Aubyn Stahmer

The purpose of this study is to examine how system-wide (i.e., region, district, and school) mechanisms such as leadership support, training requirements, structure, collaboration, and prior education affect teachers' use of evidence-based practices (EBPs) and, in turn, how this affects outcomes for students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Despite growing evidence for the positive effects of EBPs for a wide range of treatment targets in children with ASD, these practices are not consist...

The goal of this project is to examine the efficacy of Project ImPACT for Toddlers (PIT), a naturalistic intervention that focuses on building parents' capacity to support the social communication development of their children with or at risk for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in community-based early intervention settings. Focusing on toddlers is important because ASD diagnoses are occurring earlier and there is evidence that intervening at the first signs of ASD risk, even before diagnosis...

The Principal Investigator (PI) will conduct a program of research for improving Part C early intervention (EI) providers' implementation of parent-mediated interventions with families of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) while participating in mentoring and training activities to develop knowledge and skills related to parent coaching, mixed-methods research, community-partnered participatory research, and grant writing. Research demonstrates that parent-mediated early interventi...

The research team proposed to improve developmental outcomes and school readiness of infants and toddlers at risk for autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and their families by adapting an existing empirically supported practice-the Early Start Denver Model (ESDM)-for use in Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) intervention systems in low-income, ethnically diverse community settings. The Program for Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities, commonly known as Part C, is ...

The purpose of this project was to adapt an evidence-based practice for infants and toddlers at risk for ASD and their families. Infants and toddlers who have difficulties in communication, behavior regulation, and developing early relationships are at risk for Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and represent a significant public health challenge. Service providers hesitate to serve very young children with social and communicative difficulties in the hopes that the infants will "grow out" of t...

With increasing rates of autism spectrum disorders (ASD), public schools are straining to provide high-quality, evidence-based programs for these students. Most current evidence-based practices for students with ASD were designed for use in one-on-one or highly controlled settings. Little research to date has examined the effectiveness of specific techniques in the context of school systems.