Program on Supports

The Institute’s Program on Supports is focused on developing a continuum of resources to serve the day-to-day needs of individuals with autism, including training materials, model programs, and research‐based practices, centered around principles of positive, naturalistic, humane support, and the presumption that individuals with autism are competent—even if they face significant challenges demonstrating it through communication and initiation.

Our primary focus is on individuals with autism who have limited or minimally-verbal communication; behavioral, sensory and motor challenges; and the need for significant day-to-day support. While the Institute is not an activity center or fee-for-service clinic, the Institute develops a variety of programs and activities for individuals with autism. These exploratory programs and activity groups support development of best practices that can act as models for replication in other communities.

We work to translate research findings related to intervention, communication, and inclusive education into resources that a) have sufficient evidence as first-line approaches, and b) increase the access of families and schools to practical, implementable materials that will change how people with autism are supported day-to-day.

We believe that naturalistic, inclusive, behavioral approaches in autism need to be expanded and demonstrated more comprehensively, and that families with autism would benefit from a stronger “roadmap” of supports ranging from the small to the comprehensive:

Introductory materials for families facing a new diagnosis, where existing introductions to autism are often laden with words such as “deficit,” “disorder,” and “impairment”;
Core training materials (4-6 hour trainings, single manuals, brief videos) for parents, teachers, paraprofessionals, and physicians, where a large impact can be created simply by moving from “nothing to something” at a low cost of implementation;
Comprehensive programs such as broad, manualized teaching approaches and curricula for parents and schools, as well trainer-of-trainer approaches to maintain instructional integrity;
Advocacy films demonstrating the impact of educational methods, inclusion, support, and the presumption of competence through examples and personal stories.
Longitudinal materials such as video footage and multi-year studies of multiple individuals, tracking and supporting transition into adolescence and adulthood – to demonstrate what is possible for individuals with autism and identify “active ingredients” that best support learning, communication, and greater independence.

“Our primary focus is on individuals with autism having limited or minimally-verbal communication; behavioral, sensory and motor challenges; and the need for significant day-to-day support.”

Learn about our research programs:

“The soul must be loved as it is.”

Jamie Burke
“Autism awareness can’t stop with a list of what makes people with autism different from us. Because what is essential is the constant awareness of what makes us the same.”

John P. Hussman, Ph.D., Director
“And now here is my secret, a very simple secret: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.”

The Little Prince

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
“We agree with the view that presuming competence is the least dangerous assumption.”

John P. Hussman, Ph.D., Director
“Autism is not disability.”

Jamie Burke
“We are just like you, with the same desires, and just need help to be typical members of society.”

Sue Rubin
“In the end, the best argument for inclusion is the simplest. It’s the one we know by heart – that all of us are created equal.”

John P. Hussman, Ph.D., Director

Program on Supports

“Our primary focus is on individuals with autism having limited or minimally-verbal communication; behavioral, sensory and motor challenges; and the need for significant day-to-day support.”

Positive Behavior Supports

Augmentative and Alternative Communication

Communication and Inclusion