Autism/Expert Profile

Expertise

Sharon can help with parenting and educational concerns. She has worked in teaching, special education, counseling and consultingfor over thirty years and gives workshops to educators and parents on working with kids with autism spectrum disorders. Sharon speaks from both the education and parent points of view, having a son with Asperger's.

Experience in the area

Sharon is a special education consultant with a school district and autism consult for the province's Department of Education, giving workshops and individual consults. She is also the parent of a son with Asperger's who is away at university. Together they have a website at http://www.autismsite.ca that offers strategies for home and school. Sharon's Master's thesis looked at the long-term outlook for persons with high functioning autism and Asperger's. Her Doctorate focused on strategies to help those with autism spectrum disorders

Organizations

Website at http://www.autismsite.ca and sits on Autism Today's Panel of Experts (www.autismtoday.com)

Publications

Author of "School Daze" ebook - a novel about autism that ranked #1 on Amazon in Behavior and Special Needs Parenting. Check out the free sample available on Amazon at (http://tinyurl.com/7ps7y7m). It's available in other formats at http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/156913. You can find more information on what's behind the book at School Daze - Autism Goes to School. Care to add a review? Or share your thoughts on the last sentence of the write-up? Co-author of Amazon.com bestseller, The Official Autism 101 Manual (http://autism101manual.com/).

Education/Credentials

B.A. in Psychology, B.Ed. in Special Education, M.A. in Educational Leadership PhD. in Psychology Management, specializing in autism.

Awards and Honors

B.R.A.G. Medallion for the novel Autism Goes to School - Book 1 in the School Daze Series. (http://www.bragmedallion.com/medallion-honorees/2013/school-daze-autism-goes-to-school).

What do you still hope to achieve/learn in this field?

My main interest is in helping people achieve as high a level of independence as they can, no matter what their intellectual ability. Too many kids with Asperger's and high functioning autism end up living in their parents' basements, unemployed, underemployed and undereducated.

Something interesting about this subject that others may not know:

In the United States the rate of autism spectrum disorders is now 1:88, as of March, 2012 - 1 in 54 for boys and 1 in 252 for girls. Read more at http://www.autismspeaks.org/blog/2012/03/29/tune-alerts.

Something controversial or provocative about this subject

Despite having average intelligence less than one fifth of young adults with Asperger's live independently.