University of South Florida
Where we are located
The PDA Center
at the University of South Florida is housed in the Division of Applied Research
and Educational Support
(DARES)
at the Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute at the University of
South Florida in Tampa. DARES is comprised on numerous training and research
projects involving autism, early intervention, family involvement, and positive
behavior support. A key project in DARES that is closely affiliated with the
PDA Center is the Center for Autism and Related Disabilities
(CARD)
(http://card-usf.fmhi.usf.edu). CARD
at USF is one of six
regional CARD sites funded by the Florida State Legislature. CARD’s mission is
to provide support and assistance to families and professionals that will
optimize the potential of people with autism and related disabilities.
Services for children with Autistic Spectrum Disorders
(ASD)
Since 1993, CARD has served individuals of all ages with autism and related
disabilities. CARD offers supports within the natural contexts of homes,
residences, child care programs, schools, agencies, and communities. Services
provided include program development, training and support for individuals,
families, professionals, and peers of people with autism and related
disabilities throughout eighteen counties in west, central, and southwest
Florida. Specific examples of supports offered by CARD include direct
consultation to individuals with ASD and their families; technical assistance to
programs serving people with ASD; trainings provided to families, agencies,
schools, and communities; and public education and awareness through the
development and dissemination of factual information about people with ASD and
effective practices.
Training Opportunities
A wide array of training opportunities is offered by program within DARES
and, in particular, CARD. Some examples of training opportunities include:
-
Family Training: Core training intended for families of
individuals with autism and related disabilities throughout our 18 county
area. The training programs are intended to provide participants with
awareness of effective practices in working and living with individuals with
autism.
-
School System Training: Assistance for school systems in
identifying training needs for their district and developing a training plan
that will allow them to meet their intended outcomes for improving services
for students with ASD. Several levels of training to meet school district
unique goals are offered, ranging from providing factual information to long
term training series with follow-up technical assistance that will assist
professionals in implementation of training activities.
-
Demonstration Projects: Several new demonstration projects are
developed each year for the purpose of increasing family and professional
skills. Demonstration projects involve a combination of training and
technical assistance that require long-term commitments with participants and
evaluation of specific outcomes. Current demonstration projects include
Positive Behavior Support
(PBS) for School Teams,
PBS for Family/Community Teams and Peer Mediation Strategies to Enhance Social
Interaction Skills.
-
Annual Conference: Each year, all six CARD sites in Florida
collaborate to provide a three-day statewide conference that focuses on topics
related to autism and related disabilities. The conference is open to
families and professionals throughout Florida.
PDA Center at the CARD-USF
Training Activities: The PDA Center offers a wide variety of training
opportunities. These include workshops, lectures, web-based support via e-mail,
and intensive training with follow-up on topics such as positive behavior
support for students exhibiting problem behavior and effective instructional
practices for students with autistic spectrum disorder. A variety of levels of
training and support are offered through the PDA Center. The goal of the Center
is to increase local capacity to provide supports and services to students with
autistic spectrum disorder.
Resources: Some of the resources that can be provided to participants
include:
- Case-study approach to take teams through the positive behavior support
process
- Practical forms/manuals for planning and implementing behavioral and
instructional strategies
- Web-based courses
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