Anne Carlsen Center Autism Conference Held at Jamestown

Autism conference speaker Jane Korsten speaks to attendees about focus points in the brain during the two-day event at the Anne Carlsen Center Jamestown Campus in June.

The Anne Carlsen Center hosted a successful two-day conference, bringing autism expert Jane Korsten to North Dakota to share her years of experience.

“There are several professionals here at the Center who have worked with Jane in the past and found her to be amazing,” says Adrianne Dempsey, ACC’s Program Coordinator, evaluations and trainings. “Her concern is always with the students. Her idea is everyone has a modality of communication.”

Korsten has spent more than three decades working with children and adults who have communication impairments associated with autism, severe multiple differences and developmental differences. At this conference she presented “EMC3: Every Move Counts Clicks and Chats” at the Anne Carlsen Center’s Jamestown Campus on June 15-16.

“Communication is really what gives our life meaning,” says Korsten. “When you cannot interact or get it for yourself, you become dependent on other people. Kids are just like us – they have the same needs and frustrations. Because of their physical differences we are sometimes slow to recognize their ability to communicate.”

The conference was attended by therapists, direct care staff, educators and families of individuals with disabilities. One parent attending her first ACC conference, Kelli Sitzler, said she knows how important it is to begin mastering a variety of methods of communication.

“It is essential in day-to-day life for everyone, not just people who can’t talk, to communicate,” Sitzler says. “If someone was on the fence about attending, I would encourage them to do it. The process is awesome.”

“When people come to the conferences, it is amazing to see when they get on board,” says Korsten. “You get not just one person, but all of them looking through the same lens.”

The Anne Carlsen Center has its next 2010 conference scheduled for Oct. 6-7 in Grand Forks as Dr. Jonathan Tarbox will present “Challenging Behaviors and Designing Effective Assessments and Interventions.” CEUs have been approved for this conference.

For more information about Korsten and her work as principal investigator of an Innovative Research Grant funded through the National Institutes of Health, visit www.everymovecounts.net. To learn more about upcoming learning opportunities as well as ACC’s slate of workshops and conferences, visit www.annecenter.org