School fights family over autism assistance dog


Posted by Beth Finke on September 17th, 2009

The Associated Press reports that an Illinois family wants their 6-year-old son, who has autism, to be able to bring his dog along to school this year. The family said the dog would help with the transition to a new place and would also help keep him safe from traffic and other dangers. Service dogs are allowed in the …Read More » »

Dr. Wright interviewed in Education Week


Posted by Beth Finke on August 14th, 2009

Last month, Patricia Wright published a post here called Friendly’s helps kids find Friends Who Care.

FRIENDS WHO CARE® is an interactive educational program designed to help children understand what it means and how it feels to be a young person with a disability. The program shows kids how their peers with autism and other disabilities adapt to …Read More » »

Friendly’s helps kids find Friends Who Care


Posted by Patricia Wright on July 27th, 2009

Thanks to the Friendly Ice Cream Corporation, Easter Seals has been able to update and re-design our free disability awareness curriculum for teachers and parents.

FRIENDS WHO CARE® is an interactive educational program designed to help children understand what it means and how …Read More » »

Reimbursement for special ed at private schools


Posted by Beth Finke on July 1st, 2009

A story on NPR’s All Things Considered explains how a Supreme Court ruling last week makes it easier for parents of special education students to get reimbursed for private school tuition.

The case started in Oregon — the parents of a teenager who was refused special education services at a public high school transferred the student to a private academy …Read More » »

Congratulations to high school grad with autism


Posted by Beth Finke on June 30th, 2009

Yesterday’s New York Times featured a terrific story about a high school graduate who has autism. Dan Mulvaney’s story starts like so many others about kids diagnosed with autism:

Dan seemed on a normal developmental track for his first three and a half years until things went haywire. His speech suddenly stopped. He sat in a corner gnawing on …Read More » »

Think high school years are challenging? Try going through them with Asperger Syndrome


Posted by Patricia Wright on May 11th, 2009

Many individuals with Asperger Syndrome report that high school years are particularly challenging. Self advocacy is especially important as these children grow into adulthood.The Global and Regional Asperger Syndrome Partnership (GRASP) is an organization led and governed by individuals with Asperger Syndrome. From their web site:What makes GRASP unique, other than its proven four year-old support group network, its …Read More » »

Know your options when it comes to occupational therapy


Posted by Ellen Harrington-Kane on April 29th, 2009

What a pleasure it is to introduce guest blogger Sandra Schefkind, MS, OTR/L, pediatric coordinator for the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA).

Know your options when it comes to occupational therapy

By Sandra Schefkind

It’s no secret that parents want the best for their kids. When they’re at home they know firsthand what’s happening … but let’s face it — …Read More » »

Making kids more aware of autism


Posted by Beth Finke on April 17th, 2009

March was a busy and rewarding month for me in my role as a children’s book author. In one month, my Seeing Eye dog Hanni and I visited five elementary schools, two libraries, one health education center, one teacher education center, and appeared at one author-illustrator night.

A lot of the schools we went to prepared the kids ahead of …Read More » »

Accessing stimulus funding if you’re not on public aid


Posted by Katy Beh Neas on March 12th, 2009

A comment to our post called The stimulus plan: what’s in it for people with autism? prompted me to write more on this issue, because it’s an impoirtant one. The person who commented asked whether parents can access economic recovery funds if their children do not receive Medicaid or Social Security benefits.

The details of how states are going to …Read More » »

The stimulus plan: what’s in it for people with autism?


Posted by Beth Finke on February 23rd, 2009

Here’s an understatement for you: that stimulus package President Obama signed into law last week is huge. It’s a bit daunting, too. To help sort through all the changes, the Disability Policy Collaboration (The Arc of the United States, combined with United Cerebral Palsy) lists the amount of increased spending disability specific programs will receive from the time the …Read More » »