2020 Benjamin J. Geigerman Lecture Series reaches out to people on the autism spectrum

Many individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) struggle with finding and maintaining employment, which is an important key to helping them achieve lifelong success. To create a bridge toward employment, the Benjamin J. Geigerman Lecture Series was created at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth).

The 2020 event, free and open to the public, will be livestreamed for the first time from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, April 23. Speakers from Dell Technologies and Potentia Workforce will be featured at this year’s lecture, The Many Faces of Autism at Work, sponsored by Louis A. Faillace, MD, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth.

Patrick Poljan, program sponsor and senior vice president of Global Audit and Transformation at Dell Technologies, and Kate Cosway, information technology audit advisor, will explain the structure and achievable goals of the Dell Technologies Neurodiversity Hiring Program. Cosway will also talk about her experience in the program, which provides job opportunities to adults with autism.

Shawn Fry, chief innovation officer of Potentia Workforce, will also share his experience transitioning from a struggling employee to a successful employer as an individual on the autism spectrum. Potentia Workforce leverages the abilities of people with autism with the market need of major corporations to source qualified technical and analytical workers.

More information about the lecture and registration is available on the website. Registrants will receive an email with a link to the livestream a few days prior to the event.

The Geigerman Lecture Series was founded in 2015 in memory of Benjamin J. Geigerman, a young man with high-functioning ASD. He exhibited promise and incredible talents, graduating from college with honors. However, he had difficulty obtaining employment, leaving him without hope or a sense of self-worth.

The Changing Lives Through Autism Spectrum Services program at UT Physicians Psychiatry Outpatient Services is directed by Katherine A. Loveland, PhD, Landmark Charities Professor in Autism Research and Treatment at McGovern Medical School. She focuses on treating adolescents and adults.

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