This week, Dr. Daniel Moreno De Luca tells us more about his work as a Child, Adolescent and Adult Psychiatrist, as well as an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior at Brown University. As a physician-scientist, he incorporates genetics research into his clinical practice and uses the field to bring precision medicine to psychiatry. 

He tells the story of his journey as a physician-scientist and highlights the importance of representation among individuals of different backgrounds, languages and cultures in the medical field.

JAMA Network Article by Dr. Moreno De Luca —
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2772252?preview=true&utm_source=TrendMD&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Journal_of_American_Medical_Association_TrendMD_1

Exploring Outer Space and Beyond: Realizing Worlds within Autism (Part II)

In celebration of National Horticultural Therapy week (March 14 - 20, 2021), Rutgers Psychology graduate student, Master Gardener and horticultural therapy intern, Elisabeth Black shares her words of wisdom and experiences with gardening as well as helping her students learn the art and science of gardening. 

Elisabeth is also a high school teacher for students with special needs, and teaches several classes with organizations like JoyDew Foundation and schools like New Road School of NJ and Hunterdon Central Regional High School. She is currently studying how horticultural therapy can positively impact individuals, especially her autistic students, using biomarkers and other quantitative methods.

Seeds for Thought: The Importance of Horticultural Therapy

This episode, Elizabeth Rosenzweig shares her story as she pursues her PhD in Quantitative Biomedicine at Rutgers University, New Brunswick. Her thesis research focuses on statistical methods and software development for group-based modeling of longitudinal data using maximum likelihood estimation. She speaks about obstacles she has faced in her life and the importance of believing in yourself and being supported by others who believe in you, especially as an autistic self-advocate.

Follow us on Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/NJAutismCenterofExcellence

Believing in Yourself: Reflections on quantitative biomedicine, pursuing a PhD and autism advocacy

In this podcast, we are amazed by our sensational guests Jamiyl Samuels and Tracy-Ann Samuels. Jamiyl, a creative writer of novels to screenplays, and Tracy-Ann, a social worker and Rutgers alumnus, are the co-founders of The Amazingly Sensational Kids (T.A.S.K), creating children's books that educate, entertain and empower. 

As parents of an awesome autistic child named Trey Samuels, they have advocated on behalf of this community with respect to access to education and services, anti-bullying, interfamily communications and social dynamics. The T.A.S.K book series, 'The Amazingly Awesome Amani' and 'Sensationally Super Sandy', are inspired by their son Trey's courageous journey as an autistic child navigating the realities of life through his vivid imagination as well as their super daughter Aja Samuels who supports her brother and advocates for autism acceptance and empowerment. 

Links to Resources:
T.A.S.K website - https://www.theamazinglysensationalkids.com
W.r.e.a.c Havoc website - https://www.wreachavoconline.com
Google Document with Resources - https://bit.ly/3oBf6gt
Guide to accessing HCBS by ASAN - https://autisticadvocacy.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Accessing-HCBS-Guide-v1.pdf
Recent news article related to police reform - https://www.monroenews.com/story/news/2021/05/21/mimis-mission-carleton-police-joins-effort-protect-autistic-children/5176600001/

The Amazingly Sensational Kids of Jamiyl and Tracy-Ann Samuels

Growing up in Long Island, NY, Khaaliq Crowder is a recent graduate in Journalism from the University of New Haven. He joins us for this fun podcast episode, sharing his experiences as an autistic advocate and media journalist. Highlighting the power of connection, he gives advice for other autistic individuals navigating through college, internships and careers.

Music/ Soundbites featured:
Excerpt from Khaaliq Crowder's video clip from Sirius XM's Sway in the Morning Show ( on Instagram)
Prod. Riddiman - optimistic
Prod. Riddiman - Mixtape - Vintage Hip Hop Freestyle Beat
Arctic Circle Music - Short and Sweet ( LoFi Studying)
TODAY Show - Haley Moss Sets Her Own Limits And Becomes First Autistic Lawyer In Florida

Standing out from the Crowd

In this Autism Thinks episode, Dr. Nadia Rachdaoui shares her story that highlights the importance of mentoring in academia. She was a faculty member at the Endocrinology Program in the Department of Animal Sciences, Rutgers University. She narrates incidents that occurred with her mentors at Rutgers, supported by her colleagues, friends, family and others moved by her story. 
Her story is a story of a true scientist, a story of obstacles and lessons learned along the way— and at the same time, it’s a story of resilience and hope. 

