What's New
November 11, 2008
Nikia and Cheri attended "Asperger's Syndrome" conference in Frederick, MD for ASHA CEUs. The conference speaker was Timothy P. Kowalski, MA,CCC-SLP, a licensed speech-language pathologist and nationally known expert on Asperger's Syndrome and high-functioning Autism.
Nikia and Cheri learned how to recognize and identify behavioral symptoms of Asperger's Syndrome; techniques used in pragmatic language assessment; frequent misdiagnoses and diagnostic progression; the social and emotional issues associated with Asperger's Syndrome; specific techniques to improve successful outcomes; intervention methods to combat social inappropriateness; current research concerning Asperger's Syndrome; the unique difficulties present in Asperger's Syndrome; and intervention techniques for fine motor, gross motor and academic issues.
Due to the unique nature of Asperger's Syndrome, an appropriate diagnosis is frequently not made until a child is an adolescent. By this time, well-intentioned diagnosticians have provided many different diagnostic labels such as ADHD, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, Conduct Disorder, Learning Disabled, Auditory Processing and Emotionally Handicapped. An accurate diagnosis is highly impacted by the experience the diagnostician has with this population. Speech-Language Pathologists benefit from knowing the diagnostic criteria and symptoms of the syndrome when searching for effective interventions. For more information on Mr. Kowalski, visit his website: www.socialpragmatics.com
November 8, 2008
Team Dower and Associates "Walk Now For Autism" Participants
Dower and Associates, Inc. Staff Families, Colleagues and Friends participated in Autism Speaks "Walk Now For Autism" in Washington, DC. Our team raised over $3000.00! "Walk Now for Autism," the nation's largest grassroots autism walk program, is Autism Speaks' signature fundraising and awareness event, taking place in communities across the United States, as well as in Canada and the United Kingdom. Powered by volunteers and families with loved ones on the autism spectrum, this successful grassroots fundraising effort not only generates vital funds for autism research but also raises awareness about the increasing prevalence of autism and the need for increased research funding to combat this complex disorder. For more information, visit www.autismspeaks.org or www.walknowforautism.org or http://tinyurl.com/DowerAutismSpeaksWalk2008
November 3-4, 2008
Tina, Lily, Amber and Ellyn attended "Managing Problem Behaviors in School and Home Settings" presented by Tom Caffrey, MEd, BCBA in Annandale, VA. This two-day workshop was sponsored by POAC-NOVA and illustrated applying the science of ABA to common problem behavior scenarios for children with autism. Mr. Caffrey co-authored with Dr. Vincent J. Carbone (www.carboneclinic.com) an 8-hour professional development training CD series The Verbal Behavior Approach to Teaching Children with Autism (www.abatoolchest.com). In addition, he developed for Parents of Children with Autism (POAC) an eight-part workshop series Teaching Children with Autism in Public School Settings (www.poac.net) and presents numerous workshops in conjunction with FATE (www.thefate.org) and VBN Training (www.vbntraining.com)
October 29, 2008
Cheri attended Practical Therapy Techniques For Challenging Articulation Cases: Frontal Lisp, Lateral Lisp and Disorted "R'" in Harrisburg, PA presented by Char Boshart, MA, CCC-SLP. Cheri learned dozens of practical and effective therapy techniques, timesaving strategies, carryover activities and methods to motivate learners. Cheri earned .5 ASHA CEUs for attending this workshop. For more information about Char Boshart, please visit http://www.speechdynamics.com/aboutus.html
October 25, 2008
Nikia, Ellyn and Leslie attended the 4th Annual Walk for Autism - Virginia
The Autism Walk helps raise awareness about the increasing frequency of autism, fund educational scholarships and is sponsored by the Autism Society of America's Northern Virginia Chapter. For more information on ASA-NV or Walk for Autism - Virginia, go to www.asanv.org or www.walkforautismva.org.
October 8-9, 2008
Amber Mentzer, BS, Dr Mark Sundberg, BCBA, Ellyn Sanguedolce, BS and Tina Emory.
