Dr. John Molteni is the Director of Behavioral Health Services at Prism Autism Education and Consultation in Farmington, CT. He oversees outpatient behavioral health services including diagnostic evaluations, psychotherapy, and provides school consultations services. Dr. Molteni served as the Director of Autism Services at the Hospital for Special Care and was instrumental in the development of outpatient and inpatient services. He is a licensed psychologist and behavior analyst in Connecticut and a doctoral level Board Certified Behavior Analyst. Dr. Molteni has been developing educational and clinical services for individuals with developmental disabilities and their families for over 20 years. He served as a tenured associate professor at the University of Saint Joseph where he was the founding director of the Institute for Autism and Behavioral Studies. During his tenure, Dr. Molteni was responsible for overseeing the development and implementation of graduate programs in Special Education and Applied Behavior Analysis, and supported the establishment of the Center for Applied Research and Education. Dr. Molteni has published articles in several areas including teaching interventions for children with Autism, alignment of special education services to best practices, and collaboration between disciplines in the treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorders.

Kevin Daly has worked with Connecticut families as a special education parent advocate for more than 20 years. Kevin is a frequent presenter at conferences and parent group meetings, speaking on topics related to special education and the educational rights of parents.

We will be speaking to ABA professionals: Carole Ryan Hanlon and Michelle Barnard from Interlocking Connections, LLC.

Carole Ryan Hanlon holds a Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology, is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (since 2001) and is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in both CT and MA. Carole has worked in group homes, family homes, community placements, schools, clinics and psychiatric crisis units for over 30 years. Since receiving her Masters degree, Carole has worked in clinical, educational and residential settings with children, adolescents and adults. Carole is skilled at providing behavioral support, educational consultation, cognitive behavioral counseling, diagnostic and functional assessment and intensive treatment for behaviorally disordered individuals and/or their families. She is the owner and co-founder of Interlocking Connections, LLC based out of Enfield, CT.

On Wednesday-June 10, 2020 ASRC welcomed Christine Cukar-Capizzi, PsyD, BCBA Assistant Professor of Clinical Child Psychology to our Talk to the Expert segment.  She spoke about Strategies for Teaching Adaptive Living Skills to Individuals with ASD.  During this segment she described what adaptive living/practical/independent living skills are.

Christine then discussed some of the research findings regarding autism and practical skills.  She identified some principals of teaching and ways to increase practical skills.  She went on to present some strategies she uses to help improve practical skills and she closed with a special guest, Anson- a young adult with Autism who shared what has worked well for him and some challenges that he has faced along his journey with ASD.

Dr. Julie Wolf is a licensed clinical psychologist and Associate Professor of Clinical Child Psychology at the Yale Child Study Center. She received her Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Connecticut in 2005. She continued her specialty training in autism spectrum disorders through an internship at the University of Chicago Hospitals, and a post-doctoral fellowship at the Yale Child Study Center. Presently, she works in the multi-disciplinary Developmental Disabilities Clinic at the Yale Child Study Center and also provides clinical characterization for a number of federally and privately funded research projects. Additional clinical and research interests include psychological assessment, social skills intervention, meeting the needs of adults with ASD, and supporting siblings of individuals with ASD.

Roger J. Jou MD, MPH, PhD. routinely conducts psychiatric evaluations / consultations and provides ongoing clinical care in the form of pharmacotherapy, counseling, and mentoring. Dr. Jou favors multiple simultaneous approaches to intervention involving interactions beyond the traditional dyad. To this end, he has developed and incorporated a free online community and resource called Project CASY (Community Autism Socials at Yale), providing social-recreation, education, and support for the Connecticut autism community. Project CASY was founded in April 2014 and currently has over 1,000 members. With over 15 years of autism-related experience, he has authored numerous peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters. Dr. Jou’s autism research is currently focused on clinical trials, novel biological and psychosocial interventions, and studying neuroanatomical diversity using MRI technology. He is also an investigator for SPARK at Yale (Simons Foundation Powering Autism Research for Knowledge). Dr. Jou is the recipient of a dozen honors and awards while completing an autism-focused clinical and research fellowship at the Yale Child Study Center where he remains on faculty and active member of Connecticut’s autism community.

We are very excited to be joined by Dr. Denis Sukhodolsky. He will be speaking on such topics as helping children on the autism spectrum and their families to cope with stress and challenging behaviors.

Denis G. Sukhodolsky, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist and an associate professor in the Yale Child Study Center. His work concerns behavioral treatments for children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder complicated by co-occurring anxiety and disruptive behavior. He also directs a lab at the Yale Child Study Center that conducts clinical research on the neural mechanisms of emotions and social behavior in children with ASD. This research has been supported by the National Institutes of Health, Simons Foundation, and the Department of Defense Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program. Dr. Sukhodolsky and his lab are currently conducting a study of cognitive-behavior therapy for anxiety in school-age children with autism and a study of pivotal-response training with oxytocin for young children with autism.

This week we are happy to have Sara Taussik – ASRC’s Director of Programs and Training, & Licensed and Board Certified Art Therapist, who has been working with the ASD population for over 13 years. Her work includes inpatient behavioral health, development and facilitation of social skills training, as well as, teaching Special Education within the private sector.

Sara will be discussing approaches to help promote social/emotional growth within the home environment. Additionally, she will explore strategies to help support self regulation while developing the identification and understanding of our own feelings as well as others.

This video showcases our very special guest Dr. Tara Glennon. Dr. Glennon is the owner of the Center for Pediatric Therapy with offices in Darien, Fairfield, and Wallingford, and she is also a Professor of Occupational Therapy at Quinnipiac University.

Dr. Glennon shared practical and purposeful tips and suggestions for DIY in-home therapeutic interventions. She highlighted simple yet effective approaches to supporting individuals with sensory issues. This is a must watch for parents and caretakers feeling the absence of their traditional occupational therapy as it will open your eyes to methods outside the box, but inside your home.

Sara and Rachel interview Dr. Ruth Eren, with special guest Maria Yurgaitis.  Dr Eren shares her suggested ideas and strategies for ways to reduce stress and enjoy this valuable time with your child during this extended “stay at home” time.
Dr. Eren also shares ways to “naturally” educate your child, using materials that are already a part of your home, and incorporating those elements into teaching moments.

Sara and Rachel interview Dr. James Loomis from Center for Children With Special Needs. Dr Loomis shares some great perspective as the social distancing and “stay at home” timeline has lengthened.
Acknowledging the growing frustration that we are all feeling, Dr. Loomis offers many great suggestions.

Link to YALE Medicine Covid-19 Resource Page

An interview with Chris Abildgaard, LPC, NCC, NCSP, the owner and director of the Social Learning Center, LLC. located in Cheshire, CT.
Chris talked about ways to facilitate social and executive function skills while at home for individuals ages preschool through young adulthood. Chris gave real life clinical experiences and tips to helps families navigate this time in our lives.

Dr. Peter Radasch spoke of many approaches to dealing with these difficult “COVID-19” times, including schedules, habits, specific tactics for adjusting, and key points to keep in mind .  Dr. Radaschs’ details here.

Dr. James Loomis spoke with Sara and Rachel about anxiety and coping mechanisms for parents and caregivers in this COVID-19 pandemic.