Unprecedented National Town Hall Meeting Will Help Develop Policy Agenda for Addressing The Unique Needs Of Adults with Autism
More Than 1,000 Individuals with Autism, Family Members, Advocates, Service Providers, Community Members and Elected Officials Will Gather at 16 Sites Nationwide
More Than 1,000 Individuals with Autism, Family Members, Advocates, Service Providers, Community Members and Elected Officials Will Gather at 16 Sites Nationwide
NEW YORK, N.Y. (October 1, 2009) – Advancing Futures for Adults with Autism (AFAA), a consortium of leading autism advocacy organizations and service providers focused on addressing the increasing and unmet demand for effective services for adolescents and adults with autism, announced today that it will hold a national Town Hall meeting at sixteen different sites across the country on November 13 with the goal of developing an actionable national policy agenda for life-long living and learning with autism.
At each site, working groups – including adults with autism, family members, community members, neighbors, employers, service providers, representatives of funding and support agencies, elected officials and others – will seek to establish priorities for meeting the needs of adults with autism in several key areas, including employment, housing, safety, recreation, transportation and social opportunities. The Town Hall will be organized from a central Chicago Town Hall hub, with more than one thousand participants across the country linked via live webcast. Proposals developed during the course of the day-long session will be voted on electronically by all participants to develop a focused agenda for change.
“There is a tidal wave of children with autism who will become adults during the next decade and our society has yet to address how the need for services, jobs, housing and other opportunities to lead fulfilling and productive lives will be met,” said Peter Bell, AFAA co-chair and executive vice president of Autism Speaks. “These aren't challenges we can keep putting off. The need for action is real and urgent, and the Town Hall is a critical step in developing an agenda that can ultimately be realized through legislation and other means of effecting change.”
“The time is now to consolidate and focus our efforts to significantly improve the quality of life available to adults with autism,” said Ilene Lainer, AFAA co-chair and executive director of the New York Center for Autism. “As a society, we have an obligation to secure a brighter future for individuals with autism spectrum disorders. By taking action now, we can ensure that adults with autism break free of the all-too-common status of dependency and become engaged, involved and ideally, tax-paying, members of their communities.”
The prevalence of autism in the United States has increased tenfold in the last decade, from 1 in 10,000 to 1 in 150. With this dramatic increase has come a greater demand for effective services for adolescents and adults with autism and for accurate information on what constitutes appropriate evidence-based intervention and practice. The need continues to far exceed the available resources. The Town Hall meeting is a first step in developing a national policy to address these issues.
For information about the AFAA National Town Hall, please visit www.afaa-us.org.
About Autism
Autism is a complex brain disorder that inhibits a person's ability to communicate and develop social relationships, and is often accompanied by behavioral challenges. Autism spectrum disorders are diagnosed in one in 150 children in the United States, affecting four times as many boys as girls. The prevalence of autism has increased tenfold in the last decade. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have called autism a national public health crisis whose cause and cure remain unknown.
About AFAA
Advancing Futures for Adults with Autism (AFAA) is a national consortium seeking to create meaningful futures for adults with autism that include homes, jobs, recreation, friends and supportive communities. This unique national consortium has united to set national priorities for adults on the autism spectrum and to transform public policy and programming for teens and adults with autism spectrum disorders. Throughout 2009, AFAA will collect information, develop strategic solutions and advance the national agenda.
Autism Speaks, the nation's largest autism science and advocacy organization, and the New York Center for Autism are the AFAA organization chairs. The AFAA partners are: Global Communities of Support; Alpine Learning Group; The Autism Program of Illinois; The Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation; Easter Seals; Hallmark Community Solutions; Organization for Autism Research; Southwest Autism Research & Resource Center; and the University of Miami-Nova Southeastern University Center for Autism and Related Disabilities.
For more information, please visit www.afaa-us.org.
At each site, working groups – including adults with autism, family members, community members, neighbors, employers, service providers, representatives of funding and support agencies, elected officials and others – will seek to establish priorities for meeting the needs of adults with autism in several key areas, including employment, housing, safety, recreation, transportation and social opportunities. The Town Hall will be organized from a central Chicago Town Hall hub, with more than one thousand participants across the country linked via live webcast. Proposals developed during the course of the day-long session will be voted on electronically by all participants to develop a focused agenda for change.
“There is a tidal wave of children with autism who will become adults during the next decade and our society has yet to address how the need for services, jobs, housing and other opportunities to lead fulfilling and productive lives will be met,” said Peter Bell, AFAA co-chair and executive vice president of Autism Speaks. “These aren't challenges we can keep putting off. The need for action is real and urgent, and the Town Hall is a critical step in developing an agenda that can ultimately be realized through legislation and other means of effecting change.”
“The time is now to consolidate and focus our efforts to significantly improve the quality of life available to adults with autism,” said Ilene Lainer, AFAA co-chair and executive director of the New York Center for Autism. “As a society, we have an obligation to secure a brighter future for individuals with autism spectrum disorders. By taking action now, we can ensure that adults with autism break free of the all-too-common status of dependency and become engaged, involved and ideally, tax-paying, members of their communities.”
The prevalence of autism in the United States has increased tenfold in the last decade, from 1 in 10,000 to 1 in 150. With this dramatic increase has come a greater demand for effective services for adolescents and adults with autism and for accurate information on what constitutes appropriate evidence-based intervention and practice. The need continues to far exceed the available resources. The Town Hall meeting is a first step in developing a national policy to address these issues.
For information about the AFAA National Town Hall, please visit www.afaa-us.org.
About Autism
Autism is a complex brain disorder that inhibits a person's ability to communicate and develop social relationships, and is often accompanied by behavioral challenges. Autism spectrum disorders are diagnosed in one in 150 children in the United States, affecting four times as many boys as girls. The prevalence of autism has increased tenfold in the last decade. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have called autism a national public health crisis whose cause and cure remain unknown.
About AFAA
Advancing Futures for Adults with Autism (AFAA) is a national consortium seeking to create meaningful futures for adults with autism that include homes, jobs, recreation, friends and supportive communities. This unique national consortium has united to set national priorities for adults on the autism spectrum and to transform public policy and programming for teens and adults with autism spectrum disorders. Throughout 2009, AFAA will collect information, develop strategic solutions and advance the national agenda.
Autism Speaks, the nation's largest autism science and advocacy organization, and the New York Center for Autism are the AFAA organization chairs. The AFAA partners are: Global Communities of Support; Alpine Learning Group; The Autism Program of Illinois; The Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation; Easter Seals; Hallmark Community Solutions; Organization for Autism Research; Southwest Autism Research & Resource Center; and the University of Miami-Nova Southeastern University Center for Autism and Related Disabilities.
For more information, please visit www.afaa-us.org.
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