Dr. Roger Jou, 230 S Frontage Road, New Haven, CT (2025)

Q: What is the website?

https://www.meetup.com/ProjectCASY/

11/07/2025

CASY Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (ethnography project led by Dr. Dawn Prince-Hughes) is delighted to welcome Reese Ramponi, APRN on Monday, December 15, 2025, 5-6 p.m. EST (2 p.m. PST, 10 p.m. GMT). There is no cost to attend, and international participants are invited to attend. RSVP online though our free Meetup group https://www.meetup.com/projectcasy/events/311893452/

TOPIC: Self-Diagnosis, Official Diagnosis, & Autistic Validity

DESCRIPTION: Do I need an 'official' diagnosis? Is it safe to have autism documented in my medical record? What if I recognize autism in myself but don’t have access to formal evaluation?

In this community-centered talk, we’ll explore the landscape of autism diagnosis today — from medical gatekeeping and insurance challenges to identity, safety, and self-determination. Together, we will explore:

- The legitimacy of self-diagnosis and self-identification within autistic culture
- Who gets left out when we rely on the “gold standard” of medical diagnosis
- How diagnosis can act as a gatekeeping tool (and why that harms marginalized communities)
- The real pros and cons of getting an official diagnosis (e.g., services, medical records, access issues)
- Why someone may choose to seek a diagnosis — and why not getting one is equally valid
- How community, peer validation, and autistic culture can replace institutional approval

Whether you’re autistic, questioning, a caregiver, a clinician, or someone who wants to better understand how self-diagnosis fits into autistic culture, this conversation is for you.

BRIEF BIO: Reese Ramponi, APRN (they/she) is an Autistic/ADHD Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner, educator, and consultant. After moving from Alaska to the East Coast in 2009, Reese studied Religion and Psychology at Dartmouth College before completing Yale’s Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner program in 2018. With over a decade of experience in q***r and neurodiversity advocacy, Reese has worked as a photographer, healthcare educator, and consultant. Their clinical expertise spans neurodiversity-affirming care, ketamine therapy, existential therapy, and gender identity development in youth and young adults. Reese also facilitates trainings at conferences and healthcare facilities and runs retreats for neurodivergent therapists. Learn more https://linktr.ee/reese.ramponi

ABOUT Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (CASY): An 'ethnography' is an exploration of how a group of people express themselves in a cultural way. Autistic people have a growing kind of culture, and each autistic experience is a vital part of it. Dr. Dawn Prince-Hughes is an anthropologist, ethnographer, primatologist, and author who is autistic. Join her for an exploration of the importance of autistic self-expression and the culture that grows from it. Those who wish to share their content are free to do so on our private Facebook groups (see below), organically contributing to a growing autistic culture.

Links to online events will also be shared on these private Facebook groups: CASY Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (recommended for autistic adults) and SOCIAL CONNECTIVITY FOR AUTISM (recommended for allies, professionals, and family members).

CREDITS: The preparation of this material was financed under an agreement with the CT Council on Developmental Disabilities (CTCDD). CASY Sparks membership and events are free. CASY Sparks is sponsored in part by The Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation https://djfiddlefoundation.org/ Adult Autism Research Fund, and Dr. Roger Jou https://www.youtube.com/c/DrRogerJou

11/06/2025

SHORT NOTICE: Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (CASY, ethnography project led by Dr. Dawn Prince-Hughes) is delighted to welcome Isha Sarah Snow on Friday, November 14, 2025, 2pm EST (11am PST, 7pm GMT). There is no cost to attend, and international participants are welcome. For this and future events, RSVP by joining our free Meetup group online at https://www.meetup.com/projectcasy/events/310839926/

TITLE: Autism in America: One Woman’s Search for Healing

DESCRIPTION: In this talk, I share insights from my book 𝘈𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘮 𝘪𝘯 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢: 𝘖𝘯𝘦 𝘞𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯’𝘴 𝘚𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘩 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨, which reframes autism as a social mirror reflecting the deeper pathologies of our culture. Drawing from my lived experience as an autistic woman, as well as sociological, psychological, and anthropological research, I introduce Autistic Standpoint Theory which is a framework that situates autistic ways of sensing, processing, and relating as epistemologically valuable forms of knowing. Autistic Standpoint Theory challenges the deficit-based narratives that dominate psychology and education and argues that the so-called “impairments” of autism like literal communication, sensory attunement, and deep moral consistency are in fact adaptive responses to a dysregulated society. When we listen to autistic perspectives, we begin to see how social hierarchies, coercive norms, and linguistic domination fragment collective well-being.

