While a medical diagnosis of autism is important, it doesn’t always translate into next steps for educators nor does it guarantee that a student will qualify for special education services through their local education agency (LEA).  Because research validates the importance of early identification and intervention for individuals with autism, Commonwealth Autism Service and Virginia Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities Program (Va-LEND) have partnered to provide training to school division teams on our comprehensive trans-disciplinary autism assessment process.  This training focuses on the following:

• Use of the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) and Autism Diagnostic Interview (ADI-R).
• Team functioning (i.e., role of parents, school psychologist, speech pathologist, occupational therapist, behavior analyst etc.)
• Evidence-based practices
• From Eligibility to the IEP

The following school divisions and regional programs have developed their own internal teams based on this model:

1. Allegheny County Public Schools
2. Amherst County Public Schools
3.  Botetourt County Public Schools
4. Lynchburg City Public Schools
5. Richmond City Public Schools
6. Salem City Public Schools
7. Shenandoah Valley Regional Program

•  Augusta County Public Schools
•  Harrisonburg City Public Schools
• Page County Public Schools
• Rockingham County Public Schools
• Staunton City Public Schools
• Shenandoah County Public Schools

For more information please contact Jessica Philips.