News
Frist Center announces 2020 member awards
Jan. 27, 2020— – This past October, the Frist Center for Autism and Innovation put out its first-ever call for large projects, mini-grants, scholarly literature reviews, and symposia proposals consistent with the Center’s mission of engineering technologies and transforming the workplace – inspired by neurodiversity. These awards are supported through a combination of Frist Center endowment funds,...
Seeking 2020 Summer Autism Internship participants
Jan. 27, 2020—The Frist Center for Autism and Innovation is excited to announce the second annual Summer Autism Internship. The participating interns will work on science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) research and projects throughout summer 2020. The Frist Center is seeking participants who have an interest in STEM and would like to explore these topics further. To apply, an...
Dr. Caudel chats with fellow self-advocate on ‘Life in a Neurotypical Universe’ podcast
Jan. 15, 2020—Frist Center Associate Director Dr. Dave Caudel is the most recent guest on autism self-advocate Tim Goldstein’s podcast, “Life in a Neurotypical Universe.” Both Goldstein and Caudel were diagnosed with autism as adults, and they discuss their lives pre- and post-diagnosis. Caudel also shares about the mission and progress of the Frist Center. Caudel’s appearance...
TEDx Talk highlights Frist Center work
Jan. 7, 2020—This past November, Frist Center for Autism and Innovation communications coordinator Claire Barnett spoke at TEDxVanderbilt about autistic employment. Her talk, titled “Why autistic unemployment is so high – and what we can do about it,” explores several reasons that autistic adults struggle to obtain meaningful work. Barnett also discusses the steps that both businesses...
Support autistic adults through Electronics Recycling Solutions
Dec. 4, 2019—The Frist Center for Autism and Innovation aims to support and empower adults with autism in the workforce through research and community partnerships. Electronics Recycling Solutions (ERS) is one of those local organizations putting the Frist Center’s principles into practice. Their business model “is designed to provide sustainable, long term employment for adults with autism...
Frist Center announces new partnership with Floreo
Nov. 19, 2019—The Frist Center for Autism and Innovation has begun a new partnership with the virtual reality start up Floreo. Floreo develops virtual reality trainings for autistic people to learn and practice life skills. The primary user inserts a phone into the VR headset to view one of the sessions. Meanwhile, another user can connect a tablet to observe...
Frist Center featured on Leadership Lab podcast
Nov. 5, 2019—Dr. Patrick Leddin started the podcast “Leadership Lab” to inform and inspire leaders in all walks of life. He has hosted illustrious guests from the realms of business, academia, activism and more. This past week, Leddin’s guest was Frist Center associate director Dr. Dave Caudel. In the podcast, Caudel employs his own experiences as a self-advocate to provide the...
Attention: Frist Center members, call for pre-proposals
Oct. 23, 2019—Call for Pre-proposals: Projects, mini-grants, literature reviews, and symposia Due: Nov 15, 2019 The Frist Center for Autism & Innovation announces its first call for proposals for members to request support for mini-grants, large research projects, literature reviews, and symposia. We are utilizing a two-step process: In this first step, members may first submit brief pre-proposals...
Frist Center deputy director leads $1 million NSF project
Oct. 21, 2019—Autistic people are alarmingly under-represented in the American workforce; around 80 percent of autistic adults are un- or under-employed. So, when the National Science Foundation (NSF) announced a program that would forge partnerships between public researchers and private companies, the Frist Center for Autism and Innovation saw an opportunity. A team of Frist Center leaders submitted their proposal...
Forbes article provides guidance on hiring neurodiverse talent
Sep. 23, 2019—At the Frist Center for Autism and Innovation, we strongly believe that autistic people (and those with other types of neurodiversity) have valuable insights and skills to add to the workforce. An increasing number of companies around the globe have also begun to recognize the value of neurodiverse talent, and now they’re asking: what does it...