Minnesota county's schools report autism has doubled among its students

From the Pioneer Press:

A Dakota County report found that autism has more than doubled among students since 2002, a spike that has officials grappling with how best to provide services to these students as they grow older.

Between 2002 and 2006, the number of students in Dakota County schools with autism increased 117 percent, from 514 to 1,117, the report reveals.

County and school officials say similar increases are happening in most communities and attribute the higher numbers to a host of factors, including an increase in awareness and a broadening of diagnostic criteria.

Nevertheless, local officials are mulling over how they can best prepare for the anticipated influx of children who will grow up and need county services. Adults with autism served by Dakota County will more than double over the next 10 years.

"I think there is a task force in every state in the country," said Howard Schneider, Dakota County's senior planner. "But we have to figure out how we can respond to our situation."

Among its findings, the report recommends partnering and developing training programs with agencies that specialize in autism to prepare for the wave of expected clients.

It also suggests the formation of a countywide "autism coalition" and a review of current county practices to determine whether "major staffing and/or
organizational changes are warranted." The report, completed by the county's
Human Services Advisory Committee in September, was done at the urging of staff
from the social services department and other officials.

County staffers met in November and December to discuss the findings but have not yet acted directly on any of the recommendations.

In 2008, 142 adults with autism made up about 12 percent of the 1,153 adults served by the social services department. However, 47 percent of the department's 843 youth clients had autism.

"We saw that there was this huge wave of kids coming into the adult unit," said Greg Kruse, a developmental disabilities unit supervisor for the county's social services department.

From 2003 to 2008, the number of children and adults with autism served by the county's developmental disabilities unit increased 73 percent. Clients with autism increased from 19 percent to 27 percent of the total served by the unit.

The report notes that the major challenge facing Dakota County is developing appropriate services and a stronger "infrastructure" with more staff that would provide case management and coordination directly to families, develop contracts with providers and create individualized services for clients.

Housing options for adults, coupled with supportive services, present the biggest test because they are highly individualized, officials say.

"Right now, County Social Services can barely keep up with requests by parents to place adult children with (autism) into independent or semi-independent living," the report states.

Respite care is also mentioned as highly important for families. On that front, Kruse said officials from Anoka, Dakota, Ramsey and Washington counties are working on establishing a respite home for those with autism.

Located in northern Ramsey County, it could be available for use by caregivers by spring, Kruse said.

"It will allow for parents to get a break, to have their children be able to spend some time in a respite part of the house for the weekend," Kruse said.

Mary Kreger, director of special education for the Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan school district, said the number of students with disabilities from birth through age 21 grew from 3,780 in 2000 to 4,450 in 2008.

By comparison, the autism numbers grew from 121 in 2000 to 712 in 2008. So how do county and school districts plan, especially when additional local and federal funding isn't likely to increase anytime soon?

"That's the elephant in the room," Kreger said.

The county has been working on increasing its provider base and provider training with money that had already been set aside in the county budget, Kruse said.

Likewise, the key for school districts is to provide professional development for staff, Kreger said.

"We just have to continue to do more with the same resources," she said. "The more we can help staff implement evidence-based practices, the better."