Amber, Ellyn and Tina attended Dr Mark Sundberg's Verbal Behavior Milestones Assessment and Placement (VB-MAPP) workshop hosted by Tidewater ASA in Virginia Beach, VA. The Verbal Behavior Milestones Assessment and Placement Program is is a criterion-referenced assessment tool, curriculum guide, and skill tracking system that is designed for children with autism, and other individuals who demonstrate language delays. The VB-MAPP is based on B.F. Skinner’s (1957) analysis of verbal behavior, established developmental milestones, and research from the field of behavior analysis. For more information, visit www.marksundberg.com or www.tidewaterasa.org.
October 5, 2008
Nikia, Ellyn and Amber attended Survival Strategies for Everyday Living presented by Amy McGinnis, MS, OTR/L, BCBA® in Alexandria, VA. The workshop was sponsored by the Autism Advocacy Coalition of Virginia. Ms. McGinnis spoke about behavior management strategies that parents can use in everyday life.
September 23, 2008
We are excited to announce the addition of Amber Mentzer to our ABA staff.
Amber received her BS in Psychology from Troy University in 2005. From 2001-2005, she was the recipient of the Florida Bright Futures Academic Scholarship. She is currently finalizing her MEd in Special Education at GMU and maintains a 4.0 GPA. Additionally, she is pursuing her certification as a BCBA®.
She has worked as an ABA Therapist at Autism Learning Center and an assistant teacher at Ivymount School. While at Autism Learning Center, she implemented skill acquisition and behavior reduction programs for children ages 2—9. At Ivymount, she taught daily living, social, community, vocational, adaptive behavior as well as recreation and leisure skills. She was additionally responsible for daily data collection, daily graphing and daily analysis of the data for the students she case managed.
September 6-7, 2008
Nikia attended The Association for Behavior Analysis International 2008 Education Conference, "Evidence-Based Practice, Scientifically Based Instruction, and Educational Effectiveness" in Reston, Virginia with colleague, Cindy Onder, MA, CCC-SLP/L, BCBA® of ICAN of Washington, Inc. For more information on ABAI, visit www.abainternational.org
September 2, 2008
We are excited to announce the addition of Ellyn Sanguedolce to our ABA staff.
Ellyn received her BS in Psychology with an emphasis in Applied Behavior Analysis from the University of Florida in 2006. She has completed some courses towards her Master’s of Science and holds a 4.0 GPA. She intends commencing additional coursework at GMU in January 2009 and working towards attaining her BCBA®.
She has worked at Autism Learning Center, Changing Lives of Children with Autism, Ivymount School, and Kennedy Krieger. While at UF, she was a research assistant under Dr. Brian Iwata and Dr. Carolyn Tucker. She was also a teaching assistant under Dr. Jennifer Sager. At Ivymount, she was an assistant teacher and Implemented skill acquisition and behavior reduction programming with students, made materials for instructional and treatment programs, recorded and graphed data for behavior reduction and skill acquisition programming, assisted in problem solving for programming, attended and participated in weekly team meetings, assisted in writing of Individual Education Plan and maintenance of the classroom, participated in professional development opportunities such as Research Team and Journal Club. While at KKI, she participated in data management and collection, assisted with parent training, conducted assessments (i.e., functional analysis, treatment evaluations, etc.), and participated in intensive behavioral assessments and treatments for individuals with autism and mental retardation.
She is proficient in Microsoft Applications and Behavior Data Analysis & Collection Software. She is First Aid and CPR certified and holds certification in Professional Crisis Management and BPS. Additionally, she completed Assaultive Behavior Management Training.
June 16 - August 21, 2008
Dower and Associates, Inc. offered its first summer camp - "Camp Communicate with Confidence." Please look at our camp page for information, photo presentations of camp and information about Summer Camp 2009!
March 28-29, 2008
Nikia, Cheri, Lily, Jessica, Leslie and Jenny attended Dr Mark Sundberg's Verbal Behavior Milestones Assessment and Placement (VB-MAPP) workshop hosted by POAC-NoVA in Annandale, VA. The Verbal Behavior Milestones Assessment and Placement Program is is a criterion-referenced assessment tool, curriculum guide, and skill tracking system that is designed for children with autism, and other individuals who demonstrate language delays. The VB-MAPP is based on B.F. Skinner’s (1957) analysis of verbal behavior, established developmental milestones, and research from the field of behavior analysis. For more information, visit www.marksundberg.com or www.poac-nova.org