Professional autism training program and director move to KU, with potential to meet autism screening needs nationwide

LAWRENCE — A nationally recognized professional development program that aims to improve the accuracy, quality and accessibility of autism diagnoses for families is now based at the University of Kansas and has the potential to expand autism screening in schools, mental health clinics and other settings.

The Global Autism Interactive Network (GAIN) supports clinicians, educators and other professionals who work with individuals who are or may be on the autism spectrum. Through a mix of online and in-person formats, the program provides specialized training in the use of gold-standard autism diagnostic tools, including the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, Second Edition (ADOS-2) and the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R). More than 2,000 people across the United States and in several countries have been trained through GAIN since it was first established at the University of Missouri in 2019.

GAIN offers tiered professional development opportunities, including monthly interactive sessions, coding reliability training and advanced workshops. They are designed to support professionals at every level — from those new to autism assessment to seasoned clinicians seeking to deepen their expertise, said Kourtney Nigh, who leads GAIN at the Kansas Center for Autism Research and Training (KCART), part of KU’s Life Span Institute. Nigh trained and received her doctorate at the University of California–Los Angeles, where she worked with well-known autism expert Catherine Lord, who led the development of the gold-standard assessment tools.

Nigh, who has 15 years of experience helping identify autism and with training professionals, said one of the strengths of the program was its structure, which allows trainees to learn from multiple experts in the field who they might not have access to otherwise.  

“This allows users access to a wide range of knowledge and experience from across the country,” she said.

GAIN professional development sessions are structured as monthly online meetups for professionals to calibrate their coding on the ADOS-2, four-hour online sessions focused on differentiating autism from related or overlapping diagnoses, such as intellectual disability or ADHD, and in-person training on the ADOS-2 and ADI-R. Registration is open for the next in-person training May 14-16 at the KU Clinical Research Center in Fairway, and additional information about options is on the GAIN website.

Matt Mosconi, KCART director, said that GAIN has the potential to expand the number of individuals such as school psychologists and other professionals who can screen and refer children for additional testing.

“Early identification and referrals are important,” Mosconi said. “Many families face long wait times for formal medical diagnoses, but a trained school professional can conduct an initial evaluation and help guide families toward next steps, which ensures that children receive the support they need as early as possible.”

Mosconi also said that Nigh, who was recruited to KU through a Research Rising initiative awarded to the Life Span Institute to accelerate research on autism and related intellectual and developmental disabilities, is a key part of clinical research trials in autism conducted at KU. Some research trials require that participants be screened for autism or have a formal diagnosis, so having Nigh, a clinical psychologist, on staff is important to ensuring individuals are rigorously and comprehensively evaluated. For example, potential research participants can be assessed for autism ahead of a formal diagnosis that can otherwise take months to receive because of the limited number of providers, insurance hurdles or other challenges.

Nigh said that professionals in school and mental health care settings can use GAIN professional development to improve their skills in observing and recording information, to help determine whether children may be eligible for special education services under the autism category, and whether a referral for further medical evaluation is needed.

“The ADOS is like a really good thermometer,” Nigh said. “It doesn’t give a diagnosis by itself — it’s just a tool. But professionals can learn how to use it to make informed decisions about eligibility for autism support. We teach how to interpret behaviors and score or categorize information correctly, which can help someone differentiate between autism and other conditions and to help individuals access the supports they need and deserve.”