This talk invites audiences to consider autism as both a product and a diagnosis of civilization and as a living critique of systems that prioritize control over connection. Ultimately, I propose a trauma-informed, relational approach to social healing that values neurodivergent insight as essential to reimagining education, governance, and community life.

BRIEF BIO: Isha Snow is a sociologist, neurodivergent scholar, and trauma-informed systems theorist currently studying at Washington State University in Vancouver. Her work bridges emotional healing, structural justice, and relational transformation. She integrates critical theory, systems thinking, and somatic knowledge to create tools for decolonial, healing-centered social change. Isha’s research and teaching focus on transforming institutions from systems of harm into systems of care, making liberation not only political, but deeply personal and relational.

ABOUT Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (CASY): An 'ethnography' is an exploration of how a group of people express themselves in a cultural way. Autistic people have a growing kind of culture, and each autistic experience is a vital part of it. Dr. Dawn Prince-Hughes is an anthropologist, ethnographer, primatologist, and author who is autistic. Join her for an exploration of the importance of autistic self-expression and the culture that grows from it. Those who wish to share their content are free to do so on our private Facebook groups (see below), organically contributing to a growing autistic culture.

Links to online events will also be shared on these private Facebook groups: CASY Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (recommended for autistic adults) and SOCIAL CONNECTIVITY FOR AUTISM (recommended for allies, professionals, and family members).

CREDITS: The preparation of this material was financed under an agreement with the CT Council on Developmental Disabilities (CTCDD). CASY Sparks membership and events are free. CASY Sparks is sponsored in part by The Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation https://djfiddlefoundation.org/ Adult Autism Research Fund, and Dr. Roger Jou https://www.youtube.com/c/DrRogerJou

11/05/2025

Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (CASY, ethnography project led by Dr. Dawn Prince-Hughes) is delighted to welcome Maisie Soetantyo, M.Ed. on Tuesday, January 20, 4-5:30 pm EST (1pm PST, 9pm GMT). There is no cost to attend, and international participants are welcome. For this and future events, RSVP by joining our free Meetup group online at https://www.meetup.com/projectcasy/events/311874631/

TITLE: Crafting a Neurodivergent-Friendly Consulting Career: Work that Works for You

DESCRIPTION: Are you a neurodivergent professional exploring a career change or dreaming of having meaningful work that truly fits your life? This 1.5-hour interactive session is designed for autistic and other neurodivergent individuals who want to use their strengths to thrive as consultants, mentors, or coaches supporting kids, teens, and adults with a similar neurotype. This workshop blends lived experience, professional expertise, and self-exploration. Rather than forcing yourself into systems that don’t fit, you’ll be invited to reflect, share, and brainstorm ways to design a consulting career that aligns with your strengths, special interests, values, and needs. This event is a unique opportunity to reflect, ask questions, compare and contrast ideas, and leave with an action list to guide your next steps.

Learning Goals:

· Discover who you are as an autistic/neurodivergent person.

· Use your strengths and special/specific interests to nurture clients’ interests.

· Explore consulting/coaching career ideas.

· Build an action list towards the career path you want to have.

BRIF BIO: Maisie Soetantyo, M.Ed. an openly autistic Certified Customized Employment Specialist with over 30 years of coaching and consulting experience. Learn more at Autismcareerpathways www.autismcareerpathways.org | https://www.linkedin.com/in/maisie-soetantyo/

ABOUT Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (CASY): An 'ethnography' is an exploration of how a group of people express themselves in a cultural way. Autistic people have a growing kind of culture, and each autistic experience is a vital part of it. Dr. Dawn Prince-Hughes is an anthropologist, ethnographer, primatologist, and author who is autistic. Join her for an exploration of the importance of autistic self-expression and the culture that grows from it. Those who wish to share their content are free to do so on our private Facebook groups (see below), organically contributing to a growing autistic culture.

Links to online events will also be shared on these private Facebook groups: CASY Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (recommended for autistic adults) and SOCIAL CONNECTIVITY FOR AUTISM (recommended for allies, professionals, and family members).

