College to Mark Autism Awareness Month with 5K and More
Contact:
Gwen O’Brien
Director of Media Relations
Saint Mary’s College
(574) 284-4579 (desk)
March 24, 2015 (Notre Dame, Ind.)— April is Autism Awareness Month in the U.S. and Saint Mary’s College will mark it in a number of ways, including a lecture and a 5K fundraiser.
The Saint Mary’s College Department of Communicative Sciences and Disorders will welcome national speaker and best-selling author David Finch to campus on Thursday, April 9, to give his talk titled “Happily Ever Asperger: Best Practices for Neurologically Mixed Relationships.” The event, which is free and open to the public, will take place at 7 p.m. in Carroll Auditorium of Madeleva Hall. (Click for a campus map.) Finch set out to understand himself, Asperger’s, and learn how to get along in a world where most don’t think like him. (Check out this NBC story on David Finch.)
David Finch, left, will offer his talk titled “Happily
Ever Asperger: Best Practices for Neurologically
Mixed Relationships” at 7 p.m. on April 9 in Carroll
Auditorium. His wife, Kristen, will also be here.The Department of Communicative Sciences and Disorders operates the Judd Leighton Speech and Language Clinic on campus, which serves about 40 local clients who struggle with verbal communication due to anything from autism to stroke. The clients bypass waiting lists at other clinics, while undergraduate students gain practical experience providing therapy to them. The client list will double to 80 spots when the graduate program starts in the fall. (For information, including cost and how to sign up, email leightonclinic@saintmarys.edu.)
“We hope the community will attend our events and hear about the clinic because we believe at some point in people’s lives they will be touched by a developmental or acquired communicative disorder,” said Susan Latham, associate professor of communicative disorders. The clinic and the graduate program are both possible thanks to a $1 million grant from the Judd Leighton Foundation, Inc. to the College.
Meanwhile, the Students Supporting Autism club arranged for Le Mans Tower to glow with blue light in support of those touched by autism. It’s part of a campaign where national landmarks, museums, universities, and businesses throughout the country will be illuminated with blue lights. The iconic Le Mans Hall tower on campus normally lights up the night sky bathed in white light. It’s the first time in recent memory that it will be lit up in color.
The student club will also host a 5K walk/run on campus on Saturday, April 18 at 9 a.m., starting at the Welcome Center. (Click for a campus map.) The event, which is open to the public and costs $10 a person, is a first for the organization and students hope to make it an annual event. The 5K will kick off Autism Awareness Week on campus. Those interested in participating may email elementary education major Angelina Lazovich ’15 at alazov01@saintmarys.edu. Students in the club will determine which two local centers that help families impacted by Autism will receive the money raised.
About Saint Mary’s College: Saint Mary’s College, Notre Dame, Ind., is a four-year, Catholic, residential, women’s liberal arts college offering five bachelor’s degrees and more than 30 major areas of study, such as business, nursing, art, chemistry, and social work. By the fall of 2015 Saint Mary’s College will offer two graduate degrees: a Master of Science and a Doctorate. All programs that fall under these degrees are co-educational and include a Master of Science in Data Science, a Master of Science in Speech Language Pathology, and a Doctorate of Nursing Practice. Founded in 1844 by the Sisters of the Holy Cross, Saint Mary’s College’s mission is to educate students, develop their talents, and prepare them to make a difference in the world. Saint Mary’s College ranks among the top 100 Best National Liberal Arts Colleges for 2015 published by U.S. News & World Report.