Stanley Krippner (born October 4, 1932) is an American psychologist, parapsychologist, and an former executive faculty member and Professor of Psychology at Saybrook University in Pasadena, California. Krippner was director of the Kent State University Child Study Center (of Kent, Ohio), and director of the Maimonides Medical Center Dream Research Laboratory (of Brooklyn, New York).

DR. STANLEY KRIPPNER WAS FIRED AT AGE 87 AFTER 42 YEARS OF SERVICE TO THE INSTITUTION, TWO WEEKS BEFORE EMERITUS STATUS

In Stanley Krippner PhD against Nathan Long, Saybrook University and TCS Education Services: ‘Complaint-Wrongful Termination Filed’ Case number RG19035758 was filed in the Alameda County Superior Court.

Information on the $90 million dollar lawsuit:

• Read the 100-item complaint in the $90 million dollar lawsuit filed – Krippner Pleadings Plaintiff’s merged file complaint with exhibits filed OCR (accessible readable PDF)

• Support For Dr. Stanley Krippner GoFundMe

• FaceBook group to Support Dr. Stanley Krippner
• Stanley Krippner on FaceBook
• Students interested in the class-action lawsuit
• Read the lawsuit on Academia.edu or ResearchGate.net
• WASC regulators have kept a close eye since Saybrook became part of T.C.S. Education Systems in 2014. Michael Horowitz, has quietly become one of the highest-paid higher education officials in the country.
• Contact Dr. Krippner through this website.

 

An autism parent’s stress level correlates with the perception of recovery. When a parent believes that their child looks normal, and therefore can be made to behave normally, then they are imagining a recovery. A parent of a child who looks developmentally different, will be more likely to expect normalization, and then focus the intervention on skills acquisition.

What does this say about Applied behavior Analysis (ABA) and the explicit focus on normalizing autistics by force, because of a parent’s shame?

The parents who have children diagnosed with autism are statistically significantly more stressed out than the parents who have a child with down syndrome. So there is something extra there. It’s not just the fact that they have developmental disability, it’s even more when you have a child with autism. And I think we can guess why: you can’t recover a child with down syndrome. You can’t, but you might be able to for a child with autism, if you do 40 hours of work a week, through a Lovaas program or some other type of applied behavior analysis approach. That exacerbates a lot folks’ stress.

Daniel J. Moran (Author), (2012). Acceptance & Commitment Therapy: Immediate, Effective Clinical Interventions – That Really Work!. PESI Inc.. [Streaming Video].

I first joined the “Got Perfect Pitch?” FaceBook group because I wanted to be in a supportive environment where I wasn’t the only wacky and misunderstood person in the world. Soon enough, I was able to share anecdotes and relish in the stories others shared too. One day I posted about my delight as I was driving on the freeway—I was able to adjust my cruise control so the lines on the road were pulsing in the exact rhythm as the symphony on the radio. Everyone in the group understood me. The other day I shared how tickled I was to be driving in between two mountainous regions which made me hear two neighboring radio stations simultaneously. Imagine, one was a chorus in Latin and the other was a trumpet concerto and both were in the same key—what were the odds? More importantly, what are the odds that anyone outside of this group would care or even understand why this was delightful to me?

The group started out for people to first find out what pitch abilities they shared with other members: “Can you do also do that?” Along the way, we discovered that some leading researchers were lurking in the group, especially the ones responsible for secretly editing the Wikipedia definitions in the dark of night. At some point, synesthetes began arguing about what color C was, leading to endless battles comparing harmonic hues and textures.

When savant Matt Savage graduated from Berklee and joined the group, he sometimes ‘liked’ posts while traveling to perform around the world. Then, the movie Pitch Perfect 2 came out, and membership surged. New members were highly disappointed that the group had nothing to do with the movie. Remarkably, the existing members responded with a cohesiveness to the imposters trolling the group. Puns were not spared, “name this note” tests were posted, and all kinds of antagonizing tests were initiated to provoke and scare off the posers.

And then, Carol joined. Judging by her profile photo, Carol seemed like a polite retiree who enjoys a glass of red wine with her dinner every night. According to her about-page, she is from Green Bay, Wisconsin and went to Green Bay East High School, and she currently lives in Durham, North Carolina. She also studied to be a Prevention Specialist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and worked at Eno River Unitarian as a Universalist Fellow.

Carol never participated in any group discussion, but on January 11, 2016, she posted, “Please delete this group.” The brazen discussion-starter yielded 34 likes in response to the first WTF comment within the first few hours. One very polite member tried to ask, “Carol, are you trying to leave this group? Or do you first want to hear the lamentations of its members?” Next came this comment, “Between this and the weirdo who thought the group was about the Pitch Perfect series, I’d say we really need a screening process for future comments” and finally, someone polished off the thread with the grumpy cat “No” meme.

After fifty-nine comments with varying degrees of not-so-niceties like “Y’all, she’s like 800 years old, she doesn’t understand the e-net and inter-mails,” it was determined that Carol may have been tipsy, was jealous of those with perfect pitch, or this accusation, “Your ‘g-string’ must be a bit tight because you’re not really ‘in tune’ with what’s going on.” Yes, perfect pitchers do have an addiction to puns. In the end, the moderator wrote “I just deleted her as per her request (I think) but this thread is too epic to delete.”

For screening new members, people proposed a captcha code of pitch identification. Members argued it would be cruel and the moderators opposed it, reiterating that this group is free and open to anyone who identifies with having perfect pitch. The territorial nature of this reaction is what taught the group members so much about each other. What started as a group for people to find commonalities with others who possess the same gift, turned into a safe space for sharing their vast weirdness, comorbid with perfect pitch.

Turns out, the epic thread engaged so many people that previously-silent members got to make friends and reunite with people from a previous life: “We were in band together, remember?” The love was alive and kicking from all corners of the world: “Sheesh, I leave this thread for a few hours to go to orchestra rehearsal and I come back to more of this! You people are crazy.” And to polish off Carol’s epic thread, was this last comment: “GET OUTTA HERE!!! IN G# DIMINISHED OR MINOR CHORD!!! BYE!!!”, with an immediate response: “Wait, you mean you want to leave things unresolved?” finished off with, “But this is such a sharp group and life would just be flat if it were deleted!”

Today, most posts include the Carol treatment, which is an insider joke that newbies learn to quickly study or die trying to adapt. People will either be sent to their room if they create dissonance or get Carol’d and be threatened with deletion, please. As a trigger warning, people are known to add “and stay out of this, Carol,” or “Carol was here.” When the average person posts a cat meme with the tagline “please delete this group,” it can be expected to earn at least one comment of “OMFG WE NEED T- SHIRTS.” My favorite posts are the ones by members who already anticipate an avalanche when they share a video of a fart concerto, fully notated. Thus they self-flagellate by adding the tagline “Carol, I already went to my room, please.”

Today, January 15, 2018, is the second Caroliversary. It’s good to see her drinking in solidarity. L’chaim!

I am very excited about the U.S. Patent which was issued for the Perfect Perch device. It is U.S. Patent Patent No. 9,775,734 B1, named “A Hand Support Method And Device For Somatosensory Input To The Palm”.

• Learn more at DoogriIntsitute.com.
• Read the complete patent claims and drawings here.

If you have a piano student who has a documented diagnosis of dyspraxia, please contact me for clinical trial recruitment. Please make sure to read all the information at DoogriIntsitute.com first.