CREDITS: The preparation of this material was financed under an agreement with the CT Council on Developmental Disabilities (CTCDD). CASY Sparks membership and events are free. CASY Sparks is sponsored in part by The Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation https://djfiddlefoundation.org/ Adult Autism Research Fund, and Dr. Roger Jou https://www.youtube.com/c/DrRogerJou

11/01/2025

CASY Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (ethnography project led by Dr. Dawn Prince-Hughes) is delighted to welcome Sam Farmer on Friday, January 23, 2026, 12-1 p.m. EST (9 a.m. PST, 5 p.m. GMT, 6 p.m. CET). There is no cost to attend, and international participants are invited to join. RSVP online though our borderless Meetup group https://www.meetup.com/projectcasy/events/311812298/

TOPIC: The Disabling Burden of Neuronormativity. A long time ago, society’s neurotypical majority established a set of expectations as to how one should behave, communicate, socialize, relate to the world around them, think and learn, in essence, exist, without taking neurodivergent individuals into account. As such, these expectations around what it means to be "normal" exclude, disable and punish us. During this presentation, I will discuss examples of how neuronormativity has and continues to adversely affect us and what can be done to address this problem. Relevant reading: Autistic Personal Philosophy: The Disabling Burden of Neuronormativity https://tinyurl.com/3r4jdd32

BRIEF BIO: Sam Farmer is an information technology consultant, neurodiversity advocate, writer, author and public speaker. Identified later in life as autistic, he writes articles, records podcasts and presents at libraries, conferences and for corporations and autism community organizations, sharing stories of lived experiences and his opinions on a variety of topics of relevance to the neurodiversity and disability communities. 𝘼 𝙇𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙒𝙖𝙡𝙠 𝘿𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙖 𝙒𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙍𝙤𝙖𝙙 - 𝙎𝙢𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙎𝙩𝙚𝙥𝙨, 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙨, & 𝙏𝙧𝙞𝙪𝙢𝙥𝙝𝙨 𝙏𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙖𝙣 𝘼𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙘 𝙇𝙚𝙣𝙨 is his first book. To learn more, visit https://www.samfarmerauthor.com/ | https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-farmer-0204a81/

ABOUT Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (CASY): An 'ethnography' is an exploration of how a group of people express themselves in a cultural way. Autistic people have a growing kind of culture, and each autistic experience is a vital part of it. Dr. Dawn Prince-Hughes is an anthropologist, ethnographer, primatologist, and author who is autistic. Join her for an exploration of the importance of autistic self-expression and the culture that grows from it. Those who wish to share their content are free to do so on our private Facebook groups (see below), organically contributing to a growing autistic culture.

Links to online events will also be shared on these private Facebook groups: CASY Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (recommended for autistic adults) and SOCIAL CONNECTIVITY FOR AUTISM (recommended for allies, professionals, and family members).

CREDITS: The preparation of this material was financed under an agreement with the CT Council on Developmental Disabilities (CTCDD). CASY Sparks membership and events are free. CASY Sparks is sponsored in part by The Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation https://djfiddlefoundation.org/ Adult Autism Research Fund, and Dr. Roger Jou https://www.youtube.com/c/DrRogerJou

11/01/2025

CASY Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (ethnography project led by Dr. Dawn Prince-Hughes) is delighted to welcome Sam Farmer on Friday, February 6, 2026, 12-1 p.m. EST (9 a.m. PST, 5 p.m. GMT, 6 p.m. CET). There is no cost to attend, and international participants are invited to join. RSVP online though our borderless Meetup group https://www.meetup.com/projectcasy/events/311814632/

TOPIC: Empathy and Social Progress Through an Autistic Lens. I cannot think of an act that could do more to address society’s ills than empathy. I lament that I don’t see enough of it being practiced. Not nearly enough. The ability to see another individual's perspective, to metaphorically "walk in their shoes," could be transformative if practiced at scale. During this presentation, I will discuss the various ways in which empathy may be exercised, the barriers that stand in its way and how more of it could help bring us closer together, all through my uniquely autistic lens. Relevant Reading: Autistic Personal Philosophy: Empathy and Social Progress https://tinyurl.com/4dkbwctn

