FARMINGTON—April is Autism Acceptance Month and Davis School District has autism specialists who are working with schools and parents to find the resources they need for their child to be successful. 

“It’s a great month to get more people talking about it,” said Keri Vernier, Autism Specialist/K-12 Sped Teacher Supervisor, Davis School District. “We want to take away the stigma and negative connotations and educate people on inclusion and giving kids the feeling that they belong.”

The district has an Autism Specialty Assessment team. “They meet monthly to review requests made by school teams, of which parents are a part of, if they request an observation or assessment such as the ADOS-2= Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, second Edition,” she said. “We meet to review the request and assign one of us to do an observation, provide recommendations to the team and parents, and how we can best support the team in determining what the student needs are and purpose for programming and/or classification purposes.”

The goal is to recommend what steps can be taken to help the child be the most successful, said Vernier. “We want them to have the same opportunities as their general education peers and give feedback to teachers on how they can support them.”

Some children are visual learners combined with instruction, she said. “Others need time for a break. It varies, the spectrum is so grand. We want them to have the tools emotionally and physically to learn as other students.”

Some children with autism lack the social piece, Vernier said. “They’re just viewing it from a different viewpoint. Supporting all students can benefit the whole class, not just students with autism. Especially when they’re younger I feel.”

Vernier said how autism was perceived has grown immensely since she was a girl.
“I think there’s more education, awareness and we know the characteristics of autism and we’re talking about it.”

  According to Vernier, statistics on the CDC website show Utah having 1/40 8-year-old children in the ADDM (Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring) report identified with ASD (Autism spectrum disorder) in 2020 as compared to 1/36 nationwide – with 11 cities comprising that number (Utah being a part). 

If a parent has concerns they can go to the school directly or to their doctor, she said. “Every school has amazing support teams. Have an open discussion with the teacher. They spend a lot of time with your child. They have a wealth of knowledge that can be very valuable.”

Everyone can work together to decide what are the next steps, said Vernier. “Their performance in the classroom and at home can be very different.”

It’s really important to support and educate anyone, she said. “We have resources, there are mothers groups, etc. Students on the autism spectrum particularly have varied experiences.”

Vernier said the district is trying to provide an all inclusive setting at school. “They need to be heard and to know we’re here to support and love them. We want parents to feel supported and that they’re not alone. We work as a team for the benefit of the child.”

It’s completely a team effort in decision making, she said. “We’re here to help them be the best little people they can be.”

Vernier said she loves working with the children. “It’s so fun. With nonverbal kids I can make a connection. Everybody can learn from everybody else.”

Students with autism are just people that have all the same feelings, she said. “They need to be heard and noticed for what they can provide to society. I want every student to feel valued.”