| One Week Left for Early Bird Registration for ASA National Conference Planning to attend the 2009 ASA National Conference? There’s just one week left for the best registration rate - the early bird registration has been extended to April 30. This year's conference will be held in St. Charles, Ill., at the Pheasant Run Resort July 22-25. The full conference program with breakout sessions and presenter information is now online. Read more … Get a Sneak Peek at the April Issue of the Autism Advocate on the ASA Web Site If you are not an ASA member, you can get a taste of what our flagship quarterly publication, the Autism Advocate, is all about: The article entitled “The Culture of Autism” by our guest editors on this issue, Valerie Paradiz, Ph.D., and Ruth Elaine Hane, both adults on the autism spectrum, is now available online. Read more … Last Chance to Roll with Ticket to Ride VII Join radio personalities Lex and Terry, Adamec Harley-Davidson, and the Autism Society of America for Ticket to Ride VII on May 2 in Jacksonville, Fla. Ride side by side with hundreds of riders from around the region to make a difference in the lives of individuals with autism and their families. Read more … ASA and Horse Boy in the News Don’t miss ASA and The Horse Boy in the news this week! We have been featured in the Austin American-Statesman, the Chicago Tribune, ABC News, and the New York Times, and a segment is scheduled to run on the CBS Evening News tonight. Read more … Updates from the Obama Administration The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) named Henry Claypool to the position of Director of the agency's Office on Disability. Mr. Claypool has over 25 years of disability policy experience at the federal, state and local levels. During the Clinton Administration, he served as senior advisor to the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services at HHS. Read more … Congressional Updates Congress returned to work this week. It will remain in session for five weeks until a week-long Memorial Day recess. Much work is expected to be done in committees as priority bills begin to move forward. Top priority issues include health care, global warming, the FY 2010 Budget Resolution, another emergency war supplemental appropriations bill and the continued Senate confirmation of Obama Administration nominees. Read more … Disability Policy Seminar ASA Board Chair Dr. Cathy Pratt and Jeff Sell, ASA Vice-President of Advocacy & Public Policy, will be presenting at the Disability Policy Seminar co-sponsored by The Arc, United Cerebral Palsy, American Association of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD), the National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities (NACDD), Self-Advocates Becoming Empowered, and the Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD) April 27-29. Read more … Asperger’s Linked with Stress Hormone Levels Some of the symptoms of Asperger’s Syndrome (AS), such as a need for routine and resistance to change, could be linked to levels of the stress hormone cortisol, suggests new research led by the University of Bath. Read more … Einstein Scientists Propose New Theory of Autism Scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have proposed a new theory of autism that suggests that the brains of people with autism are structurally normal but dysregulated, meaning symptoms of the disorder might not be hard-wired, but changeable. Read more … Students with Asperger Syndrome Accommodating college students whose disabilities very likely fall in social and self-regulatory areas is a new challenge for disability services providers who are not used to reaching out to so many areas of student life. The complex social world of college that students with Asperger’s Syndrome must navigate can be unforgiving and difficult when those around them do not understand the disorder. Read more … Autism Association of Northeast Arkansas Hosts 3rd Annual Autism Awareness Conference The Autism Association of Northeast Arkansas (AANEA) will hold its 3rd Annual Autism Awareness Conference on Friday, May 1, 2009, at the Arkansas State University Fowler Center, in Jonesboro, Ark. Read more … Supporting People with Autism for Successful Transition to Adulthood On May 2 in Columbia, Md., autism expert Dr. Stephen Shore will speak to individuals with autism spectrum disorder and their families on how to plan for the successful transition to college and adulthood. Read more … AFP Announces First in a Series of Webinars on Employment The Alliance for Full Participation (AFP) has recently launched a major initiative to improve the employment infrastructure, services and outcomes for people with developmental disabilities. To support state teams and bring awareness to the cause of increasing employment for people with developmental disabilities, the Alliance is hosting a series of quarterly webinars. The first of these webinars will be held on May 7 at 4:00 p.m. ET. Read more … Special-Needs Children and Divorce The Special Needs Child and Divorce by Margaret "Pegi" Price takes a practical look at what special needs are, how they are relevant in the arena of divorce, and how lawyers can make the system work better for these children and their families. Read more … Father Tells Story of Autism and His Family Jeff Stimpson, the author of Alex: The Fathering of a Preemie, discusses the next five years of his son's life in Alex the Boy: Episodes From a Family's Life With Autism, as Alex's family grapples with issues of sleep deprivation, Alex's limited diet, his (sometimes dangerous) public behavior with autism and a host of other issues. Chapters are broken out by subject and study questions are included for educators and book groups. Read more … New Autism Magazine Available How.2.Own.Autsim is a new magazine for parents of children just diagnosed with autism. It shares real-life stories, with real-life children, families and issues. Read more … Video on Technology Employment for People with Developmental Disabilities The Changing Face of Technology is an 11-minute film produced by the Minnesota Developmental Disabilities Council that provides numerous examples of how electronic records management is a sound business decision and that people with disabilities are a tremendous match for this important work. Read more … AST Offers In-Home “Catch Up” Program for Infants and Toddlers with Suspected Developmental Delays Autism Spectrum Therapies (AST), an agency providing services to individuals with autism and their families, now offers in-home assessments and a four-month “catch up” program for infants and toddlers with suspected developmental delays. Read more … Film Festival Features Developmental Disabilities The 7th Annual Sprout Film Festival will take place May 1-3 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. This festival features films related to the field of developmental disabilities, which often remain marginalized in the media. The Sprout Film Festival aims to raise their profile by showcasing works of all genres featuring this population. Read more …  | 
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