Keynote Speaker - Raun K. Kaufman & Kim Korpady

Raun K. Kaufman – CEO, Speaker, Writer, Teacher - Massachusetts

As a CEO, writer and teacher at The Option Institute and the Autism Treatment Center of America™, Raun K. Kaufman works with individuals, families and groups, as well as lectures internationally on autism treatment.
In his work with people from around the world, Mr. Kaufman brings a distinctive qualification to the realm of autism treatment—his own personal history.

At 18 months, Raun was diagnosed as irreversibly autistic. Though advised to institutionalize Raun, his parents, authors/ teachers Barry Neil Kaufman and Samahria Lyte Kaufman, instead created an innovative home-based, child-centered program in an effort to reach their son. Their work, which developed into a unique methodology now known as The Son-Rise Program®, enabled Raun to recover completely from autism—transforming him from a mute, withdrawn child with a tested I.Q. of less than 30 into an outgoing, social boy with a near-genius I.Q. Raun’s story was recounted in Barry Neil Kaufman’s best-selling book, Son-Rise: The Miracle Continues, and was also the subject of an award-winning NBC-TV movie, Son-Rise: A Miracle of Love, which has been viewed by 300 million people worldwide.

After graduating from Brown, a leading Ivy League university, with a degree in Biomedical Ethics, Kaufman served as the director of an educational center for school-aged children. Now, as a Certified Son-Rise Program Teacher, he presents and lectures worldwide, teaching the very techniques and tools responsible for his own complete recovery.

Raun is the Chief Executive Officer of The Option Institute and The Autism Treatment Center of America: The worldwide teaching center for The Son-Rise Program since 1983—a powerful, effective and totally unique treatment for children and adults challenged by autism spectrum disorders and other developmental difficulties. This educational treatment pioneered the modality of joining children in their world instead of going against them, as well as using their particular motivations as a doorway to learning (rather than forcing them to learn on someone else’s terms). As well, The Son-Rise Program is the only treatment modality that prioritizes the attitudes and emotions of the parents and child facilitators as a key factor in effectively bonding with and teaching children and adults with autism. Over the last 25 years, the Autism Treatment Center of America has worked with more than 22,000 parents and professionals from around the world.

Articles and chapters by Raun K. Kaufman have been featured in journals such as the Good Autism Practice Journal and Autism File, as well as in the books, Silver Linings and Son-Rise: The Miracle Continues.

Mr. Kaufman, who brings a rare combination of inspiration, compassion and technical expertise, has spoken at universities and conferences, and completed lecture tours in the U.S., United Kingdom, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden and Norway. His interactive lectures, designed for parents and professionals, focus on effective methods of autism treatment, including an introduction to the techniques of The Son-Rise Program—thus enabling participants to put their newly-acquired tools into practice immediately.

Kim Korpady has worked with hundreds of children on the autism spectrum from around the world, across all age ranges and skill levels. With her degree in Early Childhood Development from Sweet Briar College and her 7 years of training and  experience in The Son-Rise Program ® , she brings a great depth of skill and experience to the children and parents with whom she works. She has lectured at locations throughout the U.S., including Autism One, the National Autism Association’s (NAA) national conference, Southeastern Washington Autism Conference, United States Autism & Asperger Association (USAAA),   Los Niños national conference, Fordham University one day professional seminar, and AHRC “Autism-Bridging Adolescence to  Adulthood” lecture series, where attendees especially appreciate her warmth, sincerity, playfulness, and ability to make concepts and techniques easily understood.