 

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The stereotypes of autistic people perpetuate a myth that they are socially inept. Yet non-autistics, also known as neurotypicals, portray ineptitudes on the basis of their susceptibility to body language, communication, and perceptual manipulations. How we learn these signals opens the debate for nature versus nurture, and the acquisition of social skill aptitude. Who is more socially equipped? The one who is capable of surrounding himself with pretentious body language, or the one who is mindful of her full spectrum of awareness? A neurotypical who communicates with learned body gestures is currently considered evolved, while the acquisition of those skills are a direct result of the inability to survive otherwise. The autistic who remains authentic in order to adapt to the current environment is potentially most equipped to function in society.

The cycle of life requires attracting a mate, reproduction, and adaptations for exploitation to those who threaten survival. In a typical preparation for a possible sexual encounter, high muscle tone became evident, the stomach is automatically pulled in, the chest protrudes, the body assumes an erect posture, bagging around the face and eyes decreases, and the person appears to become more youthful overall (Scheflen, 1972). While some courtship signals are studied and deliberate, others are emitted entirely unconsciously. An atypical sexual encounter will lack all of these elements, but might still yield a reproduction component.

The social behaviors of the neurotypical population do not distract the laser focus of the autistic person’s communication. On a primal level, an autistic person’s empathy is unfiltered and unmarred by the layers of social manipulation to attract a mate with nonverbal gestures. Autistic people tend to be practical fixers and not huggers. In a crisis, the autistic person will approach with a novel corrective system for creating balance in the environment, while the neurotypical will approach with tears, and offer warm hugs. Neurotypicals who nurture their social skills ultimately attract a mate, and their survival is guaranteed by laws of evolution. In contrast, autistic individuals are born with high social aptitude, but are otherwise perceived as disabled and socially inept. Evolutionary adaptation is contingent on multiple realms of survival, and the ability to attract a mate in a conventional manner is not the only way to advance a species.

Some might argue that mindful social behavior may decrease reproduction of the autistic subgroup. Without any social reciprocity that is congruent with their communication style, there are few social distractions. As a result, innumerable hours are available to devote to inanimate subjects which do not demand communicative reciprocity. The expert-level skillsets achieved meet the 10,000-hour mark with each area of interest explored in isolation. Autistics who spend less time pursuing a mate have more time to devote to their special interests and nurture their innovative streak. Thus the autistic subgroup may be recognized as the evolved species adapted for a post hunter-gatherer society and more technology-oriented world where novel skillsets are highly desired for survival. In essence, we see autism on the rise not by way of autistics reproducing. Rather, the procreation of mates with high-empath and high-analytic traits result in more autistic offspring. Inevitably, autistics are in every community and in every family we know. Since autism is a conglomerate of high-empath/high-analytic traits, the attraction of like-minded mates for ad hoc reproduction circumvent any social requisites.

An encounter between unlike partners such as a neurotypical and an autistic person may turn into a highly volatile situation when communication differences abound. The neurotypical will approach with a handshake, firm eye contact, and rudimentary chit chat. Those are learned social skills to gauge the frequencies emitted by the other person, otherwise known as reading the person on the other side of the encounter. The autistic person will avoid the handshake, make no eye contact, and will read the frequencies directly from the sound spectrums. Without applying any superficial filters to measure the situation, the autistic person will already be aware of the other person’s intention to evaluate them, which will both annoy and frustrate them because of the delay in the heart of the conversation. The autistic person will try to correct the situation with a novel approach, and offer a direct observation, such as, “You seem to be in a hurry today because you put your hair in a ponytail. Am I bothering you?” A classic reaction from a neurotypical is to respond with, “Do you realize that you are being very rude? Look at me when you’re talking. You didn’t even shake my hand. Wow—what is wrong with you?!” The neurotypical, aghast at being found out, will project their humiliation onto the autistic person, and blame them for lacking social skills. These predatory practices persist when autistics are forced into social skills trainings and therapies designed to teach them how to conform into social norms which are based purely on nurtured fallacies.

Animal adaptations for exploitation “go back deep in evolutionary time. Capuchin meat thieves do not choose their victims randomly. Capuchin monkeys selectively target muggable victims—those whom they can menace, by virtue of their higher rank” (Buss et al., 2008). The higher order of predatory practices is dependent on who sees themselves as more higher ranking. Neurotypicals who are susceptible to perceptual and gestural manipulations consider themselves as the higher ranking order of the species, and target the ones who are immune to these manipulations.

The autistic person who sees right through these layers of perception is potentially existing on the planes of actuality. Autistic people are not susceptible to optical illusions (Chouinard et al., 2016) and are less likely to catch a contagious yawn from a peer (Senju et al., 2007). Both of these may be understood as markers of a specific disorder, or analyzed as higher order traits. Optical illusions tap into the manipulability of the typically-wired brain of the individual who is accustomed to nurturing their behavior and perceptions around an imagined norm. Catching a yawn from a friend is an imitation of a social gesture when you take a clue that fatigue is a behavior that should be practiced at the given moment. Psychologists pathologize this behavior as a disability, while autistics recognize their altered state as a strong ability to coexist in both friendly and hostile environments. In the worst case, an autistic person who expresses their ability to “see the energies” or “hear the frequencies” of others, may find themselves institutionalized or drugged into submission. Neurotypicals remain equipped to survive only when they nurture their social behaviors, while autistics can survive in both worlds using multiple skillsets.

A preference for gestures as a sign of higher ranking in social aptitude prevails. Early Cartesian influences are seen in emerging psychological perspectives which disregard the role of human gestures in physical, social and evolutionary mechanisms of human behavior (Hevern, 2008, p. 217). Body language is generally observed in the meeting of a potential mate, and is evidenced in specific gestures accompanying “I,” “me,” “we” and “us” pronouns matched by small movements of the head, eyes, hands, fingers or even the shoulders (Davis May, 1970). An excited mate would gather her hands inward to demonstrate “we” and display her wrists as a sign of submissiveness for the word “us.” Neurotypicals have relied on these gestures for so long, that the lines between what they have nurtured for reproduction and what they have been equipped with by nature has blurred. The nurtured skillsets may rob them of the ability to see more clearly what is available to them in the unmanipulated planes.

Autistics who alter their habitual performance find that their ability to read people with their innate tools are dulled. Without these skillsets, they are vulnerable and blind in a world that is full of manically gesturing people who seem to know what they are doing. The chaos is unbearable and the amount of time spent recovering from faking for a single encounter makes the attempt not worth the effort. Therefore autistics are not vulnerable to nurturing their social skills to manipulative levels. Neurotypicals are entrained from infancy to return their mother’s loving gaze, to coo in delight from their mother’s nonsensical babble, and to clap their hands to imitate adults. Autistic infants have been found to fixate on geometric shapes instead of facial features (Pierce et al., 2011), look away from extended parental gaze, have hyperlexia and communicate in full sentences without the expected babbling (Rapin et al., 1983). These early signs of inability to groom for social ineptness makes the autistic person prepared for a high-tech/low-manipulation world that seeks out their novel abilities.

The lack of acknowledgement that autistics are performing at a higher level stems from an initial dichotomy in perception of the other. The social condition is such that the majority creates the norm, and the hierarchy of control begins with those who put themselves there first. To elevate oneself onto the pedestal of that social order requires a significant amount of manipulation of others, a skill which autistics neither have the interest nor the desire to get involved with. Autistics will achieve civil rights when they go against the expectations of gathering in large numbers to advocate for their cause. By staying true to their neurology, the advancement of their acceptance will be promulgated by the cave-dwelling, keyboard-pecking, and truth-telling traits of this meta-species.

 

*Identity-First over person-first language—read disclaimer here.

