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NEWS RELEASE
Asperger Syndrome Experts Endorse New “INTRICATE MINDS” Peer Awareness
Video
For Immediate Release: Tuesday, February 8,
2005
Winston-Salem, NC – Some of the country’s
leading experts in Asperger Syndrome (AS) have endorsed a new video designed
to help classmates accept and befriend students with AS, who are now
frequently subjected to teasing, harassment and isolation. The video is
titled, “INTRICATE MINDS: Understanding Classmates With Asperger
Syndrome.”
Asperger Syndrome is a neurobiological
disorder on the higher-functioning end of the autism spectrum. While
people with AS typically have IQ’s in the “normal to very superior” range
and are usually educated in mainstream classrooms, they also typically have
serious deficiencies in social and communication skills. The number of
persons diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome is on the rise and it is
increasingly likely that students will have classmates with AS.
“INTRICATE MINDS” features moving interviews
with students who have AS describing how they think, act and feel – and how
they’re routinely treated. The students talk about their strengths as well
as their challenges and describe how important it is to them to be treated
with respect. The 12-minute video notes speculation that Wolfgang Amadeus
Mozart, Sir Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein had AS.
Although the video focuses on Asperger
Syndrome, the points it makes about acceptance and tolerance are applicable
in a wide range of school bullying-prevention programs. It’s designed to be
shown to high school and middle school students and used as a staff
development tool.
Coulter Video of Winston-Salem, N.C., produced
the video. The Asperger Syndrome Education Network (ASPEN), a volunteer,
non-profit organization based in Edison, NJ, provided input to the content
of the program and is making an initial purchase of 1,000 copies. ASPEN
will be donating a copy of the INTRICATE MINDS video to every school
district in the state of New Jersey during March, 2005.
The video retails for $30.00 plus shipping and
is available for purchase at the Coulter Video website:
www.coultervideo.com.
EXPERT ENDORSEMENTS OF
“INTRICATE MINDS:
Understanding Classmates With Asperger Syndrome”
Fred R. Volkmar, M.D., Yale University,
Irving B. Harris Professor of Child Psychiatry, Pediatrics and Psychology
“This video provides an excellent
introduction to Asperger Syndrome for typically developing adolescents and
children. Individuals with the disorder movingly describe their own
experience of the condition. This video will serve as an excellent resource
for teachers, school psychologists, speech pathologists, and guidance
counselors in helping typically developing peers understand classmates with
AS.”
Brenda Smith Myles, Ph.D.,
University of Kansas, Associate Professor
“Intricate Minds offers an authentic view of Asperger Syndrome through
the eyes of adolescents with this exceptionality. This poignant video is a
must-see for teachers and children who interact with students with AS . It
fosters an understanding that is unfortunately rare in today's world.”
Jed E. Baker, Ph.D.,
Director, Social Skills Training Project
“Every school system must have this video! What better way to understand
and build acceptance for students with Asperger Syndrome than to see and
hear such unique, intelligent, and likable teens speak for themselves. It is
both enlightening and compelling to watch these individuals explain their
difficulties and simply ask to be accepted for who they are. All middle and
high school students should see this!”
Robert L Hendren, D.O.,
University of California, Davis; Professor of Psychiatry; Executive
Director, M.I.N.D. Institute; Chief, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
“This much needed educational videotape has teenagers with Asperger
Syndrome touchingly describe what it feels like to have the disorder. Young
people and adults will learn to interact with people who have Asperger
Syndrome with greater understanding as a result of this well-produced video.
I highly recommended it to teachers and librarians to review and show to
their students.”
Charles Cartwright, M.D.,
UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School; Assistant Professor, Dept. of Psychiatry;
Medical Director, The Autism Center
“This teaching video is a very important and worthwhile endeavor that can
help promote positive interactions between individuals with AS and their
peers. I commend ASPEN and the producers of the video for providing this
valuable resource to middle and high schools. It will surely offer an
excellent opportunity to raise teens’ awareness of AS and increase their
willingness to engage with a classmate or peer with AS.”
Additional information about the INTRICATE
MINDS program and sample clips from the video are available at
www.coultervideo.com. Additional
information about Asperger Syndrome is available on the ASPEN website at
www.aspennj.org.
For Further Information:
Dan Coulter
Coulter Video
336-794-0298 (phone and fax)
coultervideo@att.com
www.coultervideo.com
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