Autism researcher and Floortime co-founder Dr. Stanley Greenspan passes away

The International Council on Developmental and Learning Disorders has reported that its co-founder, Dr. Stanley I. Greenspan, passed away on April 27, 2010. Dr. Greenspan was the Founder and Chairman of the Interdisciplinary Council on Developmental and Learning Disorders (ICDL), founding member and past board president of Zero To Three: National Center for Infants,Toddlers, and Families and former director of the National Institute of Mental Health’s Clinical Infant Developmental Program and Mental Health Study Center. As the world's foremost authority on clinical work with infants and young children with developmental and emotional problems, his work continues to guide parents, professionals and researchers all over the world.

Thousands of therapists and parents, including many locally in Tallahassee, have been trained in his "Floortime" method of treating autism, the fundamental philosophy of which is "following the joy" of the autistic child.  "When I read Dr. Greenspan's book Engaging Autism," says Amy, a local mom of an autistic preschooler, "it completely changed my attitude about my son's autism and from that day, I started communicating with him better." Tallahassee Memorial Hospital's Pediatric Rehab Unit employs speech pathologists and occupational therapists who follow this more developmental approach to encouraging an autistic child's communication and engagement with the world.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Stanley Greenspan Memorial Scholarship fund, established by the Greenspan family to support future leaders in the field of infant mental health and developmental disorders, currently enrolled or applying to the ICDL Graduate School. Applications for this scholarship will be made available online soon.