AASR Live

Please join us for “Neurodiversity and the Myth of Normal” with Pam Collins from Neurodivergent by Nature.  Pam Collins is a late-identified neurodivergent parent to two amazing multiply neurodivergent adult sons. She provides Neurodiverse-Affirming parent coaching, consulting, and education services to families and community partners and has been supporting families for over 25 years in British C...

Dr. Lori Desautels has been an Assistant Professor at Butler University since 2016, where she teaches both undergraduate and graduate programs in the College of Education. She was also an Assistant Professor at Marian University in Indianapolis for eight years, where she founded the Educational Neuroscience Symposium. Currently, the Symposium is in its 10th year and is sponsored by Butler Universi...

Please join us for “Making Sense of a Chaotic World: A Discussion with Professor Andrew McDonnell.” Professor Andrew McDonnell BSc., MSc., PhD. is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist to and Director of Studio III Clinical Services; Director, clinical consultant and Team Leader to Studio III Training; formerly worked as a Clinical Psychologist in the NHS until 2002 as the manager of a service. Visit...

Please join us for “The Importance of Neurodiversity-Affirming Approaches in Trauma-Informed Models of Care” with Trisha Thompson. Trisha Thompson is a late-diagnosed AuDHD Early Childhood Education Consultant and parent to an Autistic child. She has been working in the field of ECE for almost 10 years. Prior to becoming a consultant, she worked in various teaching and leadership roles. She has a...

Please join us for “The Truth About ABA: The Most Popular Autism Therapy in the US and Canada” with Anne Borden King. Anne Borden King is a Toronto-based podcaster, writer and human rights advocate. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, Healthy Debate and the Thinking Person's Guide to Autism, among other publications. She is the host of Noncompliant, a popular podcast about neurodiver...

Please join us for “Your Child’s Point of View: A New Book from Kelsie Olds, the OccuPlaytional Therapist.” Kelsie Olds, "The Occuplaytional Therapist", shares passionately every day online with thousands of parents, teachers, professionals--and adults simply seeking to heal childhood wounds in their own selves--about the healing and power in play as the core meaningful occupation that u...

Please join us for “The Child Catcher: An Interview with Andrew Bridge About his Upcoming Book”  Andrew Bridge spent 11 years in Los Angeles County foster care. After aging out, he attended Wesleyan University, then graduated from Harvard Law School and was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship. He began his legal career representing children against the State of Alabama, where his work resulted in the c...

Please join us for “What’s New at the Attachment and Trauma Network: An Interview with Ginger Healy and Julie Beem.” Ginger Healy MSW, LCSW started her career as a child abuse investigator, hospital social worker, and school therapist. She spent 15 years as the social service supervisor at an international adoption agency where she learned about developmental trauma and attachment needs in childre...

Please join us for “Sensory Integration: Helping Children with Emotional Regulation” with Heathyr Watson.  As a young child, Heathyr always knew she would go into the helping profession, whether it was medicine, teaching, or social work. Heathyr has a bachelor’s degree in History Education and a Master’s in Social Work. Heathyr is working on licensing so that she can become a clinical social worke...

Please join us for “Changing Systems: A Conversation with Jeff Spitzer-Resnick, an Experienced Civil Rights, Disability, and Education Attorney.” Jeff Spitzer-Resnick, is a nationally recognized attorney with thirty-eight years of experience in the fields of civil rights, disability and education law. He currently owns and operates Systems Change Consulting, a consulting and training law firm prov...

Please join us for “A Unique Program Helping Kids Find the Pathways to Success: An Interview with Dr. Tania DuBeau.” Tania DuBeau has worked for The Pathways Schools since 1988 and is now finishing her 36th school year. She began as one of the social workers at the school and moved into various administrative positions, including principal of one of the schools. Tania became CEO/Executive Director...

Please join us for “Becoming a Trauma-informed Restorative Educator: Practical Skills to Change Culture and Behavior” with Joe Brummer and Margaret Thorsborne. Joe Brummer is a trauma survivor. Having lived through early exposure to violence, child abuse and neglect, and two violent anti-LGBTQ hate crimes, he turned his healing journey into a career in peacebuilding, restorative justice, and consu...

Please join us for “Navigating PDA in America: An Interview with Diane Gould about Her New Book” Diane Gould is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who specializes in serving autistic individuals. As the Executive Director and Founder of PDA North America, she founded the annual PDA North America conference held in Chicago which has changed the lives of hundreds of PDA families. Currently, Diane has...

