Struggle to find autism schools in the UK

BBC News - 'Struggle' to find autism schools

Almost half of parents of children with autism are having to wait more than a year to get their children into the right school, a survey carried out by the National Autistic Society has found.

Giant Steps Autism School Forges Relationship With Darien Lions Club - Lisle, IL Patch

Giant Steps Autism School Forges Relationship With Darien Lions Club - Lisle, IL Patch

From Darien Patch: The Lions Club’s motto is “We serve.” So when Darien Lion Steve Hiatt got the call that Giant Steps school in Lisle needed a hand with its auction in February, it was a no brainer.

A group from the club manned the coatroom, collecting over the course of the evening about $750 in tips, said Giant Steps special event planner Jeni Fulton. They donated the tips, of course, to Giant Steps.

What started with one tip jar at one event has blossomed into a rewarding relationship between the Darien Lions Club and Giant Steps.

With the Lions help at events such as the auction, pancake breakfasts and a recent school picnic, Giant Steps’ staff is able to spend more time interacting with parents and students, said Executive Director Bridget O’Connor.

More at http://lisle.patch.com/articles/giant-steps-autism-school-forges-relationship-with-darien-lions-club

Princeton Family Affected by Autism Thrives at Eden Institute, Special Olympics - Princeton, NJ Patch

Princeton Family Affected by Autism Thrives at Eden Institute, Special Olympics - Princeton, NJ Patch

Eden Institute, located in Plainsboro, provides year round educational services for people with autism between the ages of 3-21.

Eden Institute for Autism

About Eden : Eden Autism Services

Eden's philosophy of lifespan services is based upon the premise that the majority of individuals with autism require services throughout their lifetime. While the extent to which these services are needed will differ from person to person, their specialized nature will not.

Lifespan services are at the core of Eden's service continuum that ranges from early intervention programming to services for older adults with autism. Lifespan services are the vehicle by which individuals who have autism continue to learn and to grow - and to become active, contributing members of their communities.

The Peninsula School for Autism

Autistic children's school: Newport News families opening special school geared to needs of autistic children - dailypress.com

The Peninsula School for Autism is expected to open this fall in Newport News, and it appears it would be the first private school on the Peninsula specifically devoted to autistic children.

Autism school in city provides academic and behavioral health services to students

Autism school in city provides academic and behavioral health services to students

At NHS Autism School, a classroom of seven starts the day by picking someone to hold the flag for the morning salute. Upstairs, a small group of students is already searching for adjectives on worksheets, with several aides nearby.

Down the hall in an emotional support classroom, a teacher asks students questions one by one.

Teacher Kelly Dugan asks a boy to count to 25 and helps him along. Some of the students stray from their chairs and struggle to focus.

The next student counts backwards from 20.

When he gets stuck, Dugan points out the numbers.

The schedule on the wall lists writing, reading, math, lunch, grooming, cooking and gym class.

The school in south Reading, which serves students on all grade levels, is a licensed private school that provides academic and behavioral health services to students with special needs. And there is a need here for such a school. Since it opened four years ago, it has quickly outgrown its enrollment projections for students with special needs, said school director Corlene Ocker.

More @ http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=310635

Matthew Israel, Founder of the School of Shock JREC, to Face Criminal Charges (VIDEO)

Matthew Israel, Founder of the School of Shock JREC, to Face Criminal Charges (VIDEO)

When I first heard about the Judge Rotenberg Educational Center (JREC) in Canton, Massachusetts, I couldn't believe that such a school existed. The JREC is a school for that uses electric shocks to discipline students with disabilities including autism, mental retardation or emotional-behavioral issues. The school was founded by a Harvard-trained psychologist, Matthew Israel and has long attracted controversy among disability rights activists, parents and experts in the field of mental health.

Today, the Boston Globe reports that Israel faces criminal charges over an incident in 2007, when two teenagers with disabilities who were residents at the JREC were wrongfully administered a number of shocks after a prank phone call by someone posing as a supervisor ordered them.

If the use of electric skin shock on children with disabilities is not troubling and barbaric enough, the suit against Israel also suggests how woefully poor the JREC's administrative practices are and also brings into question the training and supervision of its staff at all levels. From the Boston Globe:

A court official who works at the Norfolk County Superior Court said that today's schedule of cases lists a defendant named Matthew Israel facing two charges, misleading a grand jury and accessory after the fact to a crime.

The charges against Israel are believed to be related to the destruction of some of the center's digital surveillance tapes that would have showed what occurred the night of Aug. 26, 2007, in one of the center's residential group homes in Stoughton. That night, staffers received a prank phone call from someone posing as a supervisor, saying two teenagers, including Dumas's son, should be administered electrical shocks as punishment for bad behavior earlier that day.

More http://www.care2.com/causes/education/blog/matthew-israel-founder-of-center-to-face-criminal-charges/