Spanish ADOS Training will be held March in preparation for a new Bilingual ADOS Study


April 2023

The Lord Lab is preparing for a new ADOS (Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule) study with bilingual individuals, where participants will be tested in both Spanish and English in order to validate the ADOS. Dr. Marisela Huerta will be coming from New York to train the Lord Lab in administering the ADOS in Spanish. The training is taking place in March, with plans to start testing over the summer.

Dr. Catherine Lord is the George Tarjan Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry at the Semel Institute of Neuroscience and Human Behavior and the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. Her research and clinical work are aimed at improving methods of identifying strengths and difficulties in individuals with possible ASD and working with families and individuals to maximize independence and well-being for all concerned. This has involved the development of diagnostic instruments (the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule - ADOS, the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised – ADI-R, and the Social Communication Questionnaire-SCQ).

Dr. Huerta is one of Dr. Lord's former trainees from the University of Michigan, where she also earned her Ph.D. She has also held the position of Assistant Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College. Now living in New York, she is the Co-Executive Director of the Felicity House, a community center for autistic women. Before officially joining Felicity House in 2015, Dr. Huerta played a critical role in the creation of the first pilot group of adult autistic women with autism that later helped shaped many of the current programs at Felicity House. She brings over ten years of experience working with adults on the autism spectrum, and is a certified trainer for the ADOS in both English and Spanish. We are honored to have her!