Maine LEND representatives attend Association of University Centers for Disability conference

Laurie Raymond, Eileen Ricci, and Kathryn Loukas attend the annual AUCD conference
Laurie Raymond, Eileen Ricci, and Kathryn Loukas attend the annual AUCD conference

Three representatives of the Maine Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (LEND) program recently attended the Association of University Centers for Disability (AUCD) annual conference. AUCD is of the home of the LEND grant and as well as other university-based programs supporting people with developmental disabilities.

Eileen Ricci, PT, D.P.T., M.S., PCS, associate clinical professor and Maine LEND program director, Kathryn Loukas, OTD, M.S., OTR/L, FAOTA, clinical professor, Maine LEND training director and LEND Trainee Laurie Raymond all attended the conference in Washington, D.C. December 4 -7, 2016. The theme was, 鈥淣avigating Change; Building our Future Together.鈥 It featured valuable information for about public health, self-advocacy, life course perspective and disability rights and policy.

The LEND program is a federally funded project aimed at expanding resources to individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and other Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (ND) in the state. The University of 51小黄车, in partnership with Maine Behavioral Healthcare (MBH) and Maine Medical Center (MMC), was awarded a five-year, $2.2 million federal grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to create the first such program in the state.

To learn more about the Maine LEND program, visit

To apply, visit 

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