Category Archives: ACT Resources

New events: Early Intervention, Advocacy, Social Thinking and more

Hot off the presses: we’ve just release more events: Early Intervention, Advocacy, Social Thinking, Helping Youth Thrive and more. Plan your learning and professional development for 2015 (see below for dates, presenters and details)

May 29th, 2015 − Vancouver
Identifying and Treating Co-occurring Mental Health Challenges in Children with ASD
Vikram Dua, MD, FRCPC

June 6th, 2015 − Prince George
Positive Behavior Support: What Parents Need to Know! (Prince George)
Brenda Fossett, Ph.D., BCBA-D

July 20 – 24, 2015 − Vancouver
Introduction to Autism Spectrum Disorders (July 2015): Practical Applications for School-Age Children (POPARD)
Instructor to be announced

July 29 & 30, 2015 − Vancouver
SMILE – Structured Methods in Language Education : A Multisensory Language Learning Program
Enid Wolf-Schein, Ed.D., CCC-SLP & Rhonda Bachmann, M.S. Ed.

July 31st, 2015 − Vancouver
Strategies for Working with Young Children with Autism: Supporting Slower Responders
Richard Stock, Ph.D., BCBA-D

August 13 – 15, 2015 − Vancouver
PEERS® Certified School-Based Training
Elizabeth Laugeson, PsyD

August 17 – 21, 2015 − Vancouver
Introduction to Autism Spectrum Disorders (August 2015) : Practical Applications for School-Age Children (POPARD)
Instructor to be announced

September 17 & 18, 2015 − Vancouver
Social Thinking and Mental Health Frameworks – Blending Strategies to Reach Our Students
Nancy Clements, MA, CCC-SLP & Nancy Cotton, PhD

October 2nd, 2015 − Kamloops
Advocacy Tools for Parents of Children with Special Needs (Kamloops)
Deborah Pugh

October 3rd, 2015 − Kamloops
Positive Behavior Support: What Parents Need to Know! (Kamloops)
Brenda Fossett, Ph.D., BCBA-D

October 23rd, 2015 − Vancouver
Thriving in Youth with ASD – What Does it Take?
Jonathan Weiss, PhD

November 7th, 2015 − Vancouver
Positive Behavior Support: What Parents Need to Know! (Vancouver)
Brenda Fossett, Ph.D., BCBA-D

November 20th, 2015 − Vancouver
Advocacy Tools for Parents of Children with Special Needs (Vancouver)
Deborah Pugh

November 21st, 2015 − Vancouver
Taking Control of the Future – Planning for Families with Special Needs
Blair Dwyer & Layli Antinuk, Dwyer Tax Law, Victoria

December 5th, 2015 − Vancouver
Faster than a Speeding Bullet: iPads in Autism Intervention (Vancouver)
Brenda Fossett, Ph.D., BCBA-D

April 18th: Panel Discussion on Advocacy in B.C.

Saturday, April 18th ACT is hosting an event to provide an update on ACT’s Resources and a panel discussion from leading members of the autism community in B.C.

Register soon, and lunch is provided. For more details, see the ACT Event page.

The ACT presentation will include brief demonstrations our many online resources:

  • New Diagnosis Hub – Next Steps Guide
  • Autism Information Database (AID)
  • Autism in Chinese
  • Autism Videos @ ACT (AVA)
  • Enhanced RASP Search

There are a number of autism organizations across B.C., some of which did not exist a decade ago, which have a primary role in advocacy. To open this discussion, a panel of speakers from a range of organizations will present their views on how B.C.’s autism community can collaborate to better support families and individuals with a range of special needs.

  • Moderator – Michael Craig, Board President, ACT- Autism Community Training
  • Patrick Dwyer, Facilitator and Vice-President, Authors with Autism; UVic Student Club
  • John Esson, President, Autism Society of B.C.
  • Betty-Ann Garreck, Coordinator, Autism Kamloops
  • Katy Harandi, CEO, Canucks Autism Network
  • Susan Noble, Board Member, Autism Okanagan
  • Jodi Wickens, Executive Director, Autism Support Network

Tax Time – Expert Advice for Special Needs Families – Free

It is the time of year when we would all like more expertise in figuring out how to make the proper claims for our family members with disabilities and how to protect them from financial abuse. For a free online presentation from one of Canada’s leading tax lawyers, who understands the particular issues facing families who have children who require additional protection, see Blair Dwyer’s presentation on Estate Planning at Autism Videos @ ACT (AVA). This presentation is free, available on your schedule and divided into small chunks to for easier viewing!

ACT welcomes support for AVA and other projects. For more information on how to contribute see the ACT website.

The RASP Search page has a new look!

ACT has redesigned  the RASP Search Page to better assist families to identify professionals who are a good fit for their needs.
Search the RASP list by:

  1. Profession – Behavior Consultant, Speech-Language Pathologist, Occupational Therapist, Physical Therapist
  2. Cities served – enter your city or cities closest to you
  3. Languages spoken – does the professional provide service in languages other than English?
  4. Currently accepting new clients – the search can include or omit professionals who indicate they are not accepting new clients.

Coming soon, we will be adding information on whether the professional provides video conferencing and/or is willing to travel to remote communities.

The new RASP Search page is easier to use. If you have any questions, contact ACT. We have a team of information officers who offer individualized support in English, Mandarin and Cantonese. Contact us at [email protected] or by telephone 604-205-5467; toll-free 1-866-939-5188.

Additional RASP Resources:

If you have any feedback about the new RASP Search page, please email [email protected]