AStounD: Robot-Mediated Behavior Intervention Program for Neurodivergent Youth

***BEFORE YOU REGISTER FOR THIS WEBINAR PLEASE REVIEW IMPORTANT REGISTRATION INFORMATION BELOW***

The Santa Ana Public Library's AstounD Robot-Mediated Behavior Intervention (RMBI) program connects neurodivergent youth with RMBI robots and technology tools that help them develop social, life, and learning skills. This webinar will showcase several different types of RMBI-programmed robots and technology tools, as well as best practices that have been utilized as part of the library’s AStounD program pilot for the past three years. Additionally, this webinar will explore program components that engage teen volunteers, parents, and community stakeholders, as well as focus on programmatic elements that support the lending of robotic companions for home use.

Learning Outcomes

At the conclusion of this webinar, participants will be able to:

• Appreciate the potential of Robot-Mediated Behavior Intervention (RMBI) programming for neurodivergent youth;
• Consider the various RMBI robots and technology tools available for use in public library settings; and
• Further explore programming elements and components that effectively introduce and connect neurodivergent youth and their families to this innovative tool.

Who Should Attend

This webinar is intended for programming librarians (staff who do programs for the public), and library directors and administrators.

Panelists

Cheryl A. Eberly (she/her) is the principal librarian for the young adult and volunteer services at the Santa Ana (CA) Public Library. She is responsible for the creation and development of the 2014 National Arts and Humanities award-winning TeenSpace Circle of Mentoring project. Cheryl has over fifteen years of experience in engaging youth and emerging adults via a targeted mentorship approach to civic engagement and youth workforce development, including various mentorship-based programs at the library such as the Teen Community Historians, Youth Health Ambassadors, and Seeds to Trees Digital Media Technology Institute Program. In 2020, she piloted a Robots in Residence and an AStounD Robot-Mediated Behavior Intervention program for neurodivergent youth at the Santa Ana Public Library. 

 

Lawrence (“Dr. Larry”) Singer (he/him) entered the library and information services field in a roundabout way. In his previous professional career, he was in the mental health field, possessing a doctorate in clinical psychology. With his master’s in counseling psychology and doctorate in clinical psychology, Lawrence had various different placement experiences. Among them were assignments with the YMCA Counseling Center and Dayle McIntosh Center for the Disabled, working with people with varying disabilities. Being disabled himself, Lawrence was a natural to help them with their life struggles. Among the clients served were youth on the autism spectrum. When the AStounD program and Robots in Residence began, Lawrence was a natural choice to help helm the program, learning about Robot Mediated Behavior Intervention to utilize clinically sound and proven techniques to reach youth on the spectrum.  

  

Important Registration Information

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Accommodations

This live webinar will be captioned in English (United States). Zoom desktop client or mobile app is required to access captions.

Attendees using screen readers are advised to turn off speech prior to joining the Zoom event because PLA webinars make extensive use of chat functionality. Attendees who find chat distracting may wish to disable it in the Zoom event, as PLA moderators will verbally highlight important topics raised in chat and chat transcripts will be provided post-webinar.

If you have a physical or communication need that may affect your participation in this webinar, please contact us at plawebinars@ala.org or 800-545-2433 ext. 5PLA (5752) at least two weeks prior to the webinar. Without prior notification of need, we may not be able to provide appropriate accommodations for the live event.

Archived Recording

If you're unable to attend this live webinar, an archived recording will be available to all registrants typically within 1–3 business of the live event. Access to closed captions will be provided in the webinar recording.

Tech Requirements

This webinar will be presented using the Zoom platform. Please review Zoom technical requirements and support information, and test your connection.

Once you've joined the webinar, there are two ways to connect your audio: via computer (VoIP) or via telephone. No microphone is required. PLA works with its webinar platform provider to assure the highest quality audio is being delivered to attendees. However, variables over which PLA has no control—such as the speed of your Internet connection or traffic on your local network—can affect the end quality of the webinar audio delivered by your computer. Each webinar’s audio is also available by telephone via a toll number, so we recommend you have access to a long-distance enabled phone as a backup in case you experience audio issues with VoIP. If you do encounter any problems during the webinar, you will receive a link to its archived recording within a week of the live event and can review anything you missed.

Contact

This webinar is presented by the Public Library Association (PLA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA).

Questions about this webinar? Please contact us at plawebinars@ala.org or 800-545-2433 ext. 5PLA (5752).