Celebrating our beautiful son, Anthony

By Joanne Kehoe

I have four children. Anthony, my oldest, has autism.

When Anthony was a baby, I used to think about milestones and when he would reach them.  He sat up really early. He started rolling over and crawling early and got right up and started walking and running right on time.  His teeth came in when they were supposed to, much to my chagrin as a nursing mother.  He ate food from a spoon at six months.

I don’t know when I thought it strange that he wasn’t talking. I mean, he DID talk — a little.  He could count pretty high with me signing the numbers. He could say colors that I would sign. I have a video of him saying, “E, I, E, I … ho,” while playing with a tractor that played the Old McDonald song.

At 18 months, I took him to the pediatrician for his well-child checkup and explained that he wasn’t talking and that other kids in playgroups who were his age were flying by him. The doctor said to me, “Look how smart he is. Keep reading to him and keep talking to him.” So, I did.  I read a LOT. I talked to him a LOT.  I remember walking with Anthony around the block by our house after it snowed, and I thought to myself that if I fell and bonked my head, I would be in trouble because Anthony isn’t going to call for help.  He never called, “Mommy!” from his room. That was one thing I thought was strange.

Finally, we started Anthony in First Steps, the early intervention program. Three therapists came one morning to evaluate him. That was the first time I looked at Anthony as a stranger might see him and it didn’t look good!  They said he should have developmental, occupational and speech therapy.  They were throwing the book at him.  At the end of his involvement with First Steps, and before he moved on to therapy at the public school, he was diagnosed with autism.  By then, we knew it was coming, but it still sort of stung when the psychiatrist asked, “Has anyone ever mentioned autism to you?”

That was almost six years ago, and we have undergone a lot of attitude adjustments since then.  Anthony has had to get used to three little sisters, one louder than the next!  We have had to adjust our attitudes and our expectations. We still celebrate milestones with Anthony – so many I couldn’t even begin to count. They are just different than the milestones that I thought we’d be celebrating, and, Lord knows, they are sometimes later than I thought they’d be reached!  But he is so smart, and so wonderful, and we all love him so much – and I don’t mean just his family, but all his therapists and everyone who comes in contact with him. And those milestones mean just as much and probably more than the milestones that I thought he’d reach all those years ago when I was narrating my life and waiting for that first word.

Joanne Kehoe is a mom of four, including Anthony, a learner at Little Star.

 

Learn more about Little Star’s enrollment process

By Victoria Blessing

 

It is my honor to welcome you to our Little Star Center’s Bloomington location. As your primary contact during your child’s enrollment process, I will be with you every step of the way, answering all of your questions, preparing you for your child’s assessment and, eventually, welcoming him or her to Little Star on the first day of learning.

As a mom of a child with autism, I know exactly what you are going through, and it is my goal to make the process comfortable, informative and stress-free.

The following information details our enrollment process. Please know the timeframe for this process is based on how quickly we receive insurance approval, but, in general, takes between four and six weeks. The process may seem lengthy, but I can assure your child’s therapist will be fully trained on the programs specific to your child on the first day he or she begins at Little Star:

Tour: I will set up a time that is convenient for you to visit Little Star. I will answer your questions and outline the enrollment process.  We will also review insurance coverage information. As you tour the center, you will see other learners in action and meet more of our staff and address any concerns or questions you may have.

Assessment: Upon your request, you will be provided an assessment packet. Once the completed assessment form is returned to me, I will schedule your child’s assessment with our clinical team. Once the assessment report is complete, it will be submitted to your insurance company for enrollment approval. When approval is granted, I will provide you with your child’s start date.

We are excited to welcome Bloomington-area learners and families to Little Star! I look forward to meeting you and your child and introducing you to our wonderful staff.

Victoria is the New Family Coordinator for Little Star Center. For enrollment questions or to schedule a tour of Little Star, email her at [email protected].

We found our perfect match at Little Star

By Onya Jones

When Kaleigh was 3 years old, we searched for the perfect ABA facility to address her needs. At the time, she wasn’t ready for developmental preschool. She needed more one-on-one assistance.

I began searching for therapy for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and came upon Little Star Center’s website. It was very informative and looked exactly like what Kaleigh needed.  After touring the center and meeting with staff, I knew this was where she needed to be.

Four years later, I remain convinced that Little Star is the best place for Kaleigh. The staff is devoted to Kaleigh’s progress. It’s evident that they want the kids to succeed in life. They work hard to make that happen. It’s clear they love every single one of those kids and, at the same time, provide great support to the parents.

