The Understanding Autism Podcast

One instinct that all parents share is the desire to keep their children safe. But what if you are the parent of a neurodiverse adolescent or young adult? How can you teach them how to be safe and have appropriate behaviors when you’re not around? What should they do if they encounter police? In today’s episode, we interview Ali Thompson, former police officer and CEO of Pulse Line Collaborative Training, an organization that trains law enforcement on how to safely manage their interactions with neurodiverse people with patience and understanding.

In this episode, we continue our conversation about accessing government disability benefits. In today’s interview, we talk with Maureen Welch, founder of Navigating Disability Colorado. Together we examine the complex process of accessing Medicaid waivers.

With the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the Affordable Care Act, it can be difficult to plan for health care costs when you have a disability. In our interview with Richard Burk and Amy Woszczynski, Social Security Disability Determination Examiners for the State of Colorado, we explore the different aspects of accessing Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI).

In our second of two episodes focusing on innovative schools that support life after high school for neurodiverse students, we interview Lindsay Wagner and Amy Faraone about the League School for Autism in Walpole, Massachusetts. They explain how they prepare students for independent living by helping students build self-advocacy strategies and through their innovative community-based vocational program.

There are several schools across the nation that are dedicated to educating neurodiverse students; a few of them address life after high school. One such innovative program in Utah is Scenic View Academy. This on-campus school creates living and working environments that supports students in developing life skills and executive functioning skills that will help them to live independently as adults.