FEBRUARY 2021 | ISSUE 162
NEW: Therapeutic Parent Support Group in Spanish

We will soon be offering a support group entirely in Spanish for parents and guardians. The goal of the Parent Support Group (Grupo de Apoyo "Unidos en Bienestar") is to create a reliable and accessible space for participants to make connections, forge relationships, gain perspective, receive guidance, and be heard. These therapeutic support group sessions will be facilitated by highly trained professionals in autism treatment.

Sessions will be offered twice a month via video conference and are free and open to all parents at any stage in their journey. 

This program is made possible by the generosity of the Henry W. Bull Foundation and Cardinals Charities.

To receive more information, click on the button below to complete our form.

Para obtener más información acerca del Grupo de Apoyo para padres, complete el siguiente formulario.
New Openings for Speech Therapy and Virtual Social Groups

AZA United's Speech & Language Services team is now enrolling new clients for speech therapy, feeding therapy, and virtual social groups. Our highly qualified team of speech therapists has specific expertise and training in treating speech and language challenges for children on the autism spectrum. Speech therapy is typically provided in the home or in our main office clinic. During COVID, teletherapy is also an option for children who may benefit from virtual speech therapy sessions. Our speech therapists are also qualified and experienced with providing feeding therapy for children who need to expand the varieties of food they are able and willing to eat. If your child is in need of speech or feeding therapy, fill out this form.
 
A few months ago, AZA United launched a new pilot program called Creating Conversationalists. This virtual social group is designed for children with language skills that are in need of social skill development. Groups meet weekly via Zoom and learn a series of important conversational skills with the help of a speech therapist facilitator. To sign your child up for a group, fill out this form. We will contact you as soon as we have a group available that matches your child's needs and availability.

Congratulations to our Newest BCBAs

We're celebrating three staff members who recently became Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBAs). This is an outstanding accomplishment which requires strong commitment and extensive work. At Arizona autism United, employees have advancement opportunities in their careers and we support their desire for professional growth. With these three team members obtaining their certification, AZA United has a total of 16 BCBAs which contributes to the progress of our mission to help as many families as possible with individualized supports.

Nick Cuellar
Nick is a Clinical Specialist who leads ECA and ABA programs by conducting assessments, writing treatment goals, training direct service providers, and providing ongoing support to client families. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Psychology and a Master's degree in Special Education. Nick started helping children with autism and their families nine years ago at AZA United, first as a habilitation and respite provider and then he became a Behavior Coach. After a few years in those roles, he moved into the Assistant Clinical Specialist role, where he started to learn how to organize and supervise home-based ECA services. He eventually moved into his current role as a Clinical Specialist where he enjoys utilizing his expertise in early intervention. Nick feels most passionate about applying his knowledge in ways that allow him to develop meaningful relationships with families and teach functional skills to learners. He loves watching children grow and progress over the course of his time working with them. When not at work, Nick spends time running, growing and taking care of his house plants and exploring and enjoying nature. His hidden talent is to come up with impromptu poetry.

Emily Urban
Emily has served families at AZA United for almost 5 years in different roles, she is currently a Clinical Specialist where she creates treatment plans for skill acquisition, behavior reduction, and parent goals for clients in our ABA services department, both home and clinic based. Emily received a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Bachelor of Science in Family and Human Development through Arizona State University and then went on to get a Master's degree of Science in Psychology with a Concentration in Applied Behavior Analysis. Besides working with children in early intervention, Emily is passionate about training the future BCBA’s and helping our behavior technicians learn and grow in their career. Emily loves the outdoors, when she is not at work, she enjoys hiking, paddle boarding or going camping. This past summer, she learned to wake surf and can't wait to do it again this year!

Kendall Curtis
Kendall has been a clinician at AZA United for 4 years and he is a Clinical Specialist who creates socially significant intervention and programs to fill deficit areas for children with ASD. Kendall has a Bachelor's degree in Speech and Hearing Science, with a minor in Sociology and his Master's degree is in Curriculum and Instruction: Applied Behavior Analysis. Kendall is passionate about seeing the growth of the children he treats as they continue working through their programs. He is filled with pride when his clients acquire new skills that they will use for the rest of their lives! In his spare time, Kendall enjoys weight training and listening to music. He knows how to play the tenor saxophone and piano and sings R&B, R&B soul and blues when there isn't an audience around.


Nick, Emily and Kendall, you make us so proud!

Our programs team is growing, we invite you to explore our employment opportunities and join our talented work force!
Gold Seal of Transparency

Arizona Autism United has earned a 2021 Gold Seal of Transparency. This seal is annually awarded to nonprofit organizations by GuideStar for demonstrating nonprofit best practices. GuideStar is the world's largest source of information on charitable nonprofit organizations. AZA United's mission is to help as many families as possible with individualized supports, and this Seal of Transparency helps us shine a spotlight on the difference we are making in our community.
 
Learn more about our nonprofit transparency and efficiency by clicking the button below to check out AZA United's profile on GuideStar.
There's Still Time to Claim your 2020 Tax Credit

That's right, if you haven't made a donation to claim your dollar-for-dollar tax credit for 2020, you have until the tax filing deadline on April 15th! Donations to AZA United support expansion of our programs for families with various types of needs.

Arizona Autism United is qualified through the state of Arizona for the Charitable Organization Tax Credit. allowing donors to receive a dollar-for-dollar tax credit up to $400 for individuals, or $800 for married couples. There is literally no cost to you to make this incredibly helpful contribution!

You get to decide how your tax dollars impact the community when you make a tax credit contribution to AZA United and receive a refund when you file your taxes. It is that easy! Click on the button below to make your tax credit donation now.
Announcements

Attention habilitation providers! Are you interested in advancing your career and moving up in the organization? At AZA, we offer a career path for our employees. We invite you to apply now for our ABA Behavior Technician position.

This job includes advanced training in Applied Behavior Analysis, increased pay, and a wealth of new opportunities! Contact us if you have questions before you apply.
Upcoming Events

Join us on Saturday, February 6th for our next Sibshops events for siblings.

We are offering groups by ages, and all groups will occur simultaneously from 10 to 11 AM.
 
Registration is FREE and required to obtain the login information. Email or call us at 
Lauren@AZAunited.org - 602-773-5803.
Link of the Month

The National Autism Center at May Institute is filled with free materials & resources for parents, educators, practitioners and anyone else interested in obtaining useful and up-to-date information about the autism spectrum disorder.