City of Bloomington to sponsor autism awareness education program

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 12, 2012

For more information, please contact:
Nancy Woolery, Health Projects Manager, City of Bloomington Community and Family Resources Department, 349.3851


City of Bloomington to sponsor autism awareness education program

Bloomington, Ind. - The City of Bloomington Community and Family Resources Department is sponsoring an autism program from 4 to 6 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 22 at City Hall, 401 N. Morton St., in the Council Chambers. Four panelists will discuss autism from the perspective of a care provider, an educator, a researcher and a counselor.

The panelists are Dan Kennedy, an assistant professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Indiana University; Fritz Kruggel, a behavior analyst and clinician; Cathy Pratt, director of the Indiana Resource Center for Autism at Indiana University and Mari Shawcroft, behavior and support services manager at Stone Belt Arc. LifeDesigns CEO Susan Rinne will moderate the event.

Almost one in 88 children is diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) according to estimates from the Center for Disease Control's Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) Network. ASDs are five times more common in boys (1 in 54) than in girls (1 in 252). The latest analysis, from a 2008 survey, shows autism diagnoses have risen 23 percent since 2006 and 78 percent since 2002. ASDs occur in all racial, ethnic and socioeconomic groups. Data from local school and federal public health officials suggest that children in Monroe County are diagnosed with autism at nearly double the national rate.

Please join us to learn about new directions in autism care and research. This event is free and open to the general public. Refreshments will be served.

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