Sunday, April 22, 2007

NSSLHA NEWS at CSULA

Support for Children Affected by Hurricane Katrina
By Rachelle DeVore
rnd200@aol.com

In June I will be joining the New Orleans chapter of Habitat for Humanity and a partner family in constructing a new home in New Orleans. After visiting New Orleans for the first time this past January, I was astounded by the extent of Katrina’s devastation and the still impoverished living conditions of many of its residents. Each individual I encountered on my visit had a different experience to relate although it was clear that all stories had a similar theme. Help was woefully insufficient and thousands of families, while still waiting for assistance, remain homeless.

In addition to helping in the construction of a home for a family in need, I want to purchase school supplies and other educational materials for local children that are still living in shelters. My goal is to raise a minimum of one-thousand dollars by June 1st to purchase basics such as pens, pencils, paper, books and educational materials and games.

Any amount that you, or someone you know can contribute, will be useful and greatly appreciated. I will be taking lots of pictures and keeping a journal so that I am able to share my experiences with you. Please do whatever you can to help. I know that the families and especially the children will be thankful for your support.

For the full article and instructions on how to donate, visit http://nsslhacsula.blogspot.com/



What Do You Know About Autism?
April is Autism Awareness Month, and
here is what we learned about autism from this months meeting with Kelly Alston from Cure Autism Now.
What are the signs of Autism in young children?
- No response to their name by 12 months of age
- Failure to meet developmental milestones
- Loss or lack of speech around 18 months of age
- Loss or lack of gestures such as pointing or waving
- Little or no eye contact
- Absence of imagination and social play
- Use of toys in unusual ways
- Repetitive speech or actions/insistence on sameness
- Unusual reactions to the way things look, feel, smell, taste or sound

U.S. Statistics
- 1/150 children will be diagnosed with autism
- 1/94 boys will be diagnosed with autism
- A new case of autism is diagnosed nearly every 20 minutes
- 24,000 new cases of autism are diagnosed in the U.S. each year
- In California, there has been a 238% rise in autism cases over the last 14 years.
- About 1.5 million people in the U.S. under the age of 17 have autism


Congratulations!
The Communication Disorders Department would like to congratulate Dr. Manasse and Kristin Reisch who both recently received awards from the California Speech Language and Hearing Association. Dr. Manasse was recognized for ‘Outstanding Service’ for District 6 of CASA, and Kristen Reisch received the ‘Outstanding Student’ award for the same district.

Salaries for Positions in LA County Hospitals and Rehab Centers
Information Contributed by Alan Ashkenazy

SLP II- Supervisor: $65,904-$81,876

SLP I: $55,596- $69,072 per year

CFY: $3,967- $4,667 per month for the first 6 months (then SLP I)

Save $$$ on Printer Ink
We all know the sinking feeling: you print a document, and –gasp- the writing comes out a light shade of gray…it’s time to shell out for a new ink cartridge. Save your hard earned money any have your ink cartridge refilled for a quarter of the price of a new ink cartridge.
Ever Saint Inc.
615 E. Main St.
Alhambra, CA 91801




WALK NOW!
If you don’t know what this means, you are one of the few who has escaped NSSLHA’s unending pleas, prods, bribes, blackmail, and begs to sign up for the Cure Autism Now Walk taking place this Saturday April 28th at the Rose Bowl. Visit http://www.walknow.org/
For more information and to register with team CalState LA.

$ ASHA Award Programs $
To help encourage leadership and promote careers in academia and research, the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) has created several finantial award opportunities. These opportunities are available to undergraduate, master’s, AuD, and PhD students enrolled in communication sciences and disorders, as well as new faculty. For applications and deadline information visit http://www.asha.org/students/awards.htm

Support Virginia Tech
The effects of the Virginia Tech tragedy were felt by students across the country and around the world. To remember and honor the victims of those tragic events, Virgina Tech has established the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund to aid in the healing process. The funds will be used to cover expenses such as assistance to victims and their families, grief counseling and memorials. For more information, visit http://www.vt.edu/tragedy/memorial_fund.php
To contribute articles and/or event information to the newsletter, or to praise the editor for a job well done, simply click the ‘Newsletter Editor’ link on the website http://nsslhacsula.blogspot.com/

SUPPORT FOR CHILDREN AFFECTED BY HURRICANE KATRINA

SUPPORT FOR CHILDREN AFFECTED BY HURRICANE KATRINA

By Rachelle DeVore

In June I will be joining the New Orleans chapter of Habitat for Humanity and a partner family in constructing a new home in New Orleans. After visiting New Orleans for the first time this past January, I was astounded by the extent of Katrina’s devastation and the still impoverished living conditions of many of its residents. Each individual I encountered on my visit had a different experience to relate although it was clear that all stories had a similar theme. Help was woefully insufficient and thousands of families, while still waiting for assistance, remain homeless.