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References

1. Buss, D. M., & Duntley, J. D. (2008). Adaptations for exploitation. Group dynamics: Theory, research, and practice, 12(1), 53.
2. Chouinard, P. A., Unwin, K. L., Landry, O., & Sperandio, I. (2016). Susceptibility to optical illusions varies as a function of the autism-spectrum quotient but not in ways predicted by local–global biases. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 46(6), 2224-2239.
3. Davis May, F. (1970) The Way We Speak ‘Body Language’ New York Times. May 31, 1970
4. Hevern, V. W. (2008). Why narrative psychology can’t afford to ignore the body. Journal of Social, Evolutionary, and Cultural Psychology, 2(4), 217.
5. Pierce, K., Conant, D., Hazin, R., Stoner, R., & Desmond, J. (2011). Preference for geometric patterns early in life as a risk factor for autism. Archives of general psychiatry, 68(1), 101-109.
6. Rapin, I., Allen, D., & Kirk, U. (1983). Developmental language disorders: Nosologic considerations. Neuropsychology of language, reading, and spelling, 155-184.
7. Senju, A., Maeda, M., Kikuchi, Y., Hasegawa, T., Tojo, Y., & Osanai, H. (2007). Absence of contagious yawning in children with autism spectrum disorder. Biology letters, 3(6), 706-708.

Starting in January 2018, Acces-VR adult vocational rehabilitation department through State Ed will offer a new adjunct service “Coaching and Communication Supports for Post-Secondary Education and Employment” (Case Service Code 792x). Previously considered a soft-skill and widely overlooked as a disability-related need, this initiative was sparked by a proposal written for Kevin Smith, Deputy Commissioner in 2014 by Henny Kupferstein, M.A. & Rebecca Botta-Zalucki, MSW. Eventually, the proposal was drafted as Assembly Bill A05141 and Senate Bill No. S04256. The proposal earned letters of support from ASHA  on behalf of Speech Therapists, NYSACRA and NYSRA, NYSILC and NYAIL for Communication support in Vocational Rehabilitation Communication Support services, and NYSARC, Inc. 

1. Per the original proposal, only a specialized practitioner who has a Masters level training in social pragmatic language disorders is eligible to apply to deliver the Communication Support service for Acces-VR consumers.
2. The pay rate is competitive at $80 per unit.
3. Request for Proposal (RFPs) are due October 18, 2017.
4. Decisions will be made by January 2018.

****The good folks at NYSRA are happy to help with your RFP, so please do contact Pat Dowse (pat@nyrehab.org, 518-928-2360) directly. Please contact me if you would like to participate in a free support webinar for completing your RFP, scheduled for Tuesday October 3rd and Saturday October 7th.****

Applying to Deliver Communication Support for Acces-VR

Please read the entire document carefully if you are interested in applying to be a provider or ACCES-VR Core Rehabilitation Services.  There are several new services including the Pre-Employment Transition Services for Students.  In addition, we have made adjustments to the definitions of certain services to better meet the needs of our consumers.

It is required that all non-profits must be pre-qualified by the application deadline in order to receive an award.    In addition, all vendors must meet the vendor responsibility requirements necessary for all NYS contracts. http://www.acces.nysed.gov/procurement

All vendors first need to be a part of the NY Grant Gateway before applying. Visit https://grantsreform.ny.gov/Grantees (“Getting Started”) for how-to videos and online registration. Proposals received from applicants that have not Registered and are not Prequalified in the Grants Gateway on the proposal due date cannot be evaluated. Such proposals will be disqualified from further consideration. Pre Qualification questions should be addressed to prequal@nysed.gov

Purpose of Funding

Provision of specific rehabilitation services from community rehabilitation programs and other service providers. These services include assessment, employment preparation, job placement, supported employment, assistive technology, pre-employment transition services, driver rehabilitation services and related adjunct services.

Eligible Applicants

Eligible applicants are not-for-profit organizations, community rehabilitation programs and independent living centers, Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES), and for-profit organizations who have experience providing vocational services, job placement, supported employment and/or other support services to individuals with disabilities, including youth with disabilities, to enable participants to achieve competitive integrated employment. Please review the Description of Services section of this RFP for organization capacity requirements prior to applying. Organizations which are current ACCES-VR CRS providers and who wish to continue to provide services, must apply to this RFP.

Bidders’ Conference

A Bidders’ Video/Audio Conference will be held on September 13th, 2017 to provide potential applicants with the details of the application process and allow an opportunity for questions and clarification on the RFP process.

Questions & Answers

All questions must be sent by E-Mail to CRS2@nysed.gov no later than September 15th, 2017. A complete list of all Questions and Answers will be posted to ACCES procurement page no later than September 27th, 2017.

Non-Mandatory Notice of Intent

The Notice of Intent (NOI) is not a requirement for submitting a complete application by the application date; however, NYSED strongly encourages all prospective applicants to submit an NOI to ensure a timely and thorough review and rating process. A non-profit applicant’s NOI will also help to facilitate timely review of their prequalification materials. The notice of intent is a simple email notice stating your organization’s (use the legal name) intent to submit an application for this grant. Please also include your organization’s NYS Vendor ID. The due date is September 29, 2017. Please send the NOI to CRS2@nysed.gov.

New Prequalification Requirement

The State of New York has implemented a statewide prequalification process (described on the Grants Reform website) designed to facilitate prompt contracting for not-for-profit vendors. All not-for-profit vendors are required to pre-qualify by the grant application deadline. This includes all currently funded not-for-profit institutions that have already received an award and are in the middle of the program cycle. The prequalification must be completed by all not-for-profit institutions by the application deadline in order to receive an award under this RFP. Please review the additional information regarding this requirement in the Prequalification for Individual Applications section below.

Date Due

Submit an electronic copy (Word or pdf) of the application by email to CRS2@nysed.gov (link sends e-mail) by the October 18, 2017 deadline. The subject line of the email should read as follows: RFP #GC18-004 and the legal name of provider organization or individual.

NYSED will deem the vendor to be “non-responsive” if required forms are not submitted. Only vendors that submit the Basic Information Form (Attachment 1) will be eligible for an award. Only vendors that submit the appropriate CRS Service Forms (Attachments 1-A through 1-H) and Capacity Summary (Attachment 2) will be eligible for an award for the service(s) applied for. These Attachments are posted with the RFP in separate files. Please thoroughly review submission instructions in Section 2. Vendor submissions of any of the above forms will not be accepted after the due date of October 18, 2017.

Today, I taught a very bright student and we used solfege to transpose to her favorite key. When we were done, and she approved of her work, she smiled and clapped her hands with sheer delight. I knew the feeling of pure joy, when it all comes together musically. I told her, “People ask me all the time why I teach solfege. So, tell me, why do we learn solfege?”  She responded: “Why do we build a house with a hammer?”

How clever. If we needed to build a house without a hammer, we would have to forage for just the right rock to fit the special nail for your bedroom walls. Then, we would have to go to an entirely different quarry and look for a differently angled rock which would work best for the bathroom wall nails. Lastly, for the kitchen cabinets, we would excavate the nails from someone else’s house, and re-use them for our kitchen cabinets, while the other person’s kitchen would fall apart.

A hammer is a universal tool that works once, and for everyone. Solfege, when taught correctly, is a marvelous party trick. It becomes a universal tool which empowers the musician along every step of their education. From basic note-reading and sight-singing, interval guesstimation and ear training, solfege pushes musicianship skills to infinite heights. Don’t deny your students this gift just because you were introduced to solfege the wrong way. Consider the Rancer Method, an evidence-based approach for gifted and special-needs learners.