BRIEF BIO: Sam Farmer is an information technology consultant, neurodiversity advocate, writer, author and public speaker. Identified later in life as autistic, he writes articles, records podcasts and presents at libraries, conferences and for corporations and autism community organizations, sharing stories of lived experiences and his opinions on a variety of topics of relevance to the neurodiversity and disability communities. 𝘼 𝙇𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙒𝙖𝙡𝙠 𝘿𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙖 𝙒𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙍𝙤𝙖𝙙 - 𝙎𝙢𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙎𝙩𝙚𝙥𝙨, 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙨, & 𝙏𝙧𝙞𝙪𝙢𝙥𝙝𝙨 𝙏𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙖𝙣 𝘼𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙘 𝙇𝙚𝙣𝙨 is his first book. To learn more, visit https://www.samfarmerauthor.com/ | https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-farmer-0204a81/

ABOUT Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (CASY): An 'ethnography' is an exploration of how a group of people express themselves in a cultural way. Autistic people have a growing kind of culture, and each autistic experience is a vital part of it. Dr. Dawn Prince-Hughes is an anthropologist, ethnographer, primatologist, and author who is autistic. Join her for an exploration of the importance of autistic self-expression and the culture that grows from it. Those who wish to share their content are free to do so on our private Facebook groups (see below), organically contributing to a growing autistic culture.

Links to online events will also be shared on these private Facebook groups: CASY Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (recommended for autistic adults) and SOCIAL CONNECTIVITY FOR AUTISM (recommended for allies, professionals, and family members).

CREDITS: The preparation of this material was financed under an agreement with the CT Council on Developmental Disabilities (CTCDD). CASY Sparks membership and events are free. CASY Sparks is sponsored in part by The Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation https://djfiddlefoundation.org/ Adult Autism Research Fund, and Dr. Roger Jou https://www.youtube.com/c/DrRogerJou

10/30/2025

The video recording of this talk by Dr. Ariel Cascio is now available for free viewing https://youtu.be/CDkb0NbDVTM
-------------------------
TITLE: Living Ethics Hangouts with Ariel Cascio (3/31/25): Ableism in Mental Health Care
-------------------------
DESCRIPTION: Living Ethics Hangouts with Ariel Cascio. Ethics refers to the study of good and bad. Key ethics questions include “what is the good life?” “How do we achieve a good life?” “What do we owe one another?” and “What should we do?” To answer these questions, we can think about things like values, preferences, harms, and benefits. There are often no easy answers. In these ethics hangouts, we will chat informally about everyday ethical issues that impact autistic people. Each hangout will center around a specific topic and meeting times will vary.
-------------------------
Original posting https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1CqLub2vfN/

10/30/2025

The video recording of this talk by Dr. Amandine Catala is now available for free viewing https://youtu.be/A-Q7U1QSX2w
-------------------------
TITLE: Reclaiming Embodiment and Affectivity in Autism to Resist Neuronormativity
-------------------------
DESCRIPTION: Neuronormativity consists in the imposition of neurotypical assumptions, norms, and practices upon all human beings, regardless of their neurotypes. Neuronormativity imposes its constraints on the way humans are expected to navigate space, time, and social interactions and communication. Because neuronormativity is usually quite harmful to Autistics, it is important to consider how we might resist it. In this talk, I use tools from philosophical accounts of justice and of cognition to center the embodied and affective dimensions of autism, and to show how they might help us to resist neuronormativity.
-------------------------
Original posting https://www.facebook.com/share/p/17J5npkt2g/

10/30/2025

The video recording of this talk Reese Ramponi, APRN is now available for free viewing https://youtu.be/vVxjBKgBMlU
-------------------------
TITLE: Autism and Psychiatry: Redefining Care Through the Neurodiversity Paradigm
-------------------------
DESCRIPTION: This presentation/conversation explores the neurodiversity paradigm versus the medical model in psychiatry. Reese will discuss how psychiatric practices often medicate symptoms without addressing the root causes of distress, such as sensory overwhelm or lack of accommodations, and share insights from their work as a neurodiversity affirming psychiatric nurse practitioner (APRN). Guiding questions: How can medication benefit autistic people, not as a ‘treatment’ for autism, but as a tool for navigating life in a neurotypical world? How can we utilize medication, while also focusing on community-based healing as an alternative to traditional medical approaches?
-------------------------
Original posting https://www.facebook.com/share/p/17kfnUPoyE/

