National Autism Center Publishes Autism Manual for Educators

Randolph, Mass. – Educators across the country, eager for reliable, research-based information about effective interventions for the ever-increasing number of students with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) in their school districts, are turning to the National Autism Center for guidance.

The Center, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting effective, evidence-based treatment approaches for individuals with ASD, recently wrote and published a comprehensive manual titled, Evidence-Based Practice and Autism in the Schools. The 181-page manual includes important findings from the Center’s newly released National Standards Report, the most extensive analysis of treatments for children and adolescents with ASD ever published.

Thanks to philanthropic support, the National Autism Center distributed the first 3,000 copies for free to special educators in school districts throughout the country. Since this initial distribution, the Center has been inundated with requests for additional manuals. Visitors to the Center’s website from 50 states and more than 20 countries have downloaded thousands of free copies of the manual, which s now also available for purchase.

The manual assists educators in the selection and implementation of the most effective research-supported treatments for ASD. In addition to providing important information about newly published research findings, it offers guidance on how to integrate professional judgment, family values, and preferences into treatment selection in order to build capacity and implement interventions accurately.

“We have been overwhelmed with the response to this effort,” said Susan M. Wilczynski, Ph.D., BCBA, Executive Director of the National Autism Center. “We created this manual specifically for educators as a means of promoting evidence-based practice for ASD in schools because we know that research-supported interventions are most likely to produce positive outcomes.”

The development and publication of the manuals were made possible through support from the American Legion Child Welfare Foundation, Inc., and the Niel M. Wreidt 2003 Revocable Trust.

“The American Legion Child Welfare Foundation is proud to help fund the National Autism Center’s project and provide a resource tool that will enable schools to more effectively serve the over 329,000 students nationwide with ASD,” said Dennis Boland, President, American Legion Child Welfare Foundation, Inc.

To provide a wider audience of professionals and families with important information about the scientific evidence that supports a broad range of treatments for ASD, the National Autism Center is disseminating the manual, the 53-page Findings and Conclusions report, and the full 160-page National Standards Report via its website at nationalautismcenter.org.