In his first piano lesson, Coby played three songs on the piano, had some fun time with the ‘Ducks’ song, and reassured us that he had a great lesson! Coby is advanced RPM user and spells self-initiated narratives and answers open-ended questions. Learn about RPM (Rapid Prompting Method) here http://www.halo-soma.org

One year later, Coby is 7 and discusses with deadpan humor about adding emojis to his letterboard. With regard to his tremendous progress with fingering, he says, “Can’t sometimes grasp I am actually playing. My hands are doing it on their own and I don’t even have to think…I greatly am honored you believe in me. Now am totally capable. Now I totally think anything is possible…I always hoped I would get amazing at this and as time is passing I am more confident.”

 

Autism Action NY 2016

Advisory Board, ID Card, Housing, Technology, and Communication

CLICK TO READ COMPLETE PROPOSAL

Prepared by: Kupferstein, Henny, & Botta-Zalucki, Rebecca, February 2016

We are proposing that the four new Autism Action bills that are packaged with A.5141, be revised to represent the broadest range of autistic people in the state.  

• The NY State Autism Spectrum Disorder Advisory Board (A.8635) shall consist of autistic professionals who are credentialed and/or have lived experience to best inform and impact legislation.
• The Autism ID Card (A00249C/S02565-C) shall have pre-formatted text built into the bill, in order to standardize the language as preferred by autistic people, or have three cards in-line with each DSM level for autism.
• The Home Loan Program (A. 8696) shall include the option for autistic adults to obtain a state-funded loan even when on a fixed income. Additionally, a new HOFA grant must be written to bring the monthly costs into the range of a fixed income.
• The Communication & Technology Bill of Rights (A.8708) shall include oversight from learning-disabled people to assure ease of access to state and local agency information.
• Communication Support (A.5141) shall be implemented by ACCES-VR in order to support people who are in the loan program to achieve financial independence through career training.

Autism Action NY plan for 2016 needs to include autistic individuals. This will ensure that autistic individuals with appropriate credentials will have a voice when serving the needs of people by borrowing from the peer-support model, a highly effective service delivery model. In addition, we identify the funding streams already in place which can be applied to the proposed services and systems of reform.

Here is a transcript of a 20-Second sensory overload simulation exercise completed at the Lycee Elementary School in Sausalito CA. The students are 3rd grade through 5th grade ages (Video at the end of this page).

 

The students were directed to complete a math worksheet while experiencing sensory overload:

(1) scotch-tape on their faces
(2) lights flickering
(3) bell bracelets on the wrists of students who are running around the room while barking and clapping their hands
(4) Facilitator/teacher counting down the seconds on the mic.

 

The 20-second exercise caused instant overload for many students. Nobody was able to complete the worksheet. In the discussion that followed, students developed an awareness of their own compensation methods.

Following an earlier explanation of the brain and the function of each part, the students learned that sensory information is not always integrated for autistic people. Therefore, autistic people silence the other senses in order to recruit the math-crunching skills in their memory.

Video of 20-Second Sensory Overload Simulation Exercise:

 

NYSARC, Inc. strongly supports A.5141 (Santabarbara) and S.4256 (Calucci). NYSARC is the nation’s largest parent governed nonprofit organization serving people with developmental disabilities. Through its forty-eight local Chapters, NYSARC provides direct supports and services to thousands of individuals with intellectual, developmental, and other disabilities and their families.

This legislation directs the Commissioner of the State Education Department to promulgate new regulations to include communication support as a vocational rehabilitation service that is available to people with disabilities seeking employment. A common barrier to employment for people with disabilities includes difficulty communicating die to a variety of physical,. mental and emotional issues. Therefore, including communication support services as a vocational rehabilitation service is an effective and commonsense approach to facilitate the acquisition of gainful employment for many individuals with disabilities.

As an added protection, this legislation requires these communication support services to be provided by qualified providers including State licenses speech-language pathologists, audiologists, or individuals trained in treatment for social pragmatic language impairment.

NYSARC, Inc.  Laura J. Kennedy, President, Steve Kroll, Executive Director

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Click the screen capture below to read the letter of support in PDF format.

 

Additional Links and Call to Action:

• How To Support Bill A05141 – VR Communication Support for Autistic and other Consumer with language barriers
• Complete details about this bill
• Bill 5141 In the News: Press Coverage and Media Coverage
• Share this page to gather additional support 

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The New York State Independent Living Council, Inc. (NYSILC) and the New York Association on Independent Living (NYAIL) endorse (A.5141 Santabarbara, S.4256 Carlucci) Communication support in Vocational Rehabilitation services a bill to direct the Commissioner of the New York State Education Department to promulgate new regulations for ACCES-VR Vocational Rehabilitation services to include communication support among the suite of services currently offered to a wide range of job seekers.

Many individuals with disabilities, including those on the autism spectrum, with traumatic brain injury, learning disabilities, Tourette’s Syndrome, and other neuro-communication or speech/language disabilities, may have difficulty with interpersonal communication that can hinder their ability to find and maintain employment, even when they possess job skills, higher education, and access to existing vocational rehabilitation services. Communication support is defined as treatment and services that focus on improving communication-related skills. These include, but are not limited to, dialog strategies for initiating and exiting communication of intent, topic maintenance, dissolving hostile situations resulting from ineffective attempts at independent communication, preparing, strategizing and organizing information for written communication, and preparing for upcoming interpersonal communication situations.

All New Yorkers with disabilities face enough of a challenge when it comes to employment. Effective communication and supports during the vocational rehabilitation is essential. The employment rate of New Yorkers with disabilities ages 18-64 is 32.2%. For this same age range, the full-time, year-round employment rate of New Yorkers with disabilities is 18.8%. The poverty rate for New Yorkers with disabilities (same age range) is 30.3%. The median earnings of New Yorkers with disabilities age 16 and older is $11,267 less than individuals without disabilities in the State.

NYSILC and NYAIL call on the legislature to pass A.5141/S.4256 to include communication support among the services offered to vocational rehabilitation job seekers for the wide range of disabilities noted above who may have difficulty with interpersonal communication that can hinder their ability to find and maintain
employment.

For additional information, contact Brad Williams, NYSILC, at (518) 427-1060 bradw@nysilc.org and Meghan Schoeffling, NYAIL at (518) 465-4650 MSchoeffling@ilny.org. This bill is supported in the NYSILC 2015 Public Policy Agenda.

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The New York State Independent Living Council, Inc. (NYSILC) is an independent, non-profit state council. NYSILC looks to promote independent living for people with disabilities across New York State. The council’s primary responsibility is to work with state partners to develop, monitor, and evaluate New York’s three-year Statewide Plan for Independent Living (SPIL).

The New York Association on Independent Living (NYAIL) is a statewide membership organization of Independent Living Centers (ILCs), community-based not-for-profit providers of advocacy, services and supports for New Yorkers with disabilities of all ages. ILCs are controlled by, and largely staffed by, people with disabilities. NYAIL strengthens local Independent Living Centers and is a leader in the civil rights movement for all people with disabilities.

Click the screen capture below to read the letter of support in PDF format.

 

Additional Links and Call to Action:

• How To Support Bill A05141 – VR Communication Support for Autistic and other Consumer with language barriers
• Complete details about this bill
• Bill 5141 In the News: Press Coverage and Media Coverage
• Share this page to gather additional support 

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The New York State Association of Community and Residential Agencies (NYSACRA) and the New York State Rehabilitation Association (NYSRA) support A.5141 (Santabarbara) and S.4256 (Carlucci) to add communication support services as a vocational rehabilitation services and to be offered by qualified providers including State licensed speech-language pathologists, audiologists, or individuals trained in treatment for social pragmatic language impairment.

