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COUNSELING AND PSYCHOLOGICAL SERVICES
from Marieb College of Health & Human Services 2021-2022 Annual Report - Florida Gulf Coast University
Community Autism Network grows, provides vital services
FGCU’s Community Autism
Network has come into its own this year. With a growing number of children being diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, it’s a muchneeded resource.
Created by Annemarie Connor, Ph.D., assistant professor of occupational therapy, it has attracted $1.4 million in donations this year, including $1 million from the Golisano Foundation, and produced 18 funded FGCU student researcher and five peer-reviewed articles.
It’s also orchestrated 250-plus hours of group interventions, including training and educational opportunities for members of the autism community, service providers, family members, faculty and students.
Awareness of the network grew exponentially this year. It was featured as the FGCU360 Magazine cover story in spring. And Putting Along the Spectrum, an event hosted by the network that provided young adults with skills to help them gain confidence on the golf course, also netted multiple local news features.
Annemarie Connor
FACTS ABOUT AUTISM:
AUTISM SPECTRUM
DISORDER (ASD) is a developmental disability that can cause significant social, communication and behavioral challenges. Diagnosing ASD can be difficult because there is no medical test for it.
Doctors look at the child’s behavior and development to make a diagnosis. There is currently no cure for ASD. However, research shows that early intervention treatment services can improve a child’s development.
YEAR PREVALENCE* 2000 6.7 2002 6.6 2004 8.0 2006 9.0 2008 11.3 2010 14.7 2012 14.5 2014 16.8 2016 18.5 2018 23.0
* COMBINED PREVALENCE PER 1,000 CHILDREN (RANGE
ACROSS ADDM SITES)
Golisano Foundation awards $1 million to FGCU’s Community Autism Network
A $1 million Golisano Foundation grant to the Community Autism Network at Florida Gulf Coast University will advance initiatives to improve the quantity and quality of resources available to individuals with autism spectrum disorder, their families and related practitioners.
The network was created about a year ago as an interdisciplinary effort within Marieb College of Health & Human Services to conduct research and develop educational and clinical models that could help alleviate a shortage of community services - especially for those with autism who are aging out of school programs and into the workforce and independent living. Nationally, the prevalence of autism has skyrocketed from one child in 150 in 2000 to one in 44 in 2021, according to Centers for Disease Control & Prevention statistics.
The Golisano grant will help FGCU train more students and care providers, initiate more research and provide pro bono diagnostic and skill-building services, according to director Annemarie Connor, Ph.D., an associate professor of occupational therapy at FGCU.
“The focus will be on using the grant with our primary mission of training a workforce that is autism friendly and knowledgeable and to chip away at issues such as long wait lists for autism diagnosis in the region,” Connor says.
The Golisano Foundation is “a world-class leader,” she says, “in helping individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and promoting inclusion, self-determination and meaningful engagement opportunities.” It was established in 1985 by Tom Golisano, founder and chairperson of Paychex Inc., a leader in the payroll, human resource and benefits outsourcing industry.
The foundation is pleased to provide $1 million to expand FGCU’s program, says executive director Ann Costello.
“We commend the university’s commitment to building campus and community capacity to meet the diagnostic, therapeutic, educational and social needs of individuals with autism in Southwest Florida,” Costello says. “We know that this initiative will have a long-lasting and positive impact on those with autism and their families.”
Shawn Felton, Ed.D., Marieb’s interim dean, sees Golisano’s investment as a validation of what FGCU’s Community Autism Network is doing.
“To buy into what we’re doing and provide support speaks volumes for what they see and believe in,” he says. “It comes with a responsibility that we deliver at a high quality.”
The Golisano grant will enable the Community Autism Network to make several enhancements: refocus faculty and staff time toward more autism-related work; pay for medical doctors or licensed psychologists to offer diagnostic training on campus for students and practitioners; and hire postdoctoral fellows to conduct research and develop new programming models that can be tested and implemented in the community.