Dr. Rachdaoui's Open Letter - https://sites.google.com/view/mentoring-in-academia/home

NIH Re-entry Supplement Links - 
https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/pa-18-592.html, 
https://orwh.od.nih.gov/career-development-education/research-supplements-promote-re-entry-biomedical-and-behavioral

NIH R21 Grant - https://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/r21.htm

Mentoring in Academia: Dr. Nadia Rachdaoui and Her Story (Part I)

This episode, Dr. Nadia Rachdaoui continues to share her story. She is the founder of biotechnology company, NutrArgan, and a former faculty member at the Endocrinology Program in the Department of Animal Sciences, Rutgers University. Her story is a story of a true scientist, a story of obstacles and lessons learned along the way— and at the same time, it’s a story of resilience and hope. 

NutrArgan, Biotech company founded by Nadia
https://nutrargan.com

Dr. Rachdaoui's Open Letter
https://sites.google.com/view/mentoring-in-academia/home

NIH Re-entry Supplement Links
https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/pa-18-592.html

https://orwh.od.nih.gov/career-development-education/research-supplements-promote-re-entry-biomedical-and-behavioral

NIH R21 Grant
https://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/r21.htm

NIH Grant Policies
 https://grants.nih.gov/policy/nihgps/index.htm

Useful Blogs/ References -
https://www.brains-explained.com/things-to-know-starting-postdoc-part-1/
https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsocialsciences/2021/07/12/an-alternative-approach-to-measuring-community-engagement-in-higher-education/
https://neuronline.sfn.org/professional-development/recognizing-and-addressing-power-dynamics-in-science-and-academia
https://today.duke.edu/2020/03/confronting-power-dynamics-academia

Mentoring in Academia: Dr. Nadia Rachdaoui and Her Story (Part II)

Dr. Emily Reiser joins us this Autism Thinks episode, sharing how she makes innovation dreams come true. As a Senior Manager of Innovation Community Engagement, she helps aspiring entrepreneurs and startups launch new technologies for public health at the Texas Medical Center's innovation arm, TMC Innovation. She describes her role as an interconnector, bringing together startups, entrepreneurs and innovators with clinicians and their patients-- a crucial piece in many different journeys. Further, she speaks more about disparities in healthcare and supporting the disabled community through new technologies. 
If you are an inspiring innovator or interested in medical technology, tune in for Dr. Reiser's invaluable words of advice.

Useful Resources/ Links:

Texas Medical Center Innovation:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/tmcinnovation
https://twitter.com/tmcinnovation?s=21

Dr. Emily Reiser:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/emilyreiser
https://twitter.com/em_reiser?s=21

A Small Piece In Many Different Journeys Innovating Healthcare & Medical Technology

In this Autism Thinks episode, historian John Summers brings a fresh perspective. He is newly affiliated as a research fellow in History and Disability with the think tank New America and has been the President and Editorial Director of Lingua Franca Media. As a historian, he starts from the beginning, bringing context into the bigger picture as he discusses various issues in the realm of autism, from behaviorism and autism care services to transportation needs and adult group homes. 

Full Transcript of the Episode - https://bit.ly/3SyE65v ; Music excerpts used in this podcast are from the royalty-free music library by composer Kevin MacLeod.

John Summers' website - 
https://johnsummers.co

The Shocking School article - 
https://bostonreview.net/articles/the-shocking-school/

The Group Home Racket article - https://www.dollarsandsense.org/archives/2021/1121summers.html

As Private Equity Comes to Dominate Autism Services article - https://www.thenation.com/article/society/private-equity-autism-aba/

Spinning their Wheels article - https://www.cambridgeday.com/2017/12/18/quality-of-service-for-disabled-child-ends-with-start-of-bus-ride-of-up-to-two-hours/

The World of Autism: A Critical and Historical Analysis (with Dr. John Summers)

In this episode, stories and thoughts are shared from members of the NJACE team: Director Dr. Elizabeth Torres, Assistant to the Director Richa Rai and Program Manager, Jen Schonger. Their stories resonate with a wide range of perspectives, from managing tasks in graduate studies to balancing work and family, amidst physical distancing.

