Want to know more about the speakers in Autism Awareness Centre's conferences, trainings or events? Scroll down for a list of bios on past or upcoming speakers, including links to books that they have authored for purchase at our store. Not finding who you are looking for? Feel free to contact us and we will see if we can help!
Dr. Rita Jordan, Professor in Autism Studies, School of Education, The University of Birmingham, UK. After a degree in Psychology, Rita became a teacher in nursery and primary mainstream schools and started an opportunity group and toy library for children with special needs. She took a Masters in Child Development and researched curriculum development and parent training for children with…
Dr. Lauren Kenworthy, Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Pediatrics, and Neurology, CNMC, GWU. Dr. Kenworthy is the Director of the Center for Autism Spectrum Disorders, where she has specialized in the neuropsychological assessment of children with social learning disorders and executive dysfunction since 1998. She has received several grants and published numerous papers investigating the neurocognitve phenotype of autism, with an…
Dr. Jeanette McAfee is a physician who has a child of her own with high functioning autism and is internationally recognized for her work developing social- emotional skills training programs for individuals with high functioning autism, Asperger Syndrome and related disorders. Jeanette is the founder and director of Social Solutions, a private clinic in northern California through which she provides…
Dr. Andrew McDonnell is a Clinical Psychologist and Director of Studio3 Training Systems located in Warwickshire, UK. He has a special interest in arousal mechanisms in people with autism and the management of severe challenging behaviours. Other areas of interest are stress management, person centred approaches to behaviour management, arousal mechanisms and their application to human behaviour, and sensory perceptual…
Dr. Gary B. Mesibov is an internationally acclaimed speaker, was the Director of Division TEACCH at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill from 1992 until 2010. Prior to Dr. Mesibov’s appointment as Director of Division TEACCH, he served as the Division’s Co-Director from 1987 and the Associate Director from 1983.Dr. Mesibov also serves as Professor of Psychology, Dept.…
Dr. Lucy Jane Miller is the founder and executive director of KID Foundation and director of the Sensory Therapies And Research (STAR) Center near Denver. Dr. Miller was mentored by Dr. A. Jean Ayres in sensory integration theory and practice, and as a research scientist was granted an NIH career award to investigate Sensory Processing Disorder. Her research program was…
Dr. Michael Powers is a pediatric psychologist and the Director of The Center for Children with Special Needs in Glastonbury, Connecticut. . He specializes in the diagnosis, evaluation, and treatment of individuals with autism and related developmental disabilities. Dr. Powers holds an appointment as an Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychology at the Yale Child Study Center, Yale University. He is…
Dr. Cathy Pratt, BCBA-D, is the Director of the Indiana Resource Center for Autism located at the Indiana Institute on Disability and Community, Indiana’s University Center for Excellence in Disabilities. Most recently, Dr. Pratt has become the director of the Indiana School Mental Health Initiative. Dr. Pratt serves on numerous Advisory Boards, including the Advisory Boards of Maap Services, Inc.,…
Dr. Kathleen Quill is respected internationally as an author, lecturer and consultant in the field of educating children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Kathleen has conducted trainings in over 20 countries, given the keynote address for 10 international organizations, and presented at over 100 conferences. Kathleen promotes behavioural and developmental educational methods in her work. She conducts applied research on…
Ruth Ellingsen, Ph.D. is a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences at the UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior. Dr. Ellingsen received her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Wake Forest University. She received her doctorate in clinical psychology from UCLA in 2016 and completed a clinical internship in child psychology at UCLA from 2015-2016.…
Judy Endow maintains a private practice in Madison, Wisconsin, providing consultation for families, school districts and other agencies. Besides having autism herself, she is the parent of three grown sons, one of whom is on the autism spectrum. Judy does workshops and presentations on a variety of autism-related issues, is part of the Wisconsin DPI Statewide Autism Training Team and…
Catherine Faherty, one of the pioneers in the University of North Carolina’s TEACCH Program, first created a model TEACCH classroom in the mid-1980’s, and has served individuals with autism, their families, and professionals, as a TEACCH autism specialist and teacher trainer from 1990 to 2012. She has written training manuals, including the TEACCH Structured Teaching Self- Assessment: Guides to Individualizing…
Elisa Gagnon is the creator of the Power Card Strategy and the co-author of the award winning book Power Cards, 2.0. For over 25 years she has taught children and youth with ASD and emotional disorders and providing practical support and information to teachers, support personnel and families. Her passion is taking the research to practice and sharing the message…
Carol Gray is the Director of The Gray Center for Social Learning and Understanding in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She has completed over 22 years of employment with Jenison Public Schools in Jenison, Michigan, initially as a teacher with students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and in recent years as a consultant to students with ASD in inclusive educational programs. In…
Bo Hejlskov Elvén is a clinical psychologist based in Sweden. His work with guidance and lecturing concern managing challenging behavior. Bo’s field is care and special education, mainly concerning children and adults with developmental disabilities such as autism, Asperger´s syndrome, ADHD or intellectual disabilities. Bo also works in the psychiatric field and in juvenile correction facilities. The basis of Bo’s…