Another Reason to be Proud of My Alma Mater

Over a decade ago when autism was rarely talked about except among parent circles with like-minded children, educators at Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee started a new project with the autistic child of a Lee alum in Florida.  In 1999, Lee students traveled 500+ miles to interact and help the child and family, who eventually moved to Tennessee so students could work more closely with their child.  The case study helped develop the Lee University Developmental Inclusion Classroom (LUDIC) located on the University’s campus in the heart of the Tennessee valley.

Lee’s LUDIC program works with their local school systems to serve 23 autistic students ranging in age from 5 to 10 years old on full-day, half-day or part-time schedules.  Students of the Helen DeVos College of Education (also named for a Floridian) receive practical hands-on education when working with the special children, a key component for preparing the teachers of tomorrow to effectively teach autistic students. In fact, every Lee student pursuing an education degree works in the LUDIC lab school, not just those studying special education.

LUDIC director, Tammy Johnson, notes in articles how important early identification and early intervention are to making the best progress in children with autism, something we’ve discussed in this blog as well (here and here). 

The University recently received one of only six 2009 President’s Higher Education Community Service Awards for its dedication to service-learning and civic responsibilities.  The federal designation came in part due to the 160 Lee students who volunteered over 4,000 hours last year in areas such as autism camp, education planning and family support services in LUDIC. 

In 2003, Lee began hosting the annual Southeastern Autism Symposium that features all areas of autism from communication to sensory development, behavior to healthcare and even adult autism. The 2010 event, titled “In Autism: the Handwriting is on the Wall,” will take place on June 22-25 on the university’s campus. 

It’s good to know that there are colleges and universities, like my alma mater, that are recognizing the need to train tomorrow’s educators to be sensitive and effective teachers for autistic children.  Now that’s what I call Advocating for Special People!