About Autism in Action
Autism in Action was founded in 2001 by Dr. Beverly Braman and Dr. Susan Catlett after years of personally witnessing the many challenges faced by parents and educators in trying to meet the pervasive needs of individuals who have an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). With more than 40 years of "hands-on" experience between them, Drs. Braman and Catlett, or as they would prefer to be known, Beverly and Susan, have worked with thousands of learners with ASD in their homes, classrooms, and communities. Throughout their educational and professional careers, they have extensively studied, researched, tested, and applied various autism treatment approaches and want you to benefit from their years of experience. What Beverly and Susan have seen is that "a better tomorrow starts today" when scientifically demonstrated autism teaching methods grounded in the principles of applied behavior analysis (ABA) are consistently and appropriately utilized during learning.
Beverly and Susan decided to start Autism in Action for a number of reasons, but the driving force was their sincere desire to assist others in improving the lives of the tens of thousands of precious souls who are living with ASD. By developing specific autism educational materials that would help families, teachers, therapists, and others provide meaningful instruction; their hope was that a broader number of individuals with autism could be reached.
The world faces an autism epidemic yet there are too few teachers and therapists trained in the ABA principles proven necessary for facilitating meaningful instruction for those living with ASD. In response to this tremendous need, Beverly and Susan essentially began writing down what they do every day working in the classrooms of children with autism in a way that is understandable and realistic given real life parameters. In their unique Autism "How-To" Teaching Programs, which includes a special series for learners with Asperger Syndrome (AS), they have delineated what to say and what to do in order to "fill in the gap" while building longer term capacity in the use of procedurally accurate teaching interventions. Beverly and Susan have also developed Autism and ABA: A "How-To" Handbook for Teachers designed to build ABA expertise in the classroom; and a time saving Instructional Objectives Handbook to assist teachers in developing meaningful and measurable IEPs. Teachers and therapists will find that by using these indispensible educational materials, they will be able to more effectively teach students with autism and Aspergers many important skills and behaviors necessary for expanding life-long opportunities.
Beverly and Susan also wanted to be able to provide parents of children with ASD an affordable and immediately accessible way to help facilitate learning at home. For the many families who simply cannot afford the tens of thousands of dollars it costs for in-home behavior therapy or who have difficulty finding and keeping therapists, the step-by-step "How To" Teaching Programs provide an immediate means by which parents and other caregivers can effectively implement ABA interventions in the home setting.
Clearly, Beverly and Susan know that Autism in Action is not a complete solution or a cure for autism, but rather one piece of the complex autism puzzle. However, by providing enhanced opportunities for meaningful learning to occur through the use of their autism educational resources, they sincerely hope to help parents and professionals find that truly, "a better tomorrow starts today".
About Autism in Action
