) joined by Adamecs Harley-Davidson and radio celebrities Lex & Terry (formerly of Jacksonville's Rock 105 and now broadcasting from Houston), gathered at Adamecs' new dealership in Jacksonville to participate for the fifth year in a row in Ticket to Ride, a bike ride to raise awareness of and funds for autism.
The ride attracted a dedicated following of ASA supporters and an energized group of Harley-Davidson and other motorcycle riders. A maximum of 750 bikers stretched across five miles of pavement, as they were police-escorted on a two hour ride through the Jacksonville area. Post-event activities featured food by Carrabba's, beverages by Pepsi and a silent auction featuring celebrity memorabilia.
This year, Jim Ball, Ed.D., co-chair of ASA's Panel of Professional Advisors, was on-hand to educate riders about autism--and even hopped on the back of a bike for the two hour ride! A special feature was Jean Davidson--granddaughter of Walter Davidson, one of the original founders of Harley-Davidson--who participated in the ride because autism is near and dear to her heart; she has a grandson with autism.
Ticket to Ride was introduced in 2002 by Missy Lybrand, manager, Adamec Harley-Davidson, and mother of a teenager with autism. Adamec Harley-Davidson, Lex & Terry, Rock105, Venus Swimwear, Carrabba's, Pepsi and a slew of other sponsors return each year for one day of raising autism awareness. One hundred percent of the ride's proceeds benefit ASA and its mission to improve the lives of all affected by autism.
“Ticket to Ride, now in its fifth year, is truly an amazing and inspiring event for the autism community,” said ASA President and CEO Lee Grossman. “The ride began with the power of one person, Missy Lybrand. Her dedication demonstrates the power that one person has, and it’s motivation on an entire community to respond and help those affected by autism. A huge thanks to Missy for her vision, leadership and dedication to autism, and to the ride's many sponsors for their generous support.”

ASA-APSE Conference "Imagine...Everybody Works" Focuses on Adult Employment Associations Partner to Advance Employment for Those with Autism
Over 300 educators, policymakers, parents and professionals attended the ASA-APSE conference "Imagine...Everybody Works" in Columbus, Ohio, May 10 and 11. This conference allowed the two associations to join as partners to advance employment for individuals with autism, helping people engaged in employment for individuals with autism to share information, sharpen their skills and reignite their commitment to the difficult task of advancing employment in their own communities.
The conference provided multiple venues for participants to gain new knowledge based on research and practical experience. Sessions included: Teaching Employment Related Social Skills to Individuals across the Autism Spectrum; Building Possibilities through Self-Employment; Building Employer Relationships; Building Support: Characteristics and Instructional Supports Across Settings; Meeting the Needs of Adults with Challenging Behaviors...and much more!
For more information on APSE, go to http://www.apse.org/.

Special ASA Membership OfferGood Until May 31, 2007!
ASA is improving the lives of all affected by autism, and you can help via a special membership offer for May. Until May 31, 2007, ASA is offering a $20 individual membership (normally $30) .
If you join today, you will receive with your membership: ASA's member magazine the Autism Advocate, a valuable source of information on autism-related issues; privileged access to all of the Autism Advocate back issues on our website; and updates providing exclusive information on how your membership supports autism education, awareness, advocacy and research. But most importantly, you will enable ASA to assist families living with autism TODAY. To take advantage of this offer, visit: www.autism-society.org/special.

Autism Advocate: ASA's Premier Magazine on Autism Spectrum DisordersSports/Recreation-Themed 2nd Edition 2007 in the Works
The Autism Advocate's 1st edition 2007 issue on adult employment continues to be in high demand, with multiple requests coming through for additional copies! We're thrilled that the community is able to use it as an education tool for schools, employers and others. The 2nd edition 2007 issue, focusing on sports and recreation for those with autism, will publish in June before the ASA National Conference in Scottsdale, July 11-14.
The Autism Advocate's Managing Editor, Kate Ranta, is moving on in her editorial career. The magazine will now be helmed by Robin Gurley, who has worked on the magazine on a freelance basis. Well wishes to Kate on her future endeavors, and a warm welcome to Robin! Please contact ASA Director of Communications Marguerite Colston with any questions: mcolston@autism-society.org.
Don't let your friends and family miss out on the Autism Advocate. Forward the link below and get them informed!
Already a member? Go to www.autism-society.org/magazine to read the Autism Advocate online.

