Why Staying in the Field of Autism Matters

There is the heart-swelling feeling of being part of a child’s development; watching them move through life. There is the comfort in our future in knowing that our world reaches our future generation. There is the earnest feeling of knowing that our work matters. There is nothing more important than connecting with a child.

Maverick Crawford III

My name is Maverick Crawford III and I am an African American man with a story that is full of disappointment and abandonment. I grew up in a violent neighborhood where crime, poverty, drugs and bad influences ran rampant throughout the community. The majority of the...

Changing & Shaping Dialogue About Autism: Why it Matters!

Using arbitrary and limiting labels of high functioning and low functioning, with the intent to help one get a “better picture of the person with autism”, is not only insulting, but dehumanizing. Pathologizing reinforces a deficits view of autism. These labels serve no one. No human is all one thing. We each have good days and bad. We all have struggles and strengths.