The Autism Society of Iowa and Iowa DD Council are sponsoring a virtual conference via Zoom on Autism & Employment for those on the autism spectrum who are interested in employment, family members, employers, human resource managers, case managers, social workers and anyone interested in helping those with ASD in the work place. This conference is free to those on the autism spectrum.
Agenda
9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. – How to Prepare for an Interview
Presenters: Candice Fedeler, MA, Ed. and Ambrose Ball-Harney
10:15 a.m. – 11:15 a.m. – Accessing Employment Services - Faciliated by Bill Kallestad, Iowa Developmental Disabilities Council
Presenters:
11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.-Scanning the workplace – 4 scans autistic people can do at work to recognize where they might face sensory, movement, communication, and executive function issues.
Welcoming Workplaces: Scanning the Workplace
In this session, we introduce one of the tools included in the Welcoming Workplace digital course series available to participating job seekers and autistic employees at participating employers. The course for autistic employees was design by Autism Speaks to help autistic people navigate the workplace and understand how autism affects their individual workplace experience. The workplace scan tools in this course support autistic employees in advocating for their needs, including accommodations and adjustments that can improve their comfort and performance.
Presenters: Josh Cobbs and Anne Grego-Nagel
12:30 p.m. - Break
1:00 p.m. 2:00 p.m.– Finding a good fit: Connecting Passion to Vocation
Presenter: Ashlea Lantz, MA
This session will focus on Discovering Personal Genius. We all have Personal Genius, but how do we tap into our Personal Genius and use it to find employment? Believe it or not there are unlimited ways to make a living! If you're interested in exploring your own Personal Genius or a family member's, please join this session to learn more about exploring your skills and talents and connecting them to the world of work.
2:15 – Panel of Employees with Autism - Facilitated by Sue Askeland
Continuing Education Units
Continuing Education Credits: The Autism Society of Iowa is an accredited sponsor for CEU’s for Social Work #300. This conference offers 5.5 credit hours. Certificates of Attendance will be provided for CEU’s.
Keynote Speakers
Ambrose Ball-Harney
Ambrose is the Lead RBT Classroom Support and Transition at Metro West Learning. He received a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology along with a minor in Religious Studies from the University of Iowa. He has a long history of working in the Human Services field and greatly enjoys working with students with autism and challenging behavior.
Josh Cobbs
Josh Cobbs is Manager of Employment Initiatives at Autism Speaks. His work encompasses managing the day to day operations, and implementation of the Autism Speaks employment ecosystem of services and supports. His past work includes serving as a vocational counselor for the State of Iowa, working with post-secondary institutions on transition and employment programs for individuals with barriers, and founding an autism center. Cobbs resides in Iowa with his wife and three children.
Candice Federler, MA ED.
Candice is the Director of Programming and Metro West Learning and holds a degree in Early Childhood Special Education from the University of Northern Iowa and completed her course work in Applied Behavior Analysis from the Chicago School of Psychology. She worked for Des Moines Public Schools as a Behavior Interventionist for grades K-5. Candice has been trained in ABA, Verbal Behavior, Lindamood-Bell Visualizing Verbalizing and Seeing Stars, TEACCH, Picture Exchange Communication Systems, and other communication devices. She is well-versed in Positive Behavior Intervention Supports (PBIS) and has given several trainings to staff and families on how to implement with fidelity. Candice is a Certified Crisis Prevention Intervention (CPI) Trainer and A Registered Behavior Technician. Candice is a board member of the Autism Society of Iowa.
Anne Grego-Nagel
Anne Nagel is a cognitive engineer and human factors specialist at Autism Speaks. She is also an executive function coach with a focus on autistic girls and women. Anne earned her PhD in industrial engineering from Kansas State University. Her main research interest includes building products, services, practices and tasks based on how the brain processes information. After years of struggling with everyday tasks, Anne was diagnosed with autism as an adult.
Ashlea Lantz
Ashlea Lantz is a Senior Consultant with Griffin-Hammis Associates. She provides training and technical assistance around Customized Employment, Supported Employment, Self-Employment, Benefits Planning, and Agency Capacity Building. Before joining Griffin-Hammis Associates, Ashlea was the Director of Employment of a community-based rehabilitation agency. She has extensive experience in working with families both personally and professionally. Ashlea is a certified benefits planner and has a Master's degree in Rehabilitation Counseling from Drake University.