NYSACRA represents approximately 200 voluntary not-for-profit agencies throughout New York State.  These dedicated agencies provide direct services and supports to thousands of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families.  The agencies are located in many communities across the state and provide jobs to the more than 75,000 direct support professionals who are relied upon to provide these important services and supports.

NYSRA is a statewide 501 (c) (6) organization representing rehabilitation providers who advocate on behalf of individuals with differing abilities and the agencies who serve them. NYSRA’s community providers offer a full spectrum of services to people throughout New York State, including individuals with developmental disabilities, mental illness, deaf and hearing impaired, and vision problems, in addition to addictions, traumatic brain injuries and veteran services.

Training is a key component for people with disabilities when seeking and obtaining employment and to be successful in the workforce.  Communication and communication strategies are necessary to assist people with disabilities to be successful with training opportunities.  Some individuals with disabilities, including people on the autism spectrum, have difficulty with communication and therefore require communication support to enable them to build upon communication skills.

A.5141 (Santabarbara) and S.4256 (Carlucci) amend current NY Education Law to direct the Commissioner of the State Education Department to promulgate new regulations to include communication support as a service available to people with disabilities seeking employment.

NYSACRA and NYSRA fully support A.5141 (Santabarbara) and S.4256 (Carlucci).

For more information, contact:

Ann Hardiman, Executive Director, NYSACRA (annh@nysacra.org) or

Michael Seereiter, President/CEO, NYSRA (michael@nyrehab.org)

Katie Mayo, Associate Executive Director, NYSACRA (katiem@nysacra.org)

Click the screen capture below to read the letter of support in PDF format.

 

Additional Links and Call to Action:

• How To Support Bill A05141 – VR Communication Support for Autistic and other Consumer with language barriers
• Complete details about this bill
• Bill 5141 In the News: Press Coverage and Media Coverage
• Share this page to gather additional support 

 

Legislation would help autistic adults secure employment
Author(s): Rebecca Botta-Zalucki and Henny Kupferstein
For The Sunday Gazette Date: June 14, 2015 Section: D

 CBS News 6 – Albany– Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara joined advocates from the Schenectady ARC, GRASP and Autism Society of the Greater Capital Region to introduce legislation that will help people with developmental disabilities find a job and thrive in the workplace.

   ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) – Assemblyman Santabarbara will be unveiling his proposal to help those with autism in the workplace. (Video Below)

Bill would aid disabled job seekers: The Legislative Gazette, April 27, 2015
Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara joins local disabilities activist Rebecca Botta-Zalucki to push legislation that will provide New Yorkers with developmental disabilities access to communication training. Photo by Richard Moody.

 

 Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara Press Release: Assemblyman Santabarbara Joins Disabilities Advocates to Unveil Job Training Legislation April 27, 2015

 

 GRASP.org: Global and Regional Asperger Syndrome Partnership President Kate Palmer outlines her organization’s support for Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara’s new jobs bill.

Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara @asmsantabarbara with Stephen Motto from CUSP Educational Services @CUSPservices, supporting autistic college students with communication and academics and employment success.

Autism Society of Albany, New York Executive Director Janine Kruiswijk outlines the importance of communication support in unlocking the potential of New Yorkers with Autism.

Schenectady ARC Executive Director Kirk Lewis explains the benefits of communication support to people with developmental disabilities seeking a job.

 Angelo Santabarbara @AsmSantabarbara  “Hearing from a speech pathologist about the importance of offering communication support provided in this bill.”

 

 

 

Monday, April 27th, 2015 at the New York State Legislative Office Building in Albany, press conference in support of Bill A05141/S04256, which is designed to transform the opportunities for adults with disabilities who transition into ACCES-VR for vocational training and require equal access through communication support.

Senator David Carlucci, Chair of Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Committee, sponsors VR Communication Support for Autistic Consumers. Senate Bill No. S04256 (A05141) directs the commissioner of education (John B. King Jr) to amend the education law in relation to vocational rehabilitation services to add a new section (1004-c) for communication support as a vocational rehabilitation service. The deputy Commissioner of Adult Career and Continuing Education Services (Kevin Smith) is to implement the service statewide effective January 1, 2016.

• How To Support Bill A05141 – VR Communication Support for Autistic and other Consumer with language barriers
• Complete details about this bill
• ASHA supports Bill No. A05141 on behalf of Speech Therapists
• Bill 5141 In the News: Press Coverage and Media Coverage

First introduced to the New York State Assembly by Angelo Santabarbara as Bill No A05141, This bill is rapidly gaining the support of national organizations that are directly involved with servicing autistic adults.

• The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) submitted their letter in support of Bill No. A05141.

Details of This Bill

Currently, VR spends 80% of their budget for  job coach specialists to train individuals in skill such as mopping floors and bagging groceries. These specialists only need a GED to contract with the state, for up to $42 per hour.  Instead, the bill asks VR counselors to refer to speech therapists or special education teachers to support communication in the workplace.

This support would be consistent with the needs of the disability and appropriate use of the funding available in the budget. Currently, special education teachers and speech therapists are trained in social pragmatic language disorders, and the nuances of how these challenges interfere with the workplace.  With less spending and more appropriate services, autistic adults stand in an excellent position to redeem themselves of the 90% unemployment rates, depressing the community.

How Can You Help?

Contact the chairs of the overseeing committees and ask for them to put this bill on the agenda.

1. Senate Bill No. S04256:
   Senator John J. Flanagan
   Chair, Education Committee
   Tel: 631-361-2154 or 518-455-2071
   flanagan@nysenate.gov
2. Assembly Bill No. A05141:
   Assemblywoman Catherine Nolan
   Chair, Education Committee
   Tel: 718-784-3194 or 718-456-9492 or 518-455-4851
   NolanC@assembly.state.ny.us  and collinsj@assembly.state.ny.us

Share this page [Help Pass Bill A05141 – VR Communication Support for Autistic Consumers], and make a difference.

Additional Links:

• How To Support Bill A05141 – VR Communication Support for Autistic and other Consumer with language barriers
• Complete details about this bill
• ASHA supports Bill No. A05141 on behalf of Speech Therapists

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) submitted their letter in support of Bill No. A05141. ASHA is the national professional, scientific, and credentialing association for 182,000 members and affiliates who are audiologists; speech-language pathologists; speech, language, and hearing scientists; audiology and speech language pathology support personnel; and students. Over 16,000+ ASHA members reside in New York.

What does this mean for VR Consumers?

Job Coach specialists with New York ACCES-VR are not of a regulated profession. They only need  GED to service consumers.  The new bill changes the mandate to include a regulated profession only to deliver the service of Communication Support. Furthermore, these professions must be of those which train their credentialed members in social pragmatic language disorders.  Currently, these practitioners are Speech Therapists and Special Education teachers, and some psychologists. At this time, Social Workers are not trained in the nuances of these language disorders unless they subscribe for added training. It is important that services be provided in an appropriate manner consistent with the needs of the disability.

Additional Links:

• How To Support Bill A05141 – VR Communication Support for Autistic and other Consumer with language barriers
• Complete details about this bill
• Bill 5141 In the News: Press Coverage and Media Coverage
• hare this page to gather additional support 

Click the screen capture below to read ASHA’s letter of support in PDF format.

Details about this bill, including history and original proposal by Rebecca and Henny

New York BILL NO A05141

• Direct link to the Bill
• Direct link to the original proposal by Rebecca Botta-Zalucki and Henny Kupferstein, submitted to Assemblyman Santabarbara.
• Bill 5141 In the News: Press Coverage and Media Coverage

TITLE OF BILL: “An act to amend the education law, in relation to vocational rehabilitation services for enhancing communication support”

Introduced to the New York State Assembly by Angelo Santabarbara.