I tutor eight elementary age children in the Los Angeles Unified school district through government sponsored, "No Child Left Behind", program. The reality is that the majority of these children are from low socio-economic communities that struggle to provide the motivation, support and educational materials that these children need in order to do well in school. I couldn't help but wonder what would become of these children if the little they have was taken from them in and instant. I could not imagine my students without a school to attend or a home to go to at the end of the day.

With the children in mind, I set another goal for my trip. In addition to helping in the construction of a home for a family in need, I want to purchase school supplies and other educational materials for local children that are still living in shelters. My hope is to raise enough money to purchase basics such as pens/pencils and paper as well as books and educational materials/games. I know that the scope of this project is limited however if I am able to help even one child in need, it will be worthwhile.

My goal is to raise a minimum of one-thousand dollars by June 1st. Any amount that you, or someone you know can contribute, will be useful and greatly appreciated. I will be taking lots of pictures and keeping a journal so that I am able to share my experiences with you. Please do whatever you can to help. I know that the families and especially the children will be thankful for your support.

Please feel free to contact me at any time:

Email: rnd200@aol.com

Mailing address:

Rachelle DeVore
14 Caleb Brewster Rd
East Setauket, NY 11733

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Response to question from NSSHLA meeting.

Hello Everyone-

Kelly followed up with a response to the question he was presented with during the meeting. Here is what he had to say:

Thank you again for the opportunity to speak. I wanted to provide an answer for the person who asked about the prevalence number for boys. It is 1 in 94, vs, the 1 in 150 for all children. Keep up the great work and I will be looking for you at the Walk!

Monday, April 09, 2007

NSSHLA minutes from April 9, 2007

For those of you who were not able to join our insightful meeting tonight, this is what you missed:

Statistics: 1 out of 150 have Autism
About 1.5 million people under the age of 17 have Autism

-In California, there has been a 238% rise in Autism cases over the last 14 years.
-The earlier you diagnose a child and the earlier you start intervention, the better the progression.

WHAT IS AUTISM?
=Autism affects the developmental brain and the nervous system
=Autism affects boys more than girls
=Usually diagnosed by 3 years of age
=Deficits in 3 core areas: 1. Language
2. Social Communication
3. Repetitive Behavior
=Autism is a spectrum disorder
=Autistic individuals have sensory deficits
=Autism is the third most common developmental disability after Mental Retardation and Cerebral Palsy.
=No two children have the same symptoms or behavior profile, making it difficult to categorize children into coherent symptom groups.

WHAT ARE SIGNS OF AUTISM?
+ Children do not respond to their name by 12 months of age
+ They fail to meet certain developmental milestones
+ They fail to make eye contact, have absence of pointing and gesturing
+ They have an absence in imaginative and social play.+ Use toys in odd ways+ Their language is imitative or repetitive (echolalia) + They are obsessed with objects

WHAT ARE CAUSES OF AUTISM?
: Genetics
: Environment
: A number of genes associated with Autism
: Stress, pollution, and vaccines--- when exposed during pregnancy


Clinical Research
AGRE-Autism Genetic Resource Exchange
This program is the world’s largest collection of clinical information. They have over 1600 families with two or more autistic children. They set the standards for collaboration and data sharing in autism research. Information is standardized and available to scientific researchers.

Autism Research Network (TRN)
This research program provides diagnosis and treatment and provides a medical home for children with ASD. This program develops standards for medical care. It also develops protocols for multidisciplinary assessment.

Autism Tissue Program (ATP)
This program makes brain tissue available for research. ATP increases out ability to learn about diagnosis of Autism. Over 42 studies have been possible though ATP.
CTN- Clinical Trails Network
This is the first multi-site network of established clinics and researchers with expertise in running clinical trails. The first trial is this year. This network works with the pharmaceutical/nutraceutical industry.
Autism Genone Project
This project is looking at human genone and looking at what genes are susceptible. Phase 1 of this project was completed and was published in Nature Genetics.


WALK NOW!!!
~This year there are over 60 walks in the US, Canada and the UK.
~Los Angelwes was the first walk to raise over one million dollars.
~Resource Fair provides valuable information about current research and treatment options for parents.
~Cal State LA raised $1,500
>>>>Log onto Walknow.org and sign up for the walk.
Log onto autismspeaks.org for more information on Autism.

Tuesday, April 03, 2007

Autism Awareness Month

Hey Everyone-

The speaker for the April 9th meeting is Kelly Alston from Cure Autism Now.

Also... if you have not done so yet then PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE sign up for the Cure Autism Now walk.

Thank You Everyone
See you April 9