Author With Asperger’s Redesigns Website & Launches Resource Service

Liane Holliday Willey, an author with Asperger’s syndrome, has redesigned her website www.aspie.com with both free and subscription-only content (the basic cost is $20 monthly). The subscribers area contains lesson plans and presentations for educators, exclusive articles, and a discount on related books. The readily available areas of the website include a free newsletter and information on her speaking engagements.

High School Graduate With Asperger’s Profiled in Local Paper

Tom Bregnard, who was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome before beginning high school, recently graduated near the top of his class and will attend the University of Rhode Island on an academic scholarship. Tom’s symptoms first became apparent when he responded to disappointing grades with outbursts, but his parents insisted on putting him in honors classes against the advice of psychiatrists, in which he has been highly successful. Tom has also tutored other students. Read article >

Customized Van For Children on the Spectrum Stolen

The parents of Megan and Ben Herbert, who have Asperger’s syndrome and a dual diagnosis of autism and cerebral palsy, respectively, are pleading for the return of a specially designed caravan which was stolen earlier this month. The British family used it on vacations, where the children could not cope with airplane travel or stay in hotels, as they have trouble adapting to change and require a source of comfort.

Read article >

Use Of Aversives In School for Students with Disabilities Sparks Controversy

New York state’s deputy education commissioner is urging the state to ban the use of severe punishments used as deterrents in schools, including electric shock and other aversives. The Judge Rotenberg school in Massachusetts has played a central role in this issue, as the majority of its students are from New York and the school routinely uses electrodes in treatment of children with autism and other developmental disabilities. The family of one former student subjected to electric shocks is considering suing the state for $10 million. Read article >

Volkswagen Looks For Young Artists With Disabilities

VSA Arts, a non-profit organization dedicated to the support of arts education for disabled students and the promotion of artists with disabilities, recently announced an exhibition co-sponsored by Volkswagen called “Destination Anywhere”. Artists with disabilities between the ages of 16 and 25 are encouraged to submit artwork based around the theme of traveling and/or living with disabilities. An awards ceremony will take place on Capitol Hill and the finalists will have their work displayed at the Smithsonian. Read article >

GRASP & Autism Speaks Agree To Share Viewpoints Online

In an attempt to create a respectful dialogue regarding differences of opinion concerning the word “cure” being used in association with autism, GRASP and Autism Speaks have agreed to write articles for each other’s website. The articles, referred to as “articles of understanding”, will be focused on explaining why the two groups have a differing viewpoint on this issue and will appear on the websites of both groups later this spring.

Resource Center For Students With Asperger’s Opens In England

The Fulford School recently opened a resource center for students in the York region of England with Asperger’s syndrome and autism, who were previously enrolled in the mainstream of the school, and supported by three specialists who now make up the center’s staff. This is the first in-school facility for students with autism in the region, and is designed to be as compatible with the needs of autistic children as possible. The resource center is expected to care for ten students within the next few years. Read article >

Autism-Related Technology Awarded Federal Research Grant

A video-based behavior monitoring program developed by e-Merge Medical Technologies for use in detection and treatment of autistic behaviors has been awarded an innovative research grant from the National Institutes of Health. The grant will go towards developing a technology called B.I. (behavior imaging) Capture, which will be used in the recording and reviewing of behaviors and later used by professionals in assessment of autistic children. e-Merge’s president expressed confidence that this will later find use in other areas of healthcare. Read article >

Parents Make Effort To Keep Autistic Son Out Of The Military

Jared Guinther, an 18-year old from Oregon who was diagnosed with autism at an early age, has been recruited by the Army despite his disability, and is set to begin basic training in August, in a development that has stunned both his parents and several military personnel. A local recruitment headquarters is investigating whether his disability was properly indicated, and his parents fear that he does not understand the dangers of being in the Army. He has also spent nearly all his education in private school and has scored low on IQ tests, which would violate enlistment procedures. Read article > (registration required)

