CLEVELAND, Ohio--As the number of children diagnosed with autism continues to grow, the number of families seeking information about treatment, education, job placement and housing is skyrocketing. And they're willing to pay for sound advice.
This week many of them will gather in Cleveland for a two-day conference run by Milestones Autism Organization, a Beachwood-based education group formed in 2003 to provide scientific information for parents on how to best help their autistic children.
In the 10th year of the conference, the organizers have expanded to a two-day format for the first time, have moved to a larger venue and expect 900 attendees.
The conference isn't free: It costs $125 for family members, and $85 for individuals with autism or Asperger's syndrome. But participants, who numbered nearly 900 last year, seem to think it's well worth it.
Ilana Hoffer Skoff, executive director of Milestones, said the conference is an opportunity for parents, educators and therapists to network and to gather evidence-based information on treatments, educational tools, communication strategies and behaviors.
Hoffer Skoff, the mother of a teenage daughter with autism, started Milestones with another parent in 2003 to improve services and find people who were trained to work with their children.
A decade later, a lot has changed, she says.
"Ten years ago, there weren't the services we have now, and there weren't the numbers we have now," she said. "It used to be 1 in 10,000 [kids with autism], now it's 1 in 88. Across these 10 years Cleveland has become a destination for families with autism, a place that really provides the services and support."
Lisa Zimmerman, of Shaker Heights, has been attending the Milestones Conference since it began. She also has a daughter, Talia, now 12 years old, who is on the autism spectrum, the term for the range of conditions known as autism, Asperger's, pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS), childhood disintegrative disorder and Rett syndrome.
"I end up seeing a lot of other parents who I know [at the conference]," she said. "We're all going through the same thing, and it's nice to have that support."
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Cleveland autism conference expands to meet growing demand