Conferences Update
2007 ASA National Conference and Exposition on Autism Spectrum DisordersJuly 11-14, 2007; Westin Kierland Resort & Spa; Scottsdale, AZ
Join us at the ASA National Conference at The Westin Kierland Resort & Spa in Scottsdale, AZ, July 11-14, 2007. Register online at www.autism-society.org/conference!
To reserve your room at The Westin Kierland Resort & Spa, call 1-800-354-5892 and be sure to tell them you are attending the ASA National Conference to access the $129/night rate. Rooms are going fast...reserve yours today!
At this year's Evening of Champions Gala on Friday, July 13, ASA is pleased to announce that we will be honoring the following individuals and organizations who have dedicated their time and service to the autism community:
Temple GrandinDenise ResnikJim AdamsNATTAPNARPAAM.I.N.D. Institute
Purchase your EOC tickets online when you register for the conference, or onsite at the registration table on Wednesday, July 11 and Thursday, July 12. General admission tickets are $85/person (open seating). Reserve this evening after a long day at the conference for some fun, fellowship and dancing. It will be a great evening for all to enjoy!

ASA Announces Candidates for 2007 ASA Board ElectionsGet Info on All Candidates on ASA Website
ASA members in good standing will soon be receiving ballots for the election for ASA's Board of Directors. To see the list of candidate for 2007 and to read the candidates' responses to the candidate questionnaires, visit: www.autism-society.org/candidates.

Autism Summer Camps -- Top Ten Directories of Summer Camps for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Living with autism in a world made for others - CNN.com

As More Children Receive Diagnoses, Effects of These Labels Seem Mixed

Gifted? Autistic? Or Just Quirky?

By Maia Szalavitz

Special to The Washington Post
Tuesday, February 27, 2007

"Paradoxically liberating" is how Phil Schwarz has described his Asperger's syndrome diagnosis. He was in his late 30s at the time, and he had number of things on his mind: A software developer in Framingham, Mass., Schwarz had been labeled "gifted" as a child and had graduated third in his high school class. For years he had struggled with depression and a feeling that he was not living up to the promise of his past.

What's more, he had begun to worry about his toddler's delayed language development and repetitive play style. But he had no idea how the diagnosis that his son Jeremy would receive might affect his own identity.

Jeremy turned out to have a form of high-functioning autism. Later the same year, Schwarz received his own diagnosis with the related Asperger's syndrome. Only then did he realize that his long-standing difficulties with socializing, sensitivity to loud noises and bright light, and what he calls a "syncopated conversational style," were all related, both to one another and to being on the autistic spectrum. "It allowed me to make sense of everything through a new lens," says Schwarz, who is now vice president of the Asperger's Association of New England.

It seems that America has fallen in love with the stamp of medical authority. Increasing numbers of children are given increasingly specific labels, ranging from psychiatric and neurological diagnoses such as Asperger's and attention-deficit disorder to educational descriptors including "gifted" and "learning disabled." And parents who in the past might have fought ferociously against giving their children labels -- particularly for once-stigmatized conditions such as learning disorders -- sometimes actually seek such diagnoses for their children to get them extra time on tests, to receive insurance reimbursement for treatment, to qualify for extra educational services or simply to have a name (and treatment) for a problem.

The trend is widely acknowledged even though it is hard to quantify, and its causes and effects vary wildly. "There is no doubt that we are labeling children more," says psychiatrist Bruce Perry, my co-author on "The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog and Other Stories From a Child Psychiatrist's Notebook." In fact, Perry says, "in order for clinicians to get reimbursed, they have to label. There is also a tendency on the part of both educators and parents to want to get an answer. They are very uncomfortable with ambiguity."

And although Stanford University psychology professor Carol Dweck cautions, "I think some children would rather be seen as 'odd' or 'quirky' than 'broken,' " others recognize how helpful the labels have been.

Robert Sternberg, a psychologist and dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at Tufts University, says there are numerous, complex factors involved in the increasing use of labels. "One reason is that in order for them to get special services, kids often need to be labeled. A second reason is for testing. In order to get accommodations like extra time, they need that label."

Because a diagnosis is often required before insurers will cover medical treatment, the rising use of psychiatric medications is also tied in with the trend toward labeling. The number of children taking such drugs rose two- to threefold between 1987 and 1996, a trend that is bolstered by pharmaceutical advertising.

Sternberg had his own childhood experience with labeling: He did poorly on IQ tests. "The teachers thought I wasn't very bright -- and that led me to meet that expectation, which led them to be happy that I met that expectation, and it became a vicious circle. The next year their expectations were a bit lower." Fortunately for Sternberg, his fourth-grade teacher didn't buy it: She saw that there was more to life than test scores, and she encouraged hard work.

As a result, Sternberg became fascinated with psychology and intelligence testing -- so much so that he got in trouble in seventh grade for testing classmates himself. He ultimately became a leading expert in the field. He thinks that one way around the tyranny of labeling is to reduce our obsession with speed -- and give all children extra time on tests.