10/30/2025

The video recording of this talk by Dr. Sarah Boland is now available for free viewing https://youtu.be/s9ZKtKdCxiQ
-------------------------
TITLE: Neuro-Affirming Considerations Working with Autistic Adults: A Primer for Clinicians
-------------------------
DESCRIPTION: Join us as we discuss important clinical considerations when working with neurodivergent populations. Conversation will focus on accessible tools and approaches within the therapeutic context and strength-based individualized practices when conducting assessments. The presentation will also aim to provide information on the Therapeutic Assessment Model and focus on the use of neuro-affirming language in report writing.
-------------------------
Original posting https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1EfUo3mDqf/

10/24/2025

SHORT NOTICE: Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (CASY, ethnography project led by Dr. Dawn Prince-Hughes) is delighted to welcome Drs. Ariel Cascio and Alice Scavarda on Tuesday, October 28, 12:00pm EDT (9am PDT, 4pm GMT, 5pm CET). There is no cost to attend, and international participants are welcome. For this and future events, RSVP by joining our free Meetup group online at https://www.meetup.com/projectcasy/events/311688666/

TITLE: Conversation on Community Participatory and Emancipatory Research

DESCRIPTION: CASY collaborators from both Italy and the United States discuss community participatory and emancipatory research as it applies to autism communities. This discussion is co-led by Drs. Ariel Cascio and Alice Scavarda. Special guests Ilaria Minio Paluello and Eleonora Marocchini will also be joining the conversation.

[SESSION UPDATE: 10/27/2025] Taking our first steps: participatory autism research in Italy. Collaboration across different disciplines, neurotypes, and social roles is helping to deconstruct the conceptualizations and practices that have long hindered autism research—its validity, ethics, and relevance to autistic communities. We would like to share our experiences and reflections as autistic and non-autistic researchers and self-advocates who, together with others, are working to advance and promote participatory autism research in Italy. The Italian context seems to be slightly unprepared to participatory clinical research in general, and participatory autism research specifically. We will present some of the negatives and the positives of some of our first attempts at making autism research more equitable through participatory practices.

BRIEF BIOS:
Alice Scavarda, Ph.D. (Sociology), is Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Torino. She is a member of Disability Studies Italy and a Founding Member of Graphic Medicine Italia. Her research interests revolve around Critical Autism Studies, Sociology of Health and Illness and Qualitative Methods. She is committed to deepening the methodological and ethical aspects of doing participatory and emancipatory research with neurodivergent people. Moreover, she is studying the development of the neurodiversity paradigm in Italy.

Ariel Cascio, Ph.D. (Anthropology) is an anthropologist and assistant professor in the Center for Bioethics and Social Justice at Michigan State University. Their research focuses on social and ethical issues around autism, cognitive difference and disability, and neurodiversity in Europe and North America, with a particular focus on Italy. They host Living Ethics Hangouts with CASY. You can read their research at https://arielcascio.wordpress.com/

Drs. Scavarda and Cascio are co-authors of papers such as “Embracing and rejecting the medicalization of autism in Italy. Social Science and Medicine” (2022), “Fare ricerca qualitativa con persone disabili: possibili sfide e benefici. Welfare e Ergonomia, (2021, with V. Qu***ia) and “’Children should be raised like this’: A history of the neurodiversity movement in Italy and its implications for children’s wellbeing” (2024) https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/chso.12898

Ilaria Minio Paluello, Ph.D. works at the Institute for Cognitive Sciences and Technologies of the Italian National Research Council and at the Social Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Sapienza University of Rome. Her research interests include exploring heterogeneity among autistic people, identity recognition as a potential endophenotype in autism, and the processing of social and non-social touch. In addition to her research, she has led several co-produced projects with autistic self-advocates, ranging from improving university accessibility for autistic students, to promoting support for autistic individuals at risk of su***de, to raising awareness about participatory autism research.

Eleonora Marocchini, Ph.D. is a neurodivergent psycholinguist, an independent researcher in Social Sciences at the Institute for Globally Distributed Open Research and Education (IGDORE) and Critical Neurodiversity Studies Fellow at the University of Durham for 2025/2026. She obtained her PhD in Psychology and Cognitive Science at the University of Genova in 2022. While writing her PhD thesis on empathy and pragmatic communication in autism, she got in contact with critical works in Disability and Neurodiversity Studies, as well as Science and Technology Studies, challenging traditional and pathologising approaches to cognitive diversity. She left traditional academia and started conducting independent research while working as a freelance communicator and consultant.

