08/14/17
Randolph, Mass. – May Institute, a leading national provider of evidence-based behavioral interventions for children and adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and other special needs, has announced that the May Center for ABA Services in Jacksonville, N.C., (formerly the May Center for Autism Spectrum Disorder), has changed its name, expanded its program offerings, and widened its service area.
The May Center will continue to provide direct services based on the principles of applied behavior analysis (ABA) in families’ homes, and will now expand its offerings to include direct services at the center in Jacksonville and consultation services to area schools. Children with ASD ages 1.5 – 22 are eligible for home-based services, and the center accepts adults based on availability. The Early Childhood center-based program serves young children, ages 2.6-6. Center-based services such as social skills groups are also available for children ages 7-15.
ABA is a methodology that involves scientific behavioral practices (positive reinforcement, repetition, and prompting) to support the development of communication and functional skills, while simultaneously addressing everyday social challenges. Hundreds of peer-reviewed studies have shown that ABA is the most effective method to teach children and adolescents with autism and other developmental disabilities. It has been endorsed by the National Institutes of Health and has been identified by the Surgeon General of the United States as the most effective way to treat autism.
The center serves families in Jacksonville and the surrounding areas. May Institute will open another May Center for ABA Services in Wilmington this fall, and is currently accepting enrollment from families in the Wilmington area. Services at both locations are funded through families’ insurance plans and private pay; military families can access services utilizing TRICARE benefits.
All May Center professionals are trained in ABA and have ongoing access to May Institute’s top national experts who provide consultation, peer review, and guidance. May Institute is one of the nation’s largest employers of Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBAs). May Center BCBAs are licensed under the psychology board in North Carolina.
“Home- and center-based ABA therapy utilizes evidence-based practices to provide meaningful learning opportunities for children with ASD. Services are designed to teach critical skills across several domains including communication, adaptive living, and prosocial behaviors while simultaneously targeting the reduction of challenging behaviors that can impede these skills,” says Christina Hardy, Ph.D., LP, BCBA-D, Program Director of the Center. “Whether children receive services in the home or at our center, parents/caregivers are active members of their treatment team, learning how to generalize, or transfer, new skills to other appropriate settings.”
The May Center also offers a comprehensive continuum of consultation services to public and private schools and state agencies. Consultants collaborate with school/agency staff and families to assess and enhance educational programs for children and adolescents from birth to age 22 with diverse diagnoses and special needs.
“Our workshops and in-service presentations can be tailored for the specific audiences and training needs of each school or district, including special and regular education teachers, classroom aides, student support personnel, administrators, and parents,” says Dr. Hardy.
For more information, contact Angelique Gurley at 804.269.4732, or at agurley@mayinstitute.org.
About May Institute
May Institute is a nonprofit organization that is a national leader in the field of applied behavior analysis, serving individuals with autism spectrum disorder and other developmental disabilities, brain injury and neurobehavioral disorders, and other special needs. Founded more than 60 years ago, we provide a wide range of exceptional educational and rehabilitative services across the lifespan, as well as training and consultation services to professionals, organizations, and public school systems. At more than 140 service locations across the country, highly trained staff work to create new and more effective ways to meet the special needs of individuals and families. For more information, call 800.778.7601 or visit www.mayinstitute.org.
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