Sternberg doesn't see labels as all bad, however. "Having a name for something in some cases can help you do something about it," he says, but he stresses that parents and teachers need to focus on children's strengths and reward accomplishments, rather than on what labels imply about ability and potential. Children, after all, tend to live up -- or down -- to the expectations of their parents and teachers.

Research finds that even subtle cues about stereotypes and associated expectations can have significant effects: Some studies have shown that simply being asked to check off "female" at the top of a math test can lower the way a woman performs on a test. Interestingly, if the woman happens to be Asian and is asked to identify her ethnicity rather than her sex before taking the test, her scores rise in line with positive stereotypes about Asians and math. But as in Schwarz's case, positive labels such as "gifted" can have negative side effects, too. Recent studies by Dweck show how labeling children as gifted or highly intelligent can actually inhibit their achievement and self-esteem.

Dweck and her colleagues studied hundreds of early adolescents, giving them each 10 questions from a verbal IQ test. Most did well. Afterward, some were praised for having done well because they were smart, while others were lauded for the hard work that had gone into achieving their high scores. However, when given the opportunity to try a more challenging task, those who had been told they were smart were reluctant. Says Dweck, "They seemed to be thinking, 'They called me smart. I better not do anything too hard in case they change their minds.' " In contrast, about 90 percent of those who had been praised for their effort wanted greater challenges.

Dweck, author of "Mindset: The New Psychology of Success," sees the root of the problem not in the labels themselves but in the mind-sets they represent. "I had shown in earlier work that children who believe in permanent traits like fixed intelligence are actually vulnerable because when something goes wrong they think they don't deserve the label anymore." Alissa Quart, author of "Hothouse Kids: The Dilemma of the Gifted Child," says the gifted label "fixes kids' identities into adulthood. The label is sometimes useful in education, but as an internal self-image, it's not."

Dweck acknowledges that parents and children may be relieved to learn that there's a name for the problem and specific remedies. But, she says, "it's incumbent on parents to explain that 'Well, you may be wired a little differently; this might make it more difficult for you; you might have to work harder and use different strategies,' as opposed to 'This means you can't learn.' "

Recent research in neuroscience bolsters the idea that people can and do change. Says Perry: "The brain is like a muscle: The areas that are used grow and improve while those which aren't, don't." Such growth is often visible on brain scans. Parents should also be aware that the criteria used to define these conditions are not absolute and that they shift over time. The conditions themselves also change as children learn and grow, often worsening with stress and improving when the child feels calm and safe.

As Schwarz says: "It's not the label that's the problem, but the baggage associated with it."

Dan Grover, an 18-year-old college student in Boston, co-founded WrongPlanet.net, a site for teens on the autistic spectrum. He was 10 when he his Asperger's syndrome was diagnosed. "Sometimes people distance themselves from you when they know," he says. "It's both good and bad -- good because it definitely explains some things and gives you some perspective, but at the same time it can be a self-fulfilling prophecy. Being aware of [traits related to the label] can magnify them."

Another 18-year-old, David Dunnington of Yorktown, Ind., told me via e-mail that his Asperger's label "used to send me through the roof" because adults would treat him like an infant, but that he now values the photographic memory and problem-solving skills associated with the condition.

One 13-year-old from New York who has been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder e-mailed me recently that "labels make me see myself as a painting that didn't come out right, and it makes me feel really bad. I think that having these labels is negative because it categorizes children into groups. These labels can be very hurtful, and they don't truly reflect a person's true personality."

Kathleen Seidel is proprietor of the Neurodiversity.com Web site, a resource for autism information aimed at "honoring the variety of human wiring," and the mother of a child on the autistic spectrum. Her site highlights the strengths and talents, not just the problems, associated with autistic disorders. "Everyone has different responses to diagnoses," she says, explaining that the child's perspective about how public to be about the label must be respected and that it may change over time, particularly in adolescence.

Seidel notes that attempts to link autism with mercury poisoning -- though scientific evidence does not find a connection between the condition and mercury in vaccines -- inadvertently evoke images of contamination. "Some people say, 'My child is a toxic waste dump,' " she says. "People don't understand the stigma. I don't want someone looking at my family member that way."

Schwarz uses an adage to describe the dual nature of autism: "As sure as the sky is blue -- well, the sky is really black and starry, but we see it as blue. The sun is a metaphor for the only thing that arrests our attention -- the painful burning intensity of the disability, that's your world. But of course there's more to it."