ABOUT Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (CASY): An 'ethnography' is an exploration of how a group of people express themselves in a cultural way. Autistic people have a growing kind of culture, and each autistic experience is a vital part of it. Dr. Dawn Prince-Hughes is an anthropologist, ethnographer, primatologist, and author who is autistic. Join her for an exploration of the importance of autistic self-expression and the culture that grows from it. Those who wish to share their content are free to do so on our private Facebook groups (see below), organically contributing to a growing autistic culture.

Links to online events will also be shared on these private Facebook groups: CASY Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (recommended for autistic adults) and SOCIAL CONNECTIVITY FOR AUTISM (recommended for allies, professionals, and family members).

CREDITS: The preparation of this material was financed under an agreement with the CT Council on Developmental Disabilities (CTCDD). CASY Sparks membership and events are free. CASY Sparks is sponsored in part by The Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation https://djfiddlefoundation.org/ Adult Autism Research Fund, and Dr. Roger Jou https://www.youtube.com/c/DrRogerJou

10/22/2025

Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (CASY, ethnography project led by Dr. Dawn Prince-Hughes) is delighted to welcome Stacy Greeter, MD; Charnell Widnall, LMHC; Kimberly Rust, PhD; and Alie Garza, LCSW on Monday, March 23, 6:30pm EDT (5:30pm CDT, 3:30pm PDT). There is no cost to attend, and international participants are welcome. For this and future events, RSVP by joining our free Meetup group online at https://www.meetup.com/projectcasy/events/311626395/

TITLE: How Do We Effectively Change Pathologizing Perspectives on Neurodivergence?

DESCRIPTION: What will it take for the neurodiversity paradigm to become widely accepted within academia, medical practice, and society at large? How do we effectively broaden the perspectives of those entrenched in strictly deficit-based models? Drawing upon a diverse body of research from neurobiology, political science, sociology, and psychology, panelists will explore the greatest barriers to shifting from a deficit-based model to a neurodiversity-affirming model and propose solutions on multiple scales: one-on-one with individual patients / parents, within academic systems, and throughout society at large. With the recent rise in misinformation and heightened polarization of communities, this presentation has far-reaching implications.

BRIEF BIOS:
Stacy Greeter, MD (she/her) is an Autistic and ADHD child/adolescent and adult psychiatrist with a group practice located in Sarasota, FL, who sees patients via telehealth in Florida, Colorado, and Washington State. Learn more on YouTube or https://stacygreetermd.com

Charnell Widnall, LMHC (she/her) is an Autistic Licensed Mental Health Counselor in private practice in Tampa, FL. She offers counseling exclusively to Autistic adolescents and adults and their families.

Kimberly Rust, PhD (she/her) is a neurodivergent psychologist doing therapy and assessments in Deland, FL.

Alie Garza LCSW (she/her) draws on her own lived experience with OCD and ADHD and runs OCD and Anxiety Center of Colorado, a neurodiversity affirming intensive outpatient program in Denver, CO. Learn more at https://ocdanxietycolorado.com/

ABOUT Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (CASY): An 'ethnography' is an exploration of how a group of people express themselves in a cultural way. Autistic people have a growing kind of culture, and each autistic experience is a vital part of it. Dr. Dawn Prince-Hughes is an anthropologist, ethnographer, primatologist, and author who is autistic. Join her for an exploration of the importance of autistic self-expression and the culture that grows from it. Those who wish to share their content are free to do so on our private Facebook groups (see below), organically contributing to a growing autistic culture.

Links to online events will also be shared on these private Facebook groups: CASY Cultural Autism Studies at Yale (recommended for autistic adults) and SOCIAL CONNECTIVITY FOR AUTISM (recommended for allies, professionals, and family members).

CREDITS: The preparation of this material was financed under an agreement with the CT Council on Developmental Disabilities (CTCDD). CASY Sparks membership and events are free. CASY Sparks is sponsored in part by The Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation https://djfiddlefoundation.org/ Adult Autism Research Fund, and
Dr. Roger Jou https://www.youtube.com/c/DrRogerJou

Dr. Roger Jou

11/07/2025

11/06/2025

11/05/2025

11/01/2025

11/01/2025

10/30/2025

10/30/2025

10/30/2025

10/30/2025

10/24/2025

10/22/2025

Address

Website

Alerts

Shortcuts

Share

Category