Here is a link to the following program.

Coming up on September 6, AASCEND‘s Job Club presents Sara Trail of Connected Employment — a person-centered employment program that empowers neurodivergent individuals and their support systems with knowledge about employment options. Sara will be talking about

• Paid Internship Program
• Career Pathways
• Job Readiness
• Entrepeneurship Training

Job Club facilitators Dan Middleton and Michael Bernick will lead a roundtable discussion with Sara.

The link to the Zoom presentation will be emailed to our newsletter subscribers (click here to subscribe) in the days before the event. There is no need to register for this event.

Sara Trail, M.Ed. has an extensive background in education and has worked with many neurodivergent individuals, primarily those with developmental disabilities. Since earning degrees from UC Berkeley and Harvard, Sara has continued to serve and advocate for neurodivergent individuals in navigating their housing, education readiness, and employment opportunities. a deep understanding of individual strengths.

As usual at AASCEND meetings, attendees on the autism spectrum will offer their experience and perspectives throughout the program. 

Who: Autistic adults, family members and professional who work with them are all welcome.
When: Sat Sept 6, 10 – 11am (Pacific Time)
Where: Online via Zoom, link will be emailed.

Contact info@aascend.org with any questions.

Do you care greatly about the quality of mental health care for neurodivergent youth? Stanford invites interested neurodivergent youth (13-21), parents, and professionals who work with them to participate in an important new project about this. A small stipend is offered to participants. Community participation is central to the project. Please click this link if you are interested in joining this community-academic partnership. There will be an informational session about the project, via Zoom this Wednesday Aug 6 at 4pm Pacific. This will be a good chance to learn more and to share input. Please click this link to join the meeting. Details below.

On Saturday August 16 AASCEND will host a Kickoff Board Game Social Mixer at the SF Arc (address below). Come as you are. Snacks and new board games will be provided. Bring your own game if you have a favorite. This is a great opportunity to make new friends and to meet old friends while having a blast playing board games with them! The meeting will be in-person only. Click here to RSVP so we can plan refreshments.

GAME DAY!

Who: Adults on the autism spectrum, families, mentors and professionals all welcome. For more information, please contact: info@aascend.org
When: Sat Aug 16, 10am – 12:30
Where: The Arc of SF 1500 Howard St. @ 11th St. SF, CA 94103 (enter on 11th St) map

(Stanford, cont’d): Stanford is excited to share that a group there is starting a new research project entitled “Community Engagement Research in Improving Mental Health Equity Through Neurodiversity-Informed Culturally Equitable (NICE) Interventions in Autistic Youth.” 

The aims of the study are to (1) engage autistic youth, families, and community stakeholders from diverse backgrounds to identify culturally specific mental health needs, barriers, and strengths using a participatory design thinking approach, (2) co-develop and refine Neurodiversity-Informed Culturally Equitable (NICE) mental health interventions that are responsive to the lived experiences, communication styles, and cultural values of autistic youth, and (3) pilot-test the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effectiveness of the NICE interventions in real-world community clinic settings to inform future large-scale implementation and evaluation.

In Phase 1 of the study, we invite autistic youth and young adults (ages 13 to 21), their families, mental health providers, and primary care providers to join our community-academic partnership. Please click this link to indicate your interest in joining the partnership.

We will hold an Information and Listening Session on August 6, 2025 (Wednesday) at 4 pm Pacific Time. We will focus on the first phase of the study in this meeting. Please click this link to join the meeting.