|
About CT FEAT
"ConnecticuT
Families for Effective Autism
Treatment" (CT FEAT) is a non-profit
organization formed by parents to provide information and support to the
families of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). We want to help the
families who come after us to learn about, and have access to, effective
treatment as soon as possible following diagnosis.
Many of us experienced tremendous difficulty in obtaining accurate diagnoses for
our children. Once we had the diagnosis, we often were obliged to waste precious
time doing our own extensive research in order to learn about the most effective
treatment options. And then came the most challenging obstacle of all: securing
effective, appropriate, affordable treatment for our children.
OUR PRINCIPAL GOALS:
1) To provide educational and networking opportunities to families interested in
treatment programs based on the principles of applied behavior analysis ( ABA )
and other treatments validated by research;
2) To expand the availability of high quality professional services by
supporting education and training opportunities in ABA;
3) To provide information resources regarding effective treatments validated by
research.
OUR RESOURCES:
1) An Un-moderated "Parents Only" Internet Discussion List that provides
Connecticut parents of ASD children with a forum to discuss issues of concern.
The only requirement for participation is that you agree to protect the
confidentiality of the other families on the list. To learn more about the
listserv, and how to subscribe, go to the ctfeat
listserv.
2) Parent Resource and Networking Meetings, which
take place periodically depending on interest and the availability of volunteers
to staff them. These meetings usually take place in either Waterbury or Rocky
Hill. The only requirement for participation is that parents agree to respect
each other’s privacy and confidentiality.
3) Speaker Events and Conferences presenting the
latest information on effective treatment practices.
4) The Nancy Leahy-Shea Memorial Scholarship for Professional
Development in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). CT FEAT supports
expanding the number of highly trained autism professionals in CT by funding
this scholarship which is awarded to CT educators (including special education
teachers and speech therapists) interested in pursuing educational opportunities
in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). Scholarship recipients are selected by the
CT FEAT board of directors.
5) The Frank D. Craemer Memorial Parent Training Fund.
CT FEAT believes that well informed parents are their children’s most important
teachers and advocates. In order to support parental efforts to learn more about
best practices in autism treatment, CT FEAT has established a special fund to
help parents pay the costs of attending training workshops, conferences and
other educational events.
6) Information Resources, such as our web site, brochure, and
parent-authored articles.
7) Outreach, Education, and Advocacy to increase knowledge
about effective treatment and resources to provide it.
OUR STRUCTURE
CT FEAT grew out of an informal parent support network which formally
incorporated as a non-profit organization in 1997, making us eligible to receive
tax-deductible contributions.
Our bylaws provide that all members of the Board of
Directors shall be parents or family members of children with Autism Spectrum
Disorders. There are currently ten directors, with Board representation from
throughout the state.
Connecticut Families for Effective Autism Treatment (CT FEAT) is a non-profit
organization staffed by volunteers. Since we are an all volunteer organization
with limited resources, we can only serve Connecticut families, to whom we
provide information and networking opportunities. Here is a
list of FEAT Groups
in Other States.
If you are a Connecticut parent or professional and would like to get
more involved with CT FEAT, you can call (860) 571-3888, write to P.O. Box
370352, West Hartford, CT 06137-0352 or E-mail at
info@ctfeat.org. We'd like to hear
from you!
Back to Top
|