Research Claims No Link Between Crime & Asperger’s Syndrome

Responding to a case in which a teenager convicted of murder claimed he had Asperger’s syndrome without medical evidence, a research study in Wales has rejected the idea of a link between crime and Asperger’s syndrome, and said that there is little evidence that AS is responsible for antisocial behavior. Leading Asperger’s expert Tony Attwood praised the findings, which were disclosed at an autism conference in Wales. Read article >

Music Prodigy With Asperger’s To Be Honored By ASCAP

Sunbin Kim, a 16-year old with Asperger’s syndrome who has been composing music since the age of four, holds the distinction of being honored multiple times by the music publishing giant ASCAP. His latest honor will be a first place award in a contest for young composers, and he will perform a piece dedicated to both his grandfather and the tsunami victims in a ceremony at Lincoln Center this month. The Korean-born composer, who is known to be shy in high school, has studied composition with music professors and has composed for a full orchestra. Read article >

Student With Asperger’s Finds Inspiration In Social Activism

Joel Northam, a senior with Asperger’s syndrome, was recently featured as part of a series by Colorado Springs’ The Gazette spotlighting the achievements of local graduates. Northam has credited his interest in social activism and experience as president of the Youth Council of the NAACP with teaching him leadership and organizational skills. He has contributed to hurricane relief efforts, peer counseling, and has taken a mission trip to Mexico. Northam has also shown interests in acting and has been accepted by a Cleveland music school. Read article >

New Book Explores Asperger’s Traits in Historic Irish Figures

A book called Unstoppable Brilliance, co-written by Antoinette Walker and Michael Fitzgerald, theorizes that nine exceptional Irish individuals, including James Joyce, Samuel Beckett, and W.B. Yeats, exhibited traits of Asperger’s syndrome. In the book, Fitzgerald (who is a leading authority on AS in Ireland) and Walker provide evidence that their subjects were affected in some way by symptoms of AS, although the arguments presented do not prove this theory. Read article >

Mother Of Child With Asperger’s Spotlighted In Mother’s Day Article

Eileen Jacobs, whose 12-year old son Bobby has Asperger’s syndrome, was the subject of a Mother’s Day article in her local paper this month. Bobby has shown genius level ability in math and like many children with AS has an obsession with numbers, and was recently able to overcome some of his sensory issues and participate in his school’s spelling bee, in which he finished fourth. In the article, Eileen admits that she has not fully explained his disability to her son. Read article >

Off-Broadway Play About Asperger’s To Show In June

Jayson with a Y, a play written by Darci Picoult about a two sisters struggling to care for a recently orphaned nephew with Asperger’s syndrome, will be presented by a theater company called The New Group at New York’s Lion Theatre between June 1 and 24. The cast includes Tony winner Maryann Plunkett. Read article >

Connecticut Takes Steps Towards Services For Adults With Autism

Connecticut, which is one of only three states in the country that does not offer continuing services for adults with autism, recently approved a “pilot program”, which they hope will expand to full state support for autistic adults. The state has also sought the input of a program for students with disabilities at Western Connecticut State University. Read article >

Emotion Gauging Device May Help People With Autism

An electronic device developed by researchers at MIT may help alert people with autism and Asperger’s syndrome about the emotional state of the person that they are communicating with. The device, known as the Emotional Social Intelligence Prosthetic (or ESP) uses a handheld computer and a small video camera and earphone to analyze facial movements and gestures and determine emotions and the attention span of the listener. Read article >

Mother Of Child With Asperger’s Discusses Homeschooling

An interview that recently appeared on the website www.families.com with a mother of a nine-year old son with Asperger’s, deals with her decision to take her son out of the public school system in favor of homeschooling. In the interview, she describes her frustrations with education, including having teachers dispute his diagnosis and being unable to obtain necessary services, and how learning at home has made him more comfortable with education and has even offered some opportunities for socialization. Read article >