Watch the recording for “Protecting and Empowering our Children and Youth with Autism Through Kidpower” here.

In this workshop, adults who support children and youth will learn how to help young people with autism build stronger relationships and be safer from bullying, abuse, and other harm. We’ll practice ways parents & caregivers can teach young people of all abilities how to:

• protect themselves from bullying
• set and respect boundaries
• move away from trouble before it grows
• protect themselves from teasing and harassment
• get help from adults – and persist until they get it

We’ll show how to adapt skills based on kids’ needs and abilities and how to use the skills yourself in order to protect your child!

Presenter:
– Laura Slesar is the Center Director for Kidpower Vermont. She has been teaching Kidpower’s safety skills to children, teens, and adults for over 16 years. She worked for 10 years at Rock Point School in Burlington as a residential educator and the director of the residential program, and then provided respite care to Rock Point School students in crisis for 7 years on an on-call basis. She served on the leadership team of the Lake Champlain Waldorf High School in Shelburne for 8 years and was a student advisor and class sponsor for 4 years there. Laura has a BA from the University of Vermont, a Marlboro Graduate Certificate in Systems Leadership, and an MBA in Sustainability Leadership from Prescott College. She is the mom of two grown kids, ages 25 and 21, who are both Kidpower alumni.