By Susan Kagan | Director of Development
The Autism and Law Enforcement Education Coalition, ALEC, helps to foster a deeper understanding of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) among public safety and law enforcement personnel. ASD is a developmental disability characterized by problems with social communication; being inflexible with changes or routines; fixed interests; difficulty understanding and responding to social cues; and, over or undersensitivity to lights, sounds or touch. No two individuals are the same and people with ASD present with a wide range of strengths and challenges. Why train First Responders? People with autism are more likely to have 911 encounters than people in the general population. ALEC's 18 instructors are all First Responders with direct knowledge of ASD through a family member. Our team consists of 8 police instructors, 7 fire/EMS instructors, 2 EMS instructors and 1 hospital instructor. Audiences hear directly from a colleague with personal knowledge and an extraordinary personal investment in the program.
ALEC has held 162 training sessions since July 1, 2015 for a total of 4,831 First Responders trained. Among these First Responders, 974 Police Officers, 389 Firefighters and 350 EMS personnel received training in 2017-2018. ALEC has trained First Reponders in 330 cities and towns within Massachusetts. Parent trainings have been conducted in several towns within the Commonwealth. Parent trainings are designed to teach people with ASD safety skills and to discuss with parents and caregivers ways they can connect with the 911 systems in the State. ALEC training has taken place within statewide agences including the Munipcal Police Training Committee Academies, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and the Massachusetts State Policy Academy.
As we enter into World Autism Awareness Month, APRIL 2018, ALEC has trained more than 39,000 First Reponders within 37 states. April 2018 also marks the release of our Training Program Evaluation Report conducted by the University of New Haven's Henry C. Lee College of Criminal Justice and Forensic Sciences Center or Analytics. Within the last three months, ALEC has recently received funding from Bailey's Team for Autism and the Foundation of Exceptional Children of Suffield Connecticut. ALEC has scheduled more than 15 trainings since mid-February and will begin training within the Department of Corrections and within school districts before the conclusion of our next quarter.
As World Autism Awareness Month approaches, Global Giving gives the ALEC program the international stage to promote and encourage a deeper understanding of people all over the world with autism spectrum disorders. First Reponders, as well as, family members of people with autism, and people with ASD themselves within developed and developing countries can benefit from information gleaned from this successful, fifteen-year project. Please share this report and the work of ALEC with advocates, self-advocates, law enforcement and First Responders all over the world to encourage a deeper awareness of autism spectrum disorders!
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By Betsy Roche | Director
By Elizabeth Roche | Director
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