Freeing the Mind: A Nonspeaking Autistic’s Case for Presuming Competence

• By: Elsa Jean Pace Nonspeaking Autistic Self-Advocate
• July 9th, 2026
• aac communication, apraxia, autism education, autistic self-advocacy, letter board, motor planning, nonspeaking autistic, presuming competence, Summer 2026 Issue
• 9    0

Many nonspeakers are still locked in the prison of their own mind. Nonspeakers are underestimated because our bodies and brains are disconnected. Our minds work, but not with our body, so people conclude we are unintelligent. Apraxia is not well understood by parents, teachers, therapists, and the...

What Parents Should Know About ASHA’s Position Statement on Spelling Methodologies

• By: Andrea Palerino, PhD, PPCNP-BC Utica University
• July 9th, 2026
• ASHA, augmentative and alternative communication, autism communication methods, autism research, evidence-based practice, letterboard communication, nonspeaking autistic, spelling to communicate, Summer 2026 Issue
• 5    0

Ninth grade was a turning point for my nonverbal daughter with autism. After years in a life skills classroom, she moved into an academic setting. For the first time, she was studying algebra instead of counting money and writing paragraphs instead of discussing the weather each morning. This...

Building Community and Advocacy: From Voiceless to SEEN and Heard

• By: Ben Crimm SEEN (Spellers Empowering Education for Nonspeakers)
• July 9th, 2026
• AAC, apraxia, autism advocacy, autism education, lived experience, nonspeaking autistic, self-advocacy, spelling to communicate, Summer 2026 Issue
• 7    0

I got used to being silent. It was the loneliness and being invisible that was soul crushing. Being able to finally say anything I wanted as a nonspeaking autistic with apraxia was liberating. I have never been able to communicate by using my mouth. When I was a child, I did speak a few...