Navigating Autism

Dr. Temple Grandin is one of the world’s most respected experts in the fields of autism and animal behavior and livestock handling. As a toddler, she had speech delays as well as other signs of severe autism. Many hours of speech therapy and intensive training ultimately enabled Temple to speak. Mentoring by a high school science teacher and exposure to her aunt’s ranch in Arizona motivated her to pursue a career as a scientist and livestock equipment designer. She is a prolific speaker, internationally best-selling author, and professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University. In 2020 she was honored as a Top Ten College Professor in America. In 2010,  Time 100 an annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world, named her in the "Heroes" category. She was also the subject of the Emmy- and Golden Globe–winning semibiographical film Temple Grandin.  Dr. Debra Moore is a psychologist who has worked extensively with children, teens, and adults on the autism spectrum. She believes in therapy approaches that focus on strengths and interests, recognize the individual differences of each client, and foster confidence and potential. She was the Founder and Director of Fall Creek Counseling Associates, a practice that served the greater Sacramento area and was an approved teaching site for psychologists in training. Now retired from active practice, she devotes her time to volunteering and writing. She contributed to The Nine Degrees of Autism (2015) and authored "Internet and Gaming Addiction in Youth on the Autism Spectrum: A Particularly Vulnerable Population" in Internet Addiction in Children and Adolescents (2017). This is her second project with Dr. Temple Grandin, coauthoring The Loving Push: How Parents and Professionals Can Help Spectrum Kids Become Successful Adults in 2016. She resides in Rappahannock County, Virginia.