Short Description:

This bill directs the commissioner of education (John B. King Jr) to amend the education law in relation to vocational rehabilitation services to add a new section (1004-c) for communication support as a vocational rehabilitation service. Deputy Commissioner of Adult Career and Continuing Education Services (Kevin Smith) to implement the service statewide effective January 1, 2016.

Our Calculations (based on The State Fiscal Year annual reports):

• 29, 200 Acces-VR annual consumers state-wide
• 4% ASD = 1,168 individuals
• 2.8% employed = 32 individuals statewide
• 88.5% with significant disabilities

History:

In June 2013, Rebecca Botta-Zalucki and Henny Kupferstein met with Assemblyman Santabarbara and submitted a proposal (click here to read) for reforming Acces-VR’s failure to adequately support autistic consumers. The proposal outlines an intervention for system change where a radical reduction in the budget would also increase the employment rates significantly.  This change would thereby radically alter the efficacy of the program moving forward, shining a light on the abysmal statistics published by the agency to date. By adding communication support as a service, the agency will support consumers appropriately and dissolve the demoralizing, costly, and ineffective job coaching services that still leave autistic adults without sustainable employment.

The federal government has given the jurisdiction to the state to interpret their own policies and consolidate funding. In July, 2014, we met with Debora Brown-Johnson, Assistant Deputy Commissioner of ACCES-VR and Michelle Barlow from ACCES-VR Quality Assurance and Monitoring Unit (QAMU) at the New York State Education Department. The proposal was then presented at the council’s open session, putting the matter on the record with State Ed. New York’s State Ed Deputy Commissioner reviewed the proposal in July 2014 but determined that no changes would be made to the policies at that time.

Rebecca and Henny wish to thank the following agencies and professionals for signing the proposal and supporting this historic piece of legislation:

 

(1) Janine Kruiswijk

Executive Director

Autism Society of the Greater Capital Region

101 State Street

Schenectady, New York 12305

(518) 355-2191

www.albanyautism.org

 

(2)   Patricia Schissel, LMSW    

Executive Director, AHA

www.ahany.org

888.918.9198, 646.505.6011

 

(3) Stephen Motto, MSEd

Director of Operations

College & University Support Programs (CUSP)

PO Box 66367

Albany, NY 12206

(518) 203-3913

www.cuspservices.com

 

(4) Lynda Geller, Ph.D.

Founder

Spectrum Services

303 Fifth Avenue, Suite 1003

New York, NY 10018

 

(5) Pamela Chris Howard, CCC-SLP

www.speech-1.com

NYS LIC011978-1

ASHA member 12026062

member of the Autism Society of America

member of the Capital Area Speech and Hearing Association

518-728-4652

chrishowardspeech@gmail.com

 

(6) Mitch Nagler MA, LMHC

Director, Bridges to Adelphi Program

Assistant Director, Student Counseling Center

Adelphi University

University Center Room 302

One South Avenue

P.O. Box 701

Garden City, NY  11530-0701

(516) 877-3665

mnagler@adelphi.edu

 

(7) LDA of Western New York

Mike Helman, Executive Director

716-874-7200

mhelman@ldaofwny.org

 

(8) Sheila Steinhof, MS,

-Vice President Programs, Learning Disabilities Association of NYC

-Governor appointed council member as Student Advocate of the Advisory Council for Licensed Private Career Schools

-Chair Subcommittee “Student Access” to above council

http://www.ldanyc.org
ssteinhof@ldanyc.org

 

(9) Stephen Shore, Ed.D.

Clinical Assistant Professor of Special Education

Adelphi University

115B Alumni Hall

One South Avenue

P.O. Box 701

Garden City, NY  11530-0701

sshore@adelphi.edu

(857) 225-0304

 

(10) Christine Gerber, M.S, CCC-SLP

Clinical Supervisor/Instructor

SUNY Fredonia

280 Central Avenue

Fredonia NY 14063

gerberc@fredonia.edu

 

(11) Valerie L. Gaus, Ph.D.

Licensed Psychologist, Private Practice

64 East Gate Drive

Huntington, NY 11743

(631) 692-9750

www.drvaleriegaus.com

gaus@optonline.net

 

(12) Karen L Colaiacovo

Disability Resource Coordinator

Chautauqua Works

407 Central Avenue

Dunkirk, NY 14048

716-487-5127

kcolaiacovo@chautauquaworks.com

Realized is my first album of original music symbolizing the sudden realization of my musical abilities in my early thirties. My Klezmer roots and classical influence weave an uncanny fusion of raw sophistication and poignant lyricism.

 Now Available for instant download:

• CDbaby.com
• FaceBook Fan Page
• SoundCloud.com

Listening List

Reviews

Henny Kupferstein, the composer, adventurer, innovator of musical discovery through the prism of perfect pitch and sensory integration, has made a giant leap on her new CD “Realized”. This exquisite and intriguing new music with irregular meter, recurring figures of melodic development and rhythmic vibrancy is perfect for choreographers who yearn for beautiful, interesting and innovative movements with melodic distinctiveness. From the high octane of warmth and hope in “Dealing With It: Five Stages of Grief” and reflective passion of “Laminade” to the improvisational avaunt guard, “Music For People” (which is totally accessible to any taste and my favorite on the CD), Henny Kupferstein is someone to look out for as an up and coming great virtuosity of composition. Listening to the new compositions lets the mind soar and opens closed doors of artistic vision. A must for any theatre artist who uses music in the studio or on stage.

Clay David, Theatre Director, Choreographer
Berkeley Playhouse, Circle of Light Theatre, Aurora Theatre
The Autism Channel

Support starving artists, they make you feel. 

TRACKS

Album Notes

Sonata No 3 in G for Piano and Cello

Deep tones open up this piece without the intention of darkening the mood. Instead, the upbeat and steady pulse leads the listener into a journey of cushioned stability. Composed in Winter 2013, This composition is the first and only piece that I have ever written while another person was watching it unfold. This was a unique experiment which grew to incorporate my ideas with the observer’s likes and emotions and into a blended thought. This piece is easy to listen to as the sound progresses meticulously through its start and end points without dragging the listener into its transitions.

Al Yis’hallel (Piano Trio)

Al Yis’Hallel is a piano trio composed in Winter 2012 for easy listening. This composition is to be played in a mellow and steady lilting sound, the sound of gentle loving rebuke and to be performed with classical instrumentation for piano, cello, and violin. This piece sings to you all the way through the key change and the gentle end. Inspired by Jeremiah 9:22-23 – “Al yis’hallel chacham b’chachmaso… hagibor b’gvuraso…ashir b’ashro; ki im b’zos yis’hallel hamis’hallel – haskel v’ydoa Osi! – Let not the wise praise himself for his wisdom, nor the strong for his strength/health, nor even the wealthy for his wealth; only for the following can one praise himself: when showing insight, and for that you know/understand Me [God]!”.

Blouse (Brass Trio)

After graduating with my music degree, I had to trade my hooded sweatshirts for professional dress. “Blouse” reflects my resentment at having to be all proper while missing my friends from college. Writing for wind instruments was my idea for paying tribute to my favorite musician-friends into one performance experience. When writing for performers, a composer must also take the extra measures to keep the tones within their comfort zone. This piece was a musical expression of my admiration of musicians who have gained exceptional mastery of their instruments. As a thanks to their skill, this piece fits their instrumental ranges comfortably for their utmost enjoyment.

