The autism team at UNC's Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute is dedicated to bringing real-world solutions to children with autism. Unfortunately, funding has ended for one of our most successful projects. We’re committed to continuing this work, though, and that’s why we need your help.
Parents and teachers want the best for children with autism, but they haven’t always had easy access to practices that are based on evidence. Instead, they’ve often had to resort to web searches that generate thousands of results, without discerning between interventions with and without research supporting their effectiveness.
We screened 29,000 articles on autism and synthesized the research down to 27 evidence-based practices. Then we developed free online training, called AFIRM, which shows each of these evidence-based practices in action.
The response has been phenomenal. In less than three years, our online training modules have generated 4 million page views.
Teachers who use these evidence-based practices in their classrooms see students making substantial gains in short amounts of time, constantly exceeding expectations. Families even tout the success of these practices in helping children develop new friendships—a significant concern for parents of children with autism.
More than ever, teachers and families are counting on us to update and expand our work. With additional funding, we will do just that—identify new evidence-based practices, include interventions for adults with autism, and develop more free training modules.
Help us continue to deliver real-world solutions for children with autism. Be part of the solution. Give now.
Our month-long challenge ends on March 14, but the true challenge doesn't have an end date. Our work on behalf of people with autism is ongoing, and your support will always be vital to our success.
You may make a gift to the Advances for Autism Challenge at any time. We especially encourage your support prior to and on April 10, 2018–GiveUNC day. With the help of many alumni and friends of The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, we hope to achieve our challenge gift from the Organization for Autism Research on UNC's single biggest giving day of the year.
Kara Hume, director of the National Clearinghouse on Autism Evidence and Practice, is Chapel Hill's 'Hometown Hero' this week. Listen as she describes the important work being done by the clearinghouse to support the autism community.
We are grateful to WCHL for their coverage yesterday afternoon. What a terrific interview with members of our autism team!
We are grateful to WUNC and NPR for their coverage of our work on today's broadcast.
The Organization for Autism Research has pledged a $25,000 gift in support of our work to update the field on evidence-based practices for children and youth with autism and to expand free online instruction on these practices. Their challenge will be achieved when we raise $75,000.
Executive director Michael V. Maloney said members of the organization’s board were most impressed by the potential of our autism team's work to provide timely and high-quality reviews of autism research for a variety of consumers.
“It will offer ever-increasing benefit to the families, educators, clinicians, health care providers, and researchers that will access it,” said Maloney. “Most important, it will contribute to more effective, targeted intervention and treatment for individuals with autism.”
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