Education Commons^™

Sparc – A Community-Based Participatory Research Project With Youth With Autism Spectrum Disorders, Richard Fleming

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

SPARC (Supporting Physical Activity and Recreation in the Community) aims to meet a community-identified need for more physical activity programming for youth with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). SPARC’s collaborative approach addresses the unique social, cognitive, behavioral, and physical needs of this growing population of children by infusing diverse perspectives into its model. This project incorporated a CBPR conceptual and methodological model, a strong community partnership, and an evidenced-based instructional approach, to develop and evaluate a community-based walking program for adolescents with ASD.

Impact Of The Young Athletes Program On Young Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders In Quincy Public Schools, Christopher B. Denning, Kathleen Ghio

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

The Center for Social Development and Education (CSDE) and the College of Education and Human Development (CEHD) are supporting the implementation of the Young Athletes (YA) program for preschool children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in Quincy Public Schools.

50-73% of children with ASD have significant motor delays compared to normative peers. Concerns include:

Delays in overall gross motor skills, including manual dexterity, balance, gait, motor coordination, and ball handling skills.
• Motor development appears to slow for two- and three-year-old children with ASD.

Young Athletes is a theoretically-based program designed to improve the motor development of children with disabilities (ages …