The Autism Society Event and Education Recordings Archive

Whitley County Consolidated Schools has worked with the Indiana Resource Center for Autism to apply evidenced based practices for students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Building ASD teams district-wide, using coaching and training strategies, while building capacity for sustainability, has shown to have a genuine impact on all students. In the public school system, educators have seen an increase in students with autism spectrum disorders included in their classrooms and extracurricular activities.  Knowledge about autism spectrum disorders and professional development on best practices for working with students who are on the spectrum is key to meeting the student’s individual needs and creating a successful learning environment for all.

Whitley County Consolidated Schools in Columbia City, IN currently serves 53 students on the autism spectrum, which is approximately 1 in 68 students.  This statistic is higher than The Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimation in March 2012 that 1 in 88 children have been identified with an autism spectrum disorder nationwide (Retrieved from http://www.cec.gov/ncbdd/autism). 

Partnering with the Indiana Resource Center for Autism (IRCA) out of Indiana University - Bloomington, Whitley County Consolidated Schools has been involved in an extensive project over the past four years implementing evidence-based practices for students on the spectrum district-wide (Retrieved from http://autismpdc.fpg.unc.edu/content/briefs).  Whitley County Consolidated Schools is the first district in the state of Indiana to move the project to district-wide implementation.  IRCA works in collaboration with the district to create sustainable change using training that is highly engaging, provided in a small group, followed by multiple observations, feedback, modeling, and coaching (Kretlow & Bartholomew, 2010).  This collaboration provides schools support in implementing evidenced-based practices with fidelity and with a focus on student outcomes (Odom, S. L., & Strain, P.S., 2002).  Research shows that “an educational innovation is more likely to be implemented and sustained with fidelity if it has support from an administrator who encourages communication about the core features of the innovation and uses data to plan and make changes” (Coffee & Horner, 2012).  Administrators in Whitley County Consolidated Schools play an active role encouraging communication about the core features of the 24 evidenced-based practices and strive to make data driven decisions to make change.

As a result of the project, students on the autism spectrum are thriving and staff have gained strategies and interventions they can utilize to meet student needs.  Students on the autism spectrum who were not previously successful in the general education classroom are now integrated for the majority of the day.  Student behaviors have decreased.  Independence has been gained. An unintended outcome of this project is that practices focused on students on the autism spectrum have been universally adopted in some places to benefit all students.

How Whitley County Consolidated Schools applied evidence-based practices for autism spectrum disorders in all of their schools district-wide will be shared in this session. Participants will learn how to utilize a team approach, supported by coaching and other training strategies, to benefit all students within the district.  Components needed for sustainability of implementing evidence-based practices across a district will be identified and shared.

Cited references are available upon request.

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