Marieb Day pays homage to benefactor on building’s 10th anniversary
Marieb Day, held annually to honor the memory of the generous benefactor for whom both the college and its building are named, took place Feb. 24.
It marked the 10th anniversary of Marieb Hall and the fifth anniversary of the naming of Marieb College of Health & Human Services after the renowned Elaine Nicpon Marieb, R.N., Ph.D., who died in 2018. She was a biologist, nurse and educator who authored 13 anatomy and physiology textbooks used by universities nationwide. Her success allowed her to make a significant impact as a philanthropist by, among other things, making a $15 million investment in FGCU to support the health professions building, program, faculty and scholarships.
Faculty, staff, students and community partners attended the event to pay tribute and to take in the second annual Anatomical Art Show hosted by the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences. Other events at the celebration included: } A look at the emerging practice of animal-assisted therapy in occupational therapy, in which students learn about the human-animal bond, animal handling and application in various rehabilitation contexts. } Information on SEE Me Playgroups – socialemotional education therapeutic groups that are community-based and aim at promoting early learning, providing parents with a sense of competence and allowing opportunities for socialization for parents and children. } Representatives of Home Base talked about the free program designed to help veterans improve their physical health and well-being through supervised physical exercise, education about healthy eating, living, sleep hygiene and stress management.
Dr. Elaine Nicpon Marieb I reached a level where I was so hungry for knowledge that there was no stopping me. That’s what education did for me, and I think can do for anybody.”
—Elaine Nicpon Marieb, Ph.D.
Exercise is Medicine program shapes up more students, employees
Exercise is Medicine on Campus at FGCU continues to grow. Introduced here in 2016, the program is free for students and employees. It includes a physical activity consultation, fitness assessment, a training session and mentors.
“We continue to use our established participant referral network to help students find the program,” says Patti Bauer, Ph.D., assistant professor and academic adviser to the exercise science program.
The majority of referrals result from a physical activity question on the electronic medical record students complete for Student Health Services.
The 2021-22 year was a busy one as the program geared back up following the pandemic. The team bolstered program offerings and built upon the pilot data being collected. FGCU retained Gold Status recognition from the American College of Sports Medicine. The Eagles In Motion mentor program also expanded, with FGCU students trained by the Campus Recreation staff to serve as mentors, or “fitness buddies,” to support participants on their physical activity journey. The staff worked with advisers in Marieb and elsewhere around the university to promote mentorship as a service-learning opportunity and a way for more students to engage on campus.
The staff worked hard to expand offerings and awareness, with a renewed focus on faculty and staff. There are some publication submissions in the works for this academic year while the team continues to update the program as needed and collect data for dissemination across higher education.
Securing additional funding continues to be a goal to help support and expand the program. Looking ahead, Bauer says the staff hopes to work with Blue Zones by NCH (a healthy diet and lifestyle program), collaborate with other Florida Exercise is Medicine on Campus programs and improve program awareness across campus.
Shady Rest Foundation promotes careers in eldercare with targeted scholarships
Students pursuing degrees in health fields that focus on older adults are receiving assistance from a foundation that once offered that help itself but is passing the torch to a new generation of caregivers.
Shady Rest Foundation is the entity that oversees the funds from the sale of a facility run by Lee County to care for low-income seniors. The county eventually turned the center over to a nonprofit corporation and, years later, sold it and land on which it sat near Page Field in south Fort Myers.
The officers of Shady Rest Foundation chose to use the proceeds, in part, to fund scholarships for students who plan to go into healthcare for older adults. The $3 million donation the group made in December will go a long way toward assisting FGCU students in the pursuit of that goal with the creation of two endowments. This gift builds upon the previous year’s $1 million gift to support these students.
In addition, the foundation pledged $5 million to help fund the creation of a facility that will serve as a regional hub aimed at enhancing aging, care delivery and quality of life through research, education and service. It will be named the Shady Rest Institute on Positive Aging in honor of the gift.