Sonata No 2 in F for Piano

The key of F is the most repulsive to my synesthetic ear, a reaction I cannot suppress. I challenged myself to write a solo piece for piano, my most precious instrument of choice. To survive the ordeal, I fought to remain true to the key signature. The listener can hear the desperate attempts to veer into the comfortable relative keys. In the end, I did come home to the key of F to symbolize my discipline as a composer.

Music for People (Unplanned Improvisation)

Music for People (MfP) is a non-profit organization dedicated to music-making and music improvisation as a means of self-expression. In the Spring of 2012, I entered the world of making music with others with intentional sharing of sound. The joys of this intimate process is revealing to self and others. This precious moment was captured in a spontaneous recording. There were no discussions before any playing has commenced other than an shared moment to take a deep breath together. Joined by Grammy® Award-winning cellist David Darling, this moment will never be forgotten.

Sonata No 1 in E-Flat for Piano and Violin

The Sonata in Eb was a project designed to force me to reduce all the glorious sounds in my head and simplify it for a duet. In a way, choosing the piano felt like cheating since it gave me an opportunity to throw in ten possible notes with each linear moment of the piece. The painstaking effort to make each note carry more weight than a full chord resulted in a very light and fluffy piece for intelligent listening. The melody line is very singable and memorable. The pitch choices create a symphonic texture and pulse change to accommodate the rise and fall of the emotional peaks. This piece symbolizes a complex sound that prints deceptively simple on paper until analyzed.

Cantabile in D (Duet for 2 Clarinets)

The idea for this style came from the desire to use traditional notation to dictate a specific thought to the performers with guaranteed replication each time. Cantabile is an Italian term from Late Latin cantābilis, meaning worthy to be sung. In this composition, I wrote the notes with the perfect timing without room for interpretation. This way, my original idea of when to stretch a moment of the phrase can be notated in the passage exactly to be performed in this way each time. This perfect interplay between the two clarinets makes it seem like a lone singer out in the field, begging for an audience.

Dance for Strings, Sonata No 4 in A

Writing for strings is such a joy for me. In this string trio, I relied on the skill of my string-playing friends and give them something in their familiar repertoire to explore. This very traditional piece is written in classical instrumentation for cello, viola, and violin. Textures and ideas are explored one at a time so as not to overload the listener. The individual sections flow in a familiar sound of the The Classical period in music history. My personal favorite is the opening to the third movement—Trionfante, to be played with a triumphant and majestic assertion of one’s musical training.

Laminade (String Quartet)

This piece was born in the moment of inspiration when experiencing several challenging hurdles. I willed myself into writing something that would not drag the listener into that unforgiving space. The word “laminade” was uttered in conversation that day instead of the word “validate”. The frustrations of the moment leaked into my conversations which pushed me to seek solace in music composing. Written in 45 minutes, this piece helped tide me over that time. By writing for strings without any prior experience, I was able to explore my potential as a composer and self-validate without having to speak.

Dealing With It: Five Stages of Grief

“Dealing With It”, is a quintet with non-traditional instrumentation for piano, cello, flute, french horn, and violin. Composed in Winter 2013, the Kübler-Ross “five stages of grief” are represented in the score. Denial, anger, bargaining and depression culminate into a final section of acceptance, sounding out how I deal with it. The number five also represents the my four children and I as a unit.

“ASD Professional Network – teachers, clinicians, practitioners” is a FaceBook group connecting what you know with whom you know!   Administrator: Henny K.

For: OT, PT, Speech Therapist, Special Education Teachers, Educators, Clinicians, Practitioners, consultants, etc.

Description: This FaceBook group was created as a safe, private, and secured place for networking between professionals who work with autistic people. To join, send a message to the administrator containing the email address of your professional contacts who can benefit from this group. An email invitation will sent to them.

<– Return to Resources Page

Written by Henny Kupferstein, for:

Autism Aspergers Network Magazine – Issue 3J2014
http://www.aanmag.com.au

Autism’s Musical Gift

In the language of music, communication becomes possible through the give-and-take of tonality, rhythm, timbre, and phrasing.  People who study an instrument for many years can participate in such musical exchanges at improvisation groups, open mic, and jam sessions. For parents who shuttle their children to speech and occupational therapy every other day, music lessons falls to the bottom of the priority list.  In an effort to improve on skills that are presumed to be necessary for daily living, inner expressions become categorized as recreational.  This can be counterproductive, since the autistic brain is specifically wired to have extraordinary musical abilities.

Autistic people benefit from the neural differences in their auditory perception. This type of detail-oriented information-processing lends itself to preeminence for fine arts (music) over whole-words (language), often resulting in the phenomenon of perfect pitch (“Absolute Pitch”), and synaesthesia.  With non-verbal students, methods for teaching to their gift must be applied, to enhance their educability in all areas of life.  This way, the gift allows them to blaze through their journey towards impressive achievements in music, reading comprehension, mathematics, and social behavior.

Numerous researchers have studied autistic individuals and their musicality, after they have reportedly demonstrated high intelligence through musical communication. Absolute Pitch has been a captivating phenomenon for researchers, though there are many discrepancies on the correlations between autism and absolute pitch.  Absolute pitch has historically been estimated to exist in 1 in 10,000 of the population. However, current studies mostly tested individuals through note-naming. This language component in the testing is inherently biased against a population with communication differences.  To prove intelligence and musicality, different assessment methods are key.

Susan Rancer is a music therapist who gets it. Herself a perfect pitcher, Susan maintains a private practice in the San Francisco Bay Area. Her work is devoted to one-on-one teaching in a highly specialized manner. Almost all her autistic students have absolute pitch, and three of her students have transitioned into college.  Susan explains how people with absolute pitch are addicted to sound. They will imitate voices from TV shows, mimic household sounds and car alarms, and learn languages with authentic accents instantly. AP possessors also have a tendency to set impossibly high standards for themselves, and the explode when they do not master a skill instantly. With the ability to instantly match and recall pitch, the possessor believes that everything in life should be mastered with the same instantaneity.   This is the cause of many life frustrations and deflated self-esteem.  The individual begins to think that they are simply stupid, when other things in life do not come to them just as easily.

Their lessons need to be taught in way so that the student begins creating sound right away.  Teaching scales, fingering, and other foundational techniques will break down the student’s motivation to learn.  Modifying the lesson by using colored stickers to match color-coded notes to keys, is the antithesis to this process. The student does begin to create sound easily, however they learn no new skill which carries over to the functional musical world.  Amongst seasoned musicians, this individual then falls through by the failures of their training.  Alternately, teaching music theory and note-reading is a skill that opens up infinite possibilities, such as college music programs, and music composition.

Society values a person who plays Mozart on the piano, because reading and making music in the classical tradition is understood as a sign of intelligence. In a speech-oriented world, those who speak, have their thoughts known. All others have to find a way to make their inner thoughts and desires be heard through other means.  My daughter has learned through music therapy that she had the ability to sing, “more ketchup, more ketchup”, by tapping a rhythm to pace herself into a song. Offering the gift of communication to an individual should be a primary goal.  Finding the appropriate method for teaching is critical.

Parents should fire up their dream of providing piano lessons to their child. Clinicians who specialize in teaching autistic students, have arrived to their understanding by reorganizing piano pedagogy for their practice.  It is critical not to train their students to becoming a Mozart-playing concert pianist.   Music is not the goal; training in the discipline is.  The process of learning is where the magic begins to happen.  For students who possess absolute pitch, the intensity of their gift must be realized, and used to feed the other learning processes.  The professional piano teacher in your neighborhood is not trained to adapt her lesson to teach from the top down. Unable to gauge the educability of the student, the teacher would give up.  On the flipside, music therapists are trained to incorporate ‘increase eye contact’ and ‘improve social interaction’ as a goal for treatment. In between these two professions are the highly gifted individuals who have vast abilities waiting to be accessed.