COVID-19 & Its Community Impact (Part 2)

This week, Dr. Deb Karhson shares her story. She delves into topics that range from neurodiversity to the neural mechanisms behind cognitive development. As a Research Scientist at the Stanford University School of Medicine, she studies the endocannabinoid system and its role in regulating bodily functions and systems in autistic individuals.

Discovering what it Means to be Human, in All its Vibrant Shades

Learning more about our past ancestors, we can better understand the origins behind the way we think and act. Different traits can be seen passed from one generation to one another in our evolutionary history— Penny Spikins tells us more about how autistic traits have evolved and how they play crucial roles in our survival as a species. As a Professor of Archaeology in York University, she delves into how archaeological evidence can provide reasoning for why neurodivergent cognition or minds came into being, as well as their importance.


To Read More about Professor Spikins' work, here’s a link: https://www.york.ac.uk/archaeology/people/academic-staff/penny-spikins/


Paper: “Should Autism Spectrum Conditions Be Characterised in a More Positive Way in Our Modern World?” by B. Wright, P. Spikins and H. Pearson - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7279498/


Conversation Article - https://theconversation.com/how-our-autistic-ancestors-played-an-important-role-in-human-evolution-73477

Human Evolution: A Story of Autism, Compassion and Collaboration

This episode, we are joined by the incredible Autism Level Up! team, Dr. Amy Laurent and Dr. Jacquelyn Fede. Dr. Amy Laurent is a developmental psychologist and occupational therapist, specializing in the education of autistic children. 
Dr. Jacquelyn Fede is a developmental psychologist, assistant research psychology professor and autistic advocate. Tune in to learn more about leveling up, understanding useful reality and the SCERTS model.

Useful Resources mentioned
More on the SCERTS model: 
https://scerts.com/the-scerts-model/

Article on Figuring out your Levels: 
https://neuroclastic.com/2020/03/26/so-you-want-to-autism-level-up-game-on/

Autism Level Up! Guide: 
https://autismlevelup.com/the-essential-guide-to-the-autism-level-up-levels/

Autism Level Up! Facebook page: 
https://www.facebook.com/AutismLevelUP

Supporting material on the Autism Level Up! website:
https://autismlevelup.com/category/supports-resources/

Time to Autism Level Up! (Part I)

This episode, we are joined by the incredible Autism Level Up! team, Dr. Amy Laurent and Dr. Jacquelyn Fede. Dr. Amy Laurent is a developmental psychologist and occupational therapist, specializing in supporting autistic individuals of all ages. Dr. Jacquelyn Fede is a developmental psychologist, assistant research psychology professor and autistic advocate. 
This second part of our episode series highlights the importance of play, re-defining what we expect functional play to be, naturally expressing yourself and feeding the need for energy regulation.


Useful Resources mentioned:
Autism Level Up! Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AutismLevelUP

Supporting material on the Autism Level Up! website:
https://autismlevelup.com/category/supports-resources/

Power Play Session Info: 
https://autismlevelup.com/category/supports-resources/power-plays/

Dr. Jacquelyn Fede's poem 'An Open Letter to Carers of Autistics':
https://www.itcannotbecontained.com/2019/04/an-open-letter-to-carers-of-autistics.html

Dr. Amy Laurent's TED Talk 'Letting Go of Control and Rethinking Support for Autistic Individuals': https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fx3cfzlCG_Q&feature=youtu.be

Time to Autism Level Up! (Part II)

This week, Dr. Daniel Moreno De Luca tells us more about his work as a Child, Adolescent and Adult Psychiatrist, as well as an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior at Brown University. He is physician-scientist, incorporating genetics research into his clinical practice and using the field to bring precision medicine to psychiatry. 

What you also may not have seen coming is that he is also a rock star! He delves into his recent song, 'Outer Space', inspired by the autistic children and families who have come to his clinic.

JAMA Network Article by Dr. Moreno De Luca —
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2772252?preview=true&utm_source=TrendMD&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Journal_of_American_Medical_Association_TrendMD_1

Exploring Outer Space and Beyond: Realizing Worlds within Autism (Part I)

The NJACE is a network of community members, researchers, and service providers whose mission is to improve autism research and clinical care throughout the state of New Jersey, revamp autism training initiatives across the state, educate society about autism unmet needs, and to make New Jersey a national leader in these endeavors

New Jersey Autism Center of Excellence

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