We are truly grateful we found Little Star.

Onya Jones is mom to Kaleigh, a learner at Little Star Center. 

 

 

 

 

 

We are forever grateful to Little Star Center

By Siovhan Lawrence

 

Upon our son Bradley’s formal autism diagnosis, we did everything we could to get him the best services.  In doing so, we enrolled him part-time in a structured ABA school in North Carolina, where we lived at the time. Staff at the school let us know that the three hours per day Bradley was receiving was not enough. We were told he would excel with the recommended eight hours per day of behavioral intervention. It didn’t take much more than a glance and a shrug exchanged between my husband and me to make a big decision: We would move from North Carolina to Indiana, which is a well-oiled machine when it comes to autism mandates and facilities.

Once we decided to move to Indiana, my husband got a job and we began our search for ABA centers. We were excited about one particular facility, and purchased private insurance (recommended by the center), and rented the first home we could find. En route, moving van and all, we received a call from our selected center, where Bradley was set to begin school in four days, saying our insurance was not in  network and he would be unable to attend. What now? We were overwhelmed with worry and discontent.

We called our insurance agent and he mentioned Little Star Center. I called, set up a meeting and met Mary and Victoria. We never felt more comfortable in our quest for helping Bradley in the two years we’d experienced trying to find him the best support possible! I think when you meet other mothers of special needs kids, you have an immediate, unspoken camaraderie. We felt that with Mary. From the point we walked into the center to the first day we dropped Bradley off (and in the nearly four months he has been with Little Star) our hearts have become so full. In such a time of distress and worry, we were made to feel safe and secure and, most importantly, hopeful. As any parent of a child on the spectrum knows, without hope, there is nothing. We are forever grateful.

 Siovhan Lawrence is a mom of two, including Bradley, a learner at Little Star Center.  

Little Star Center Opening in Bloomington

Little Star Center is expanding services for families and children affected by autism to Bloomington. The new Little Star Center Bloomington will open spring 2014. Center leaders will begin accepting applications for evaluations for learners and staff in January.

Application Process and Open House
Applications will be accepted from families with children affected by autism in January. A parent information meeting and open house is scheduled for:

Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2014
4 to 8 p.m.
Terry’s Catering, 3116 Canterbury Drive
Interested families can also email or call for more information.

New Hire Process
At least 10 professionals will be hired for the new facility. Available positions for the Bloomington center are for professionals with education or backgrounds in child psychology, special education, education, speech sciences and child development. Experience with autism or ABA is preferred. Interested professionals can email a cover letter and resume

 

 

My son and his best friend Lulu

 

By Mary Rosswurm, executive director Little Star Center

We have always had dogs and have six currently. When our son Brad was born, we had a small terrier mix mutt named Barney. Growing up, Brad was never afraid of the dogs, but not very engaged with them, either.

This changed in 2008, when Lulu, our yorkie poo, figured out how to get up onto Brad’s very high bed by using an ottoman as a step. After this, something clicked and Brad became a full-on dog lover. He and Lulu are inseparable and he often refers to her as his “best friend”. Brad has said that he will be very sad when Lulu “passes” as she is his “beloved doggy friend.” Brad has become much more aware of our dogs and will get them fresh water, which includes ice cubes, refill their food bowl when empty and share his own food with them. We can often hear him talking to Lulu when he is in his bedroom. They have become wonderful friends and I am so happy that he has been able to make that connection with her.

A few years back, Brad asked if we could go see the movie, Marley and Me. In general, he only likes animated movies or live action comedies. I think he thought the movie was going to be more of a comedy because Owen Wilson was starring in it. At the end of the movie, the dog, Marley, grows old and eventually dies. I had that painful lump in my throat and my eyes were burning as I tried to hold back the tears. I could hear others in the theater sniffling and noses being blown. Out of the corner of my eye, I kept looking to see if Brad was having any type of visceral reaction to the movie, to which it seemed he was not. Once the movie was over, I could see that he was not experiencing any of the emotional reactions that I and so many others were experiencing.

As we walked to the car after the movie, I asked him, “Didn’t you think the movie was sad?” He replied, “Yeah.” I asked, “Didn’t it want to make you cry?” He simply said, “No, it’s not my dog.”

As often happens during everyday life with Brad, I am often puzzled and surprised at how he looks at the world differently than most do. Not wrong, just different.