Students who have absolute pitch will be able to play anything they have just heard. This prodigious ability gets in the way of the teacher-student relationship, and boggles the mind of traditional musicians.  This is because the autistic brain masters the complex instantly, and then struggles to break it down into the simpler tasks.   When a person can solve an algebra problem in their head, the fundamental math lessons on addition and subtraction can elude such a learner.  For gifted absolute pitch possessors, learning how to read music can be a tedious and even torturous process for both the teacher and the student.  Yet, developing musical knowledge and skills should be understood as an integral part of functional living and social adaptation.

Nate is a 7-year-old boy that I am currently teaching piano. Nate has a diagnosis of autism, and is functionally non-verbal. During one of our lessons, he entered in a completely overwhelmed state. He immediately began singing our good-bye song. For the parent and for me, this was indicative of the potency of the communication skills that he now developed, as a result of the music training in the previous sessions.  Thanks to the movie, “The King’s Speech”, more people are now aware that individuals with a speech impediment do not stutter while singing. So too, Nate had no difficulty communicating his needs while singing.

Our auditory perceptions occur alongside the brain functions utilized for gestalt thinking. This whole-word way of thinking incorporates color and texture in its greater picture.  Computational functions such as mathematics are processed in the left brain areas, and are also responsible for speech.  Additionally, this is the area which must be engaged for an individual to be able to follow directions, vocalize thoughts, and recall finer details in their memory. The figure-ground functions in this area are responsible for picking out words from a page, and associating it to a given meaning.   When science is combined with the arts, all areas of the brain are utilized, encapsulating dormant possibilities.

In many schools, a student with a diagnosis will be enrolled in an ensemble just like all other students. However, if there are behavior issues, the teacher might put them in the corner to play the triangle. Thus, the gift is marginalized, even while this individuals might very well be the the most musically talented in the room.   Instead, the teacher’s goals should include attendance, eye-tracking, fine and gross motor skills, executive function, and motor planning, to name a few. This specific method affords the individual the gift of demonstrating their intellect to family, friends, and teachers. A school district can easily recognize such competence as indicative of higher levels of sophistication.  At this point, the parent can expect the educational team to use this demonstration of student competence to justify taking steps toward mainstreaming.

A highly specialized teaching method must bridge the arts and sciences to form a multidimensional sum of practice that is greater than its parts.  Art and science are often diametric opposites, however when conjoined, also connect the right and left brain pathways measurable through modern medicine.  The teacher must be a malleator of sound to invoke student perception, thereby creating biopsychosocial change to alter processing of the subject matter.  This methodology relies on the neurological strengths of the absolute pitch possessor to begin forming connections in underutilized areas of the brain.  When quality music is easily created by the absolute pitch student in the session, the intrigue of the multisensory experience from tactile playing and auditory perceptions combined, becomes the motivator for plowing through the lesson.

Music isn’t what makes us smarter; it is the process of learning it that does.  Working on these goals each week through harmony and rhythm stimulates pattern recognition as translated from symbols. These associations of the musical notes opens the brain up to quantitative reasoning abilities which carry over to every area of life. This is how music can help bring about both dignity for the student with exceptionalities, and a change in social awareness in peer settings for what that student with special gifts can contribute. In the broadest sense, social change can be brought about through equal access and inclusion for arts and education. Acknowledging neurodiversity in music is a step toward inclusive education for all.

Older adults in assisted living and residents of skilled nursing facilities have so much to offer to society.

Cantor Dan, a former chazzan has allowed me to capture some magical moments on video.  Please enjoy every moving moment of this 3-minute video:

Helen (103) benefiting from guided music in a therapeutic session Helen. See her giggle!

All humans are capable of creating sound to freely express themselves without the barriers of societal judgement. Music is a global language of unity and connection.  Below are some examples of free improvisation sessions, which always occurred without any prior planning. There is no “what key are we in”, no organization, no sheet music, and best of all, no talking!

• Contact me about hosting a free improvisation experience in your community. All ages and levels of experience are welcome.
• Search my YouTube channel for more Improv or Improvisation videos.  Samples below:

Free improvisation, piano and viola:

Six pianos, 35 pianists

Free improvisation, piano and  trumpet

Alphorn, Trombone, Violin, and Piano Improvisation

Free improvisation, piano and violin

On the strings of a Steinway grand piano

The traditional college journey does not quite happen for autistic people. The dream is achievable, but requires a strategy that is outside the expected norms. Thankfully, there are resources available for guidance and inspiration. For example, did you know that Temple Grandin enrolled in courses that helped her become an expert in Animal Husbandry, by piecing together a degree from online and campus lectures, some of them oversees? Guess what: Nobody cares about those details. All that matters is that she has a degree, and is valued for that achievement. So let’s get together and talk about this for yourself.

Contact me about my consulting work.

Onsite and remote (Skype, Facetime) consulting services are available for social, emotional, educational, music learning, and sensory issues. Contact me for more information.

Feedback and Testimonials:

Nov 8, 2013

Hi Henny,

Using the mat worked like magic for my ADD and autistic clients yesterday. One kid, who used to attack the piano, didn’t do that.  He also stayed in his chair for the most part.  All my students improved in ability to concentrate and attend to tasks.

Best,

Shauna Joseph RMT
Registered Music Therapist
Magically Musical, California

——–

RE: Henny Kupferstein’s consultation services

To Whom It May Concern:

On June 24, 2013 Henny Kupferstein spent the day with my five year old daughter, Ruby, to consult with her ABA therapist, my husband and me.  Henny brings a unique perspective to handling issues that surface when raising a child on the autism spectrum. The best therapist in the world cannot know what goes on in an autistic child’s head, but Henny does. Her ability to troubleshoot sensory issues is uncanny. I understood my own child’s challenges better than ever after one day with Henny.

I look forward to Henny’s next visit so we will all learn more. Without hesitation I recommend Henny’s services to families and therapists. There is no doubt Ruby’s growth and happiness benefited from Henny’s insight.

Sincerely,

Lisa

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Oct 23, 2013

Hi Henny,

Patrick is doing amazing in school this year. His teacher totally believes in inclusion. He started out day 1 with a desk in the general ed 2^nd grade class 3 doors down from his special ed class. He is in the gen ed class for math, science and reading plus lunch. All the things you recommended. We are so pleased that they put him there, plus he is doing very well.

Thanks,
Jamie

Do you want to play any popular tune on piano in one minute or less?

Tech Talk: In music theory, I-ii-IV-V never let’s you down. In the key of E major, if you play the same four chords over and over again, (E major, F# minor, A major, B major) with inverted chords, you can accompany yourself on the piano in a minute.  Concept by ear:  Left hand typically plays a bassline of Do-Ti-La-Sol in any key = E, D#, C#, B

Plain English: Try playing these simple notes simultaneously (left -and- right):

E -and- E, G#
E -and- F#, A
C# -and- E, A
B -and- D#, A

Instant music!

Although in this clip, I-V-vi-IV is used, the minor second ii sounds way more exotic. Here’s how the pro’s do it:

Ethan is ten years old and lives in California.  Ethan agreed to compose a song together with me, and then record it. This video highlights his strengths, especially his Perfect Pitch, and his Autism, his overall wit, and wisdom.  Ethan only heard a single chord played before this song came pouring out from inside of him.  Please help Ethan go viral, since he checks his views and likes each day.  Celebrate awesomeness and share today: