The Central Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) Region is part of the Nebraska ASD Network which was created by the Nebraska Department of Education (NDE) Special Populations Office. The
network is composed of five regional teams throughout Nebraska and the Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Standing Committee, in partnership with NDE and University of Nebraska at Lincoln (UNL). The goals of the network are to assist school districts in providing quality educational opportunities for children with ASD and to enhance schools capacity in providing free and appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment.
The core Central Region Autism Team is composed of a multidisciplinary team. Team members participate in ongoing training to keep current on the latest research and practices. Central Region ASD Advisory board members include administrators, special educators, parents, representatives of a community service agency, and providers.
The Central Region Autism Team will provide a variety of support to school districts within the region. Direct services are not provided to individual students. The examples of support the team may provide include the following:
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Guidance with initial verification and ongoing assessments of children with characteristics of ASD.
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Consultative assistance in designing and implementing programs for students with ASD in areas such as: communication, behavior, social skills training, fine and gross motor skills, transition, play and leisure, and life skills.
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A resource library for parents and educators.
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Training opportunities for parents, educators, and paraprofessionals.
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Information on community resources for students with ASD and their families.
The Central Region Team serves schools in ESU 9, 10, 11, 15, 16, & 17. The Central Region Autism Spectrum Disorders Team (CRASDT) Director is Jean Anderson and the Coordinator is Jamie Lewis.
For more information or to initiate a referral for support, please contact Jamie Lewis.
Listserv - Stay in Contact
The number of school district staff, parents, and community providers on distribution lists have exceeded the capacity of regular email, resulting in some servers returning information regarding upcoming trainings and autism updates. In order to facilitate better communication, the CRASD Team has established a listserv. To ensure you get the latest news, email "subscribe" to our listserv .
Materials
The Central ASD Region has over 450 books, CDs and DVDs on topics related to autism.
Click here to check out materials for loan.
If you have questions about use of the electronic library through ODIE, please contact Denise Neill or Candice Meier or call 308-237-5927.