Who is the New York Autism Resource Center?

The New York Autism Resource Center, Inc. was established by two local special education teachers, Sandy Brownsey and Lisa Currao, as a resource for parents and professionals looking for access to services for individuals on the autism spectrum. Founded last year, the center also looks to build community networks to raise awareness about autism spectrum disorders. Brownsey, a special education teacher in private practice, said putting this workshop together was “wonderful.” “I asked Tom (Caffrey) if he would do the workshop here,” said Brownsey. “Then we met with Warwick and it was so wonderful. All of the pieces fell into place.” The April 7 workshop is the first in a six-part series, according to Brownsey. “We will follow up with a two-year plan at the workshop,” she said. “Participants will get a calendar of follow-up training sessions.” Currao said a big part of the Center’s purpose is to be able to help families who are newly diagnosed. “We want to be able to point people in the right direction,” she said. “We’d like to provide training to babysitters on how to deal effectively with kids on the spectrum. That way, families could hire them with some confidence.” Community awareness is another goal for the Center, Currao said. They hope to go to community groups of typically developing peers and tech them what they might expect when talking with a kid with autism. The workshop in April is free, sponsored by Caffrey’s group, FATE, the Foundation for Autism Teacher Education. The New York Autism Resource Center’s mission statement says it is committed to creating sustained family trainings, on-going professional education opportunities, as well as increase recreational and community work place options through the life span for individuals on the spectrum of autism. For more information on each of the six workshops that will be offered, including the introduction on April 7, log onto FATE’s Web site, www.thefate.org. Click Project Pipeline at the top of the home page for a list of the six upcoming workshops.