2017 Michigan Autism Conference will be held on the October 11–October 13, 2017 and will take place at the Radisson Plaza Hotel in downtown Kalamazoo, MI.
Keynote Speakers
Catherine Lord
Topic
Assessment and Identification of Autism
Bio
Dr. Lord is a licensed clinical psychologist with specialties in diagnosis, social and communication development and intervention in autism spectrum disorders (ASD). She is renowned for her work in longitudinal studies of children with autism as well as for her role in developing the autism diagnostic instruments used in both practice and in research worldwide today. She has also been involved in the development of standardized diagnostic instruments for ASD with colleagues from the United Kingdom and the United States (the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) an observational scale; and the Autism Diagnostic Interview – Revised (ADI-R) a parent interview), now considered the gold standard for research diagnoses all over the world. Dr. Lord completed degrees in psychology at UCLA and Harvard, and a clinical internship at Division TEACCH at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Dr. Lord’s work at the Center for Autism and the Developing Brain involves continued research in validity and longitudinal studies, early diagnosis of children with autism, and regression in children with autism and clinical evaluations and diagnoses of children and adults who may have autism.
Website
James Partington
Topic
The Assessment of Functional Life Skills
Bio
Dr. Partington has dedicated his life to helping children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) or other developmental delays. His expertise is in language-based intervention, helping children develop the basic language and learning skills they need for everyday interactions with others. He is the developer of the ABLLS-R, pioneering the inclusion of verbal behavior into applied behavioral analysis. Dr. Partington is a licensed psychologist and Doctoral-level Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA-D). He has more than 35 years experience working with children with developmental disabilities, and operates the Strategic Teaching and Reinforcement System (STARS) Clinic.
Website
https://partingtonbehavioranalysts.com/about-us/james-w-partington-phd-b…
Bridget Taylor
Topic
Early and Intensive Intervention for Individuals with Autism
Bio
Dr. Bridget A. Taylor, Psy.D., BCBA co-founded Alpine Learning Group, Inc., in 1988 and serves as its Executive Director. Dr. Taylor has specialized in the education and treatment of children with autism for over twenty-four years. She served as the Senior Clinical Advisor of Rethink Autism, Inc. and serves as the Chair of Scientific Advisory Board and served as its Chairman of the Clinical Advisory Board. Dr. Taylor has served on the editorial board of the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis and serves on the editorial boards of the journals Behavioral Interventions and Behavior Analysis in Practice. She is also a member of the Autism Advisory Group for the Cambridge Center for Behavioral Studies, a member of the Expert Panel of the National Autism Center’s National Standards Project, and a board member of the Association for Science in Autism Treatment. Dr. Taylor is a national and international speaker and has authored numerous research articles and book chapters related to autism. Dr. Taylor is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst and a Licensed Psychologist. Dr. Taylor holds a Doctorate of Psychology from Rutgers University, and received her Master’s degree in Early Childhood Special Education from Columbia University.
Website
http://www.alpinelearninggroup.org/about-us/staff-and-leadership.php
Rick Kubina
Topic
Educational Assessment and Effective Educational Programming
Bio
Dr. Kubina (B.A., Youngstown State University; M.A., The Ohio State University; and Ph.D., The Ohio State University) is a Professor of Special Education. After completion of his Masters program, Kubina taught special education in a private schools specializing in post acute brain trauma rehabilitation for three years. During his doctoral program, Kubina worked as a graduate teaching assistant for the Great Lakes Regional Resource Center, a federally funded information dissemination and training center serving the Great Lake states. Currently, Kubina teaches courses on methods for teaching reading, informal assessment, behavior analysis, and single case design. Kubina conducts wide-ranging research in the area of Applied Behavior Analysis and Precision Teaching. Kubina is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst, Doctoral level and serves on a number of editorial boards for behavioral and special education journals. He was the editor of the Journal of Precision Teaching and Celeration.
Website
Marjorie Charlop
Topic
Incidental Teaching and Social Skills Instruction for Individuals with Autism
Bio
Dr. Charlop is the director of the Claremont Autism Center located at Claremont McKenna College in California. She is also a member of the professional advisory board for the National Autism Center serving to guide and expand the reach of empirical research related to the field of autism. Dr. Charlop is also an instructor for Caremont McKenna College. Dr. Charlop has been involved in research relating to autism for over thirty years. Focusing on a variety of topics including incidental teaching, video modeling, social skills, and life skills training for individuals with autism.
Website
https://www.cmc.edu/news/marjorie-charlop-christy-joins-national-autism-…
Wayne Fuqua
Topic
Evidence Based Practices for Individuals with Autism
Bio
Dr. Wayne Fuqua is a professor in the Department of Psychology at Western Michigan University, a member of the applied behavior analysis and clinical faculties, and the director of the Behavioral Medicine Laboratory. Dr. Fuqua’s area of expertise in behavioral analysis is behavior therapy, behavioral medicine, behavioral research methodology, mental retardation, stress-related disorders and AIDS prevention. In clinical psychology, he completed a post-doctoral fellowship at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He teaches courses in behavioral medicine, behavioral approaches to treatment and behavior analysis research methodology. He is also a frequent contributor to behavior analysis and behavior therapy journals.