Please join us for “Offering Support to Caregivers and Children During a Challenging Moment” with Nancy L. Weaver, PhD. MPH. Dr. Weaver has a keen interest in promoting emotional health and working with schools and agencies to nurture the growth of all kids and adults using strength-based methods. She consults in the areas of messaging, community and team engagement, teacher training, strategic pl...

Please join us for “An Interview with Antwan Morris: Moving Beyond Incarceration to Ending the School-to-Prison Pipeline.” Antwan Morris lived the stereotypical lifestyle of a young black male growing up in the inner city. By 14, he’d essentially dropped out of school, and by 17, he was incarcerated. With 20+ years of hard work, advocating, healing, and public speaking, he changed his path and has...

Please join us for “The Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) Therapeutic Listening System: A Journey to Better Nervous System State Regulation” with Jennifer Abbanat, C-TSS, EXA-CE, SSP Provider.  Jennifer is a parenting coach, Expressive Arts Educator, IEP advocate, Safe and Sound Protocol Provider, and trauma-informed consultant who uses neuro-affirming and trauma-informed approaches to empower familie...

Author Katie Pagnotta joins us to talk about: "Brain and Body-Aligned Responsive Systems of Excellence.” Katie Pagnotta is a licensed clinical mental health counselor, functional success educational consultant, parent coach, and author. She is also the creator of the Brain- and Body-Aligned Responsive Systems (BBARS) of Excellence framework. She guides educators, administrators, and school st...

Please join us for “What Toddler AAC Taught Me About Regulation and Nervous System Supports” with Cass Griffin Bennett. Cass Griffin Bennett is an autistic and ADHD self-advocate and parent of multiple young autistic children. Cass is passionate about all things equity, early access to robust high-tech Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC), and anti-behaviorism harm reduction. Her guidi...

Please join us for “Disproportionate School Brutality Upon Black Children” with Nicole Tuchinda. Nicole Tuchinda, JD, MD, LLM is a special education attorney, Assistant Professor, and Director of the Health Law Program at Loyola University New Orleans College of Law. She writes about the need to make education trauma-informed and attachment-driven, and she co-founded a medical-legal partnership cl...

Please join us for "Educator Well Being: Discussing the Current Conditions of Stress Response in Education" with Angelina Zara. Born and raised in the heart of Washington, DC, Angie found her passion in education in 2015, serving students and caregivers in her hometown. As an elementary school teacher in a Title 1, full-inclusion classroom, Angie learned early on about the power of resea...

Celebrating 5 Incredible Years: A Live Interview with Guy Stephens on the Past, Present, and Future of the Alliance Against Seclusion and Restraint  Join us for a unique event for the Alliance Against Seclusion and Restraint (AASR) as we present a Live, in-person interview with Guy Stephens, the visionary Founder and Director of AASR, that promises to be both heartwarming and enlightening, in cele...

Please join us for “How Neuroscience and a Mother’s Love Led to the Creation of CapeAble® Weighted Products” with Marna Pacheco. Marna Pacheco is the founder of CapeAble® Weighted Products and inventor of SmartWeight® Technology proudly manufactured in the USA. Marna embodies the saying: “Necessity is the mother of invention.” To help her adopted daughter with significant neurological and developm...

Please join us for “Our Story - From Suffering to Hope and on to Flourishing. Strategic Self-regulation, Co-regulation, and Coproduction: Leadership Lessons from My Brother” with Jamie Emberson. Jamie possesses extensive years of both lived and professional expertise across diverse roles in healthcare, social care, and wellbeing. His career has encompassed positions such as Care Worker, Nurse, Cli...

Please join us for “The Why Toolkit: A New Tool to Better Understand and Support All Students” with Connie Persike, M.S., CCC/SLP  Connie Persike, M.S., CCC/SLP, is a highly experienced Speech-Language Pathologist and Educational Consultant. She has 20+ years of experience in educational settings and holds a certificate in instructional coaching, positive education, and applied educational neurosc...

Please join us for “Opposition Isn't Always Defiance: A Brief Introduction to the PDA Profile of Autism” with Courtney Hart. Courtney Hart, LCSW-C, RYT 500, RCYT, founded Healing Hart Wellness in 2018, a pediatric mental health and wellness practice, where she and her team, and their two therapy dogs, specialize in supporting anxious ADHDers and Autistic families through parent consultation,...