Disseminating AIR-B Research in the Community

December 18, 2019

The keynote panel of self-advocates "Autism from the Inside Out" facilitated by Patrick Dwyer. Panel participants included Drake Diaz-Covert, Matt Harmentz, John Almeda, Anthony Zulli and Jason Guillaume.

One important goal of the Autism Intervention Research Network for Behavioral Health (AIR-B) is to increase awareness of autism services, current research, and evidence-based interventions in the local regions of each of its network partners: University of Pennsylvania, UC Davis MIND Institute, University of Rochester, and University of California, Los Angeles Center for Autism Research & Treatment (UCLA CART). As part of the AIR-B III program, each site hosts a local conference during one year of the award. In 2016 the University of Pennsylvania hosted 180 families and providers at the Philadelphia Public Library that included multiple presentations by professionals and a panel of parents. The 2017 conferences on Mental and Emotional Wellness in ASD, was hosted by the University of Rochester at the Strong National Museum of Play and included 240 parents and providers. In 2018, the University of California, Davis used the opportunity to add a family tract to an ongoing Summer Institute on Developmental Disabilities to increase outreach and collaboration between families, providers, policy makers and researchers. The AIR-B III sponsored conference was highly successful, bringing in 164 parents (or caregivers) and self-advocates (48% of attendees, an increase from prior years' by over 30%). Parents attended these conferences at no cost, inclusive of lunch, transportation and childcare. In March of 2019, the conference hosted by UCLA attracted over 250 attendees as well as local media attention.

Based on the amazing response, the UC Davis Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD) who hosts a Summer Institute annually, partnered with Warmline Family Resource Center and Disability Rights California to continue the family tract in 2019. The 2019 Summer Institute featured a Keynote address by a panel of self-advocates discussing their experiences with autism and neurodevelopmental disabilities. We continued the community resource fair from the prior year and a "make-and-take" for families related to a presentation on preparing children for a visit to the dentist. Breakout sessions included topics related to policy, research and evidence-based practices for young children, school age students and adolescents/adults with autism and other neurodevelopmental disabilities. Over 300 attendees (about 50% parents/caregivers) participated in the conference, translation services were provided in Spanish and most families received scholarships to fund the program. The AIR-B III provided the start-up needed for sustained active parent participation in multiple states!

Photo Below: The keynote panel of self-advocates "Autism from the Inside Out" facilitated by Patrick Dwyer. Panel participants included Drake Diaz-Covert, Matt Harmentz, John Almeda, Anthony Zulli and Jason Guillaume.