Similarly, parents, teachers and children themselves need to see past the blazing brightness of any label and into the individuality and potential of the person in front of them. ·

Maia Szalavitz, a senior fellow at Stats.org, is co-author of "The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog and Other Stories From a Child Psychiatrist's Notebook" (Basic). Comments:health@washpost.com.

UnitedHealthcare Children's Foundation to Offer Medical 

         Assistance Grants

 Deadline: Open

 The UnitedHealthcare Children's Foundation ( http://www.uhccf.org/ ) 

 is offering support to meet the needs of children across the

 United States with assistance grants for medical services not

 fully covered by health insurance.

 Parents and caretakers across the country will be eligible to

 apply for grants of up to $5,000 for healthcare services that

 will help improve their children's health and quality of life.

 Examples of the types of medical services covered by UHCCF 

 grants include speech therapy, physical therapy, and psycho-

 therapy sessions; medical equipment such as wheelchairs, 

 braces, hearing aids, and eyeglasses; and orthodontia and 

 dental treatments.

 Any child 16 years old or younger living in any UnitedHealth-

 care region of the United States and in need of financial 

 assistance for healthcare services will be considered eligible 

 for a grant. Families must meet economic guidelines, reside 

 in the United States, and be covered by a commercial health 

 insurance plan.

 For program guidelines and eligibility requirements, visit the

 UHCCF Web site.

 RFP Link: 

 http://fconline.foundationcenter.org/pnd/10006300/uhccf

 For additional RFPs in Health, visit:

 http://foundationcenter.org/pnd/rfp/cat_health.jhtml

Veronica G. Chesbrough
Grants and Contracts Manager

Member, American Association of Grant Professionals
Tampa Lighthouse for the Blind
Serving Hillsborough, Hardee and Polk Counties
1106 W. Platt Street 206 Ave. D N.W.
Tampa, Florida 33606 Winter Haven, Florida 33881

Telephone: (813) 251-2407 Fax: (813) 254-3483
Cell: (813) 695-1863
Email: grants@tampalighthouse.org
www.tampalighthouse.org

"Maximizing independence and providing employment opportunities for over 600 persons who are blind or visually impaired" every year!

Bethesda, MD (February 8, 2007) The Autism Society of America (ASA) welcomed the new CDC studies on the prevalence numbers of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the United States as tremendously significant data that will help the cause of improving the lives of all those affected by autism. In data collected from its Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network (ADDM), a population-based, multi-state surveillance network that surveyed 8 year olds in 2000 and 2002, the CDC found that the data confirm that ASD prevalence affects approximately an average of 1 child in every 150. The data represents 10 percent of the U.S. population of 8 year old children. ASA believes the CDC numbers are tremendously significant. "Finally, we can end the debate on the prevalence of autism in our nation and focus on getting the services and supports the families need," said Lee Grossman, ASA president and CEO. “Autism is a treatable lifelong condition that affects tens of millions of Americans today. It is time to aggressively address this national health crisis.” The CDC is recommending public health actions to improve early identification of ASD. The CDC study includes children with behaviors consistent with autism, Asperger’s and pervasive developmental delays not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS). The data came from 14 sites in five states (Arizona, Georgia, Maryland, New Jersey, South Carolina and West Virginia). The study also found higher prevalence in boys than girls (a range of 2.8 6 boys to girls, depending on the state) and no statistically significant difference among non-Hispanic whites and non-Hispanic black children. Colleen Boyle of the CDC noted that the study showed the age of diagnosis (at between 4-5 years of age) was much later than the age at which developmental concern was registered (before 24 months), underscoring the need for earlier identification of autism. To read the study in full, please visit www.cdc.gov/autism. For information on support, services and identification, please visit http://www.autism-society.org/. ASA is the oldest and largest member organization dedicated to autism in the world. ASA’s mission is to improve the lives of all affected by autism—individuals with autism, their families and the professionals with whom they interact. For more information on autism or ASA, visit http://www.autism-society.org/ or call 1.800.3AUTISM (1.800.328.8476).

I received this information from one of our members. I would encourage all

>of you to visit the site.

>

>Donna

>______________________

>

>

>L.L.S.S.

>(Love, Learn, Share, Serve)

>

> Subject: free on-line courses for parents and self-advocates

>

> Partners in Policymaking offers four free on-line courses for parents and

> self-advocates including:

>

> "Partners in Time", a tutorial on the history of people with disabilities

> from ancient times until today;

>

> "Partners in Education", a discussion on special education options,

> designed to help parents get the most out of the school system for their

> kids;

>

> "Making Your Case", education on the legislative process and how to

> effectively communicate with public officials;

>

> "Partners in Employment", a career planning class for persons with

> disabilities, including assistance with resume and portfolio development.

>

> For more information go to http://www.partnersinpolicymaking.com/