成功的灵感

佩顿Boudreau, 中科院 “18岁, 医师 ’20, 一直梦想着打开自己的学习环境, 但她从未想到事情会发生得这么快. In 2020, just a few months after graduating from OU, she founded 激发自闭症 with the help of friend and fellow alumnus, 安娜·詹金斯，中科院18届和医师 20届. 激发自闭症 is an agency that provides Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) services to children on the autism spectrum. 佩顿’s husband, 詹姆斯 Boudreau，中科院18届和医师 20届, joined the team a year later. 的 story of their success begins with their individual discoveries of a shared passion.

佩顿对自闭症的兴趣源于, 作为一名幼师, she encountered children who struggled in a traditional learning environment. She came to OU seeking a psychology degree in the hopes of acquiring skills to help such children overcome their challenges. 类似的, 詹姆斯 always knew he wanted to work with children in some capacity, so when he and 佩顿 were introduced to ABA therapy — a psychology-based practice that assists individuals on the autism spectrum with social and adaptive skills — both knew they had found their calling.

詹金斯, 另一方面, discovered her desire to help children on the autism spectrum while working at the 十大菠菜台子ABA自闭症诊所. It was here that 詹金斯 and 佩顿 first bonded over their shared “passions and values,佩顿说。. 的 two worked one-on-one with preschool-aged children on the spectrum, 帮助他们沟通, 适应和行为技能.

的 十大菠菜台子 Lowry Center for Early Childhood Education — an education program for children 18 months to five years of age — occasionally children from the ABA Autism Clinic joined in group activities and demonstrate their newly acquired skills. 的 interaction between the clinic and preschool solidified 佩顿’s future.

佩顿Boudreau, 中科院 18级和医师 20级

“This was where I truly fell in love with ABA therapy,佩顿说。. 在这些概括的过程中, we could see how effective ABA principles were because our kids did well in the new environment. 也, being in the Lowry Center helped us see what skills our children would need to work on to have more success in a typical preschool setting.”

佩顿 and 詹金斯 are thankful for the breadth of experience they received in the clinic, 与副教授和临床主任一起工作, 杰西卡Korneder, Ph.D.和主管凯尔茜·鲁芬.

安娜·詹金斯，中科院18届和医师 20届

“我们获得了有效运行ABA项目所需的技能,詹金斯说。, ，包括处理大量案件, 监督团队成员并支持中心运作.”

While 佩顿 and 詹金斯 gained practicum experience in the ABA Autism Clinic, 詹姆斯 found work offsite through an adjunct professor who operated a local ABA agency. 詹姆斯 loves that many of the ABA professors concurrently work in the field. 他们不仅帮助学生找到工作, 但“他们也精通你需要学习的一切.”

詹姆斯 Boudreau，中科院18届和医师 20届

詹姆斯, 佩顿, 詹金斯对俄勒冈州立大学律师协会项目的小群体表示赞赏, with groups of around 20 students progressing through the program together. It allowed them to facilitate collaborative relationships, such as the one they had with Dr. Korneder, who recruited them to research new ABA certification standards, helping her modify syllabi as well as update and develop courses.

“Anna, 詹姆斯 and 佩顿 exemplified exceptional clinical and academic skills,” Korneder says. “他们是美国律师协会自闭症诊所的宝贵财富, 开放大学的ABA本科和研究生课程, 都是支持我的校友.”

Fully equipped with knowledge and experience, 佩顿 and 詹金斯 graduated during the COVID pandemic. 不想耽误她的梦想, 佩顿 decided to create her own opportunity by becoming a business owner amid a global shutdown. She reached out to her friend and trusted colleague, 詹金斯, for help. In September 2020, 激发自闭症 began to service its first client. 詹姆斯于2021年10月加入.

慢慢地, through word of mouth and connections with pediatricians and diagnosticians, 启发自闭症成长. 现在, 佩顿和詹姆斯负责三个地点的运营, 詹金斯是他们诺维中心的临床主任. 的y employ eight board-certified behavior analysts and 30 registered behavior technicians. 另外, 他们通过招收公开大学的实习学生来回馈社会, a task they feel well-equipped for after having a close hand in writing the syllabi that guide their education.

图片由Inspire Autism提供

比如俄勒冈州立大学的ABA自闭症诊所, the focus at 激发自闭症 is early intervention (first diagnosis through age five), 给孩子们最大的成功机会. One-on-one therapy is paired with group work that “replicates the school environment and prepares kids for school placement,詹姆斯解释道。.

詹姆斯, 佩顿 and 詹金斯 have much to say about what makes 激发自闭症 a special place, including the intimate groups of similarly aged children that allow relationships to develop.

“I think we’ve created an environment where the children become close to each other,詹金斯说。, “and that’s going to generalize when they go to a new environment.”

“Another thing that’s important to me is the amount of supervision,” adds 佩顿. “Keeping caseloads small helps everyone focus on the children and offers plenty of support for all involved, 包括父母.”

的 three 教育与公共服务学院 alumni believe in the power of creating a joyful learning environment where children on the autism spectrum are not only respected as individuals but are given the tools to help them navigate future learning environments with independence.