Mary is executive director at Little Star Center. Her son, Brad, has autism. 

Great speakers, informative sessions at ASHA convention

By Kasey Philpott, MS, CCC-SLP

I recently attended the annual American Speech-Language-Hearing Association’s (ASHA) convention in Chicago.  With over 12,000 attendees, the ASHA convention provides a plethora of learning opportunities for speech language pathologists and audiologists alike covering a variety of topics, including speech sound disorders, autism, augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), hearing loss, swallowing disorders, stroke and language science.

This year’s theme was The Magic of Teamwork: Science and Service Delivery, which offered several opportunities to hear from other professions including behavior analysts!

I had the pleasure of attending many sessions discussing autism treatment specific to AAC, social skills, feeding/swallowing and others. I also had the opportunity to see a few familiar faces, including Oliver Wendt, Ph.D, from Purdue University, who presented a case study on Experimental Evaluation of a Parent-Implemented AAC Intervention Protocol for Children with Severe Autism. Thomas Zane Ph.D., a Little Star Center advisory board member. He presented a poster session that looked at the evaluation of efficiency and preference for communication modalities.

Overall it was a great experience!  I’m looking forward to next year’s convention in Orlando, Fla.!

Kasey is a speech language pathologist & director of related services at Little Star Center.

 

Young student is a fan of Little Star Center

William, the 10 year-old son of Tim Courtney, research and training director at Little Star Center, wrote the following letter to his school to request a grant for Little Star Center. This is a great reminder that our learners  success is important to even our youngest citizens.

Did you know one out of every 88 kids has autism? It’s for that reason I think we should choose Little Star Center for one of our lollipop drop charities.

Little Star Center is right here in our community helping kids with autism. Little Star is 100 percent non-profit. With the money we raise for (the school), it would be able to purchase therapy supplies for the kids who go there. The supplies would help the kids in learning to communicate and be independent.

I think it’s important to help everyone as much as we can, and it’s a great feeling to be able to help kids in our very own community. My dad is one of the directors at Little Star Center. I know the work they do is changing kid’s lives, and I hope we can assist them in continuing to do that.

Proud to be Hoosier representing autism and our ABA facility

By Mary Rosswurm

The National Autism Speaks conference was held in Washington D.C. last week. I was humbled to be invited to this national event that brought together about 200 autism advocates from classrooms, boardrooms, small towns, big cities and in-between. This three-day event marked the launch of the 2014 policy agenda (a first-ever for autism advocates and legislation).

Tim Courtney and I met face to face with key Indiana legislators to discuss research funding and encourage their participation in committees. I truly appreciate the time every legislator and professional took in their day to listen, make notes and subsequently take action on the behalf of families and children affected by autism. It was an amazing experience. The experience demonstrated democracy at work.

To read more about the event read this blog written by Liz Fields, president of Autism Speaks.

Review of Soma Rapid Prompt Method (RPM)

Treatment of Communication Disorders: A Review of Soma® Rapid Prompt Method

By Thomas Zane, Ph.D., BCBA-D, Little Star Center advisory board member

The mission of the Cambridge Center is to, “…. advance the scientific study of behavior and its humane application to the solution of practical problems, including the prevention and relief of human suffering.” The application of the scientific method of study and research is recognized as providing more valid results than other ways of knowing. One area of concern being studied extensively lately is Pervasive Development Disorders (PDD).

One of the primary characteristics of the autism spectrum disorders is communication impairment (APA, 2000). These can take many forms, such as a complete lack of or delay in the developmental of spoken language, an inability to use any functional communication, an inability to initiate or sustain reciprocal conversation, and odd speech mannerisms (e.g., scripting).

To treat communication disorders, there exist a large number of therapeutic strategies. Searching “therapies to improve communication in autism” in a Google search yields 6,890,000 results. Included in this vast list are Auditory Integration Training, Speech Therapy, Picture Exchange Communication System, and Music Therapy.  Within this list one finds the Soma®RPM (Rapid Prompt Method; RPM), developed by Soma Mukhopadhyay (HALO, 2012).  The purpose of this article is to review RPM in terms of its conceptual underpinnings, methodology, and – most importantly – the extent to which there exists an empirical research database showing that this particular method is effective in improving specific aspects of communication.

Dr. Zane is a professor at the Institute for Behavioral Studies at The Van Loan School of Graduate and Professional Studies, Endicott College.Click here to read his entire syndicated column.