April is Autism Awareness Month; April 2 is World Autism Awareness Day

Nova Southeastern University Is a Leader in Autism Services

FORT LAUDERDALE-DAVIE, Fla. – Each April, it is important that we take the opportunity to increase public awareness about Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD.)  One year ago, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that the prevalence of autism had again increased; this time to 1 in 68 children. The 2014 report was based on prevalence numbers from 2010. In 2007, the CDC had reported 1 in 150 children had ASD, based on 2002 information. That’s an increase of 123% increase in children with ASD in just eight years.

Although autism can often be diagnosed at age 2, the average age of diagnosis is 4 years of age, and even later for Black and Hispanic children.  South Florida’s diverse communities must work to lower the age of diagnosis so that every child with autism has the opportunity to benefit from the earliest intervention.

Nova Southeastern University has been a leader in services for young children with autism for many years.  It’s Starting Right Program for children 18-36 months of age, at risk for or already diagnosed with autism, has grown from one to four classes. NSU’s Unicorn Children’s Foundation Clinic provides comprehensive diagnostic evaluations for young children with suspected developmental delays and autism.  Since 1988, NSU’s Baudhuin Preschool has worked collaboratively with the School Board of Broward County, Florida to provide a comprehensive preschool program to young children with autism and related disabilities.  We are now receiving calls from parents with children who are 12 months old thinking that their child may be on the spectrum.

While NSU has shown an unwavering commitment to providing education and support to those diagnosed with autism, we’re only one piece of the bigger picture. We work to share what we’ve learned and implemented so others around the state, nation and globe can help members of their communities with autism. That’s why Autism Awareness Month and World Autism Awareness Day are so important. Given the most recent statistics, the chances are that most of us know someone – a friend, family member or colleague – who are on the Autism Spectrum and  who need our support and love.

All of the research shows that early intervention does make a difference and will lower lifetime costs for individuals with significant disabilities like autism.  The Rand Corporation recently reported that for every $1 spent on early intervention, the return could be as high as $17. In Florida, our state-funded Early Steps program for children with developmental delays, or with conditions like autism that lead to delays, is funded at a level that is much lower than other states.

To show our support, students, faculty and staff at NSU will be wearing blue on Thursday, April 2 in honor of World Autism Awareness Day – and we’re asking everyone in the community to do the same. And as a community, we must join together to ensure that our youngest children with autism receive the services they need to have the most positive outcomes. After all, our children deserve nothing less.

 
Susan Kabot, Ed.D., CCC-SLP
NSU’s Mailman Segal Center for Human Development

The views expressed in this guest editorial are that of  Sue Kabot, Ed.D., CCC-SLP, executive director of the Autism Institute at Nova Southeastern University’s Mailman Segal Center for Human Development and are not necessarily those of NSU, its President or Board of Trustees.

About the Author: Susan Kabot, Ed.D., CCC-SLP, is the executive director of the Autism Institute at Nova Southeastern University’s Mailman Segal Center for Human Development in Fort Lauderdale.  She has spent the last 29 years there developing and administering programs in the area of autism.  Her graduate training was in the areas of special education, speech-language pathology, and management of programs for children and youth.  Susan is a Florida and Tennessee licensed speech-language pathologist and holds the Certificate of Clinical Competence from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Susan is active in community autism organizations, serving on the Panel of Professional Advisors for the Autism Society and the Advisory Committee for the JAFCO Family Resource and Respite Center in Fort Lauderdale.  She was appointed to the Florida Developmental Disabilities Council by former Governor Charlie Crist, where she is the chair of the Program Planning and Evaluation Committee and serves on the Health Care and Self-Advocacy Leadership Task Forces.  Susan is also the parent of an adult son with autism.

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About Nova Southeastern University (NSU): Located in beautiful Fort Lauderdale, Florida, NSU is a dynamic research institution dedicated to providing high-quality educational programs at the undergraduate, graduate and first-professional degrees levels.  An independent, not-for-profit institution with approximately 25,000 students, NSU has campuses in Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Jacksonville, Miami, Miramar, Orlando, Palm Beach and Tampa, Florida as well as  San Juan, Puerto Rico and online globally.  For more than 50 years, NSU has been awarding degrees in a wide range of fields, while fostering groundbreaking research and an impactful commitment to community. Classified as a research university with “high research activity” by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, NSU is one of only 37 universities nationwide to also be awarded Carnegie’s Community Engagement Classification. For more information, please visit www.nova.edu