2017 SCAND Research Symposium
The first South Carolina Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders (SCAND) Symposium on October 9th, 2017 was an incredible success! In keeping with SCAND’s mission to create a state-wide, multi-disciplinary collaboration, there were 110 people in attendance from 14 institutions and organizations all throughout SC. Highlights of the event included:
- Two South Carolina state legislators, Representative James Smith and Senator Tom Davis, who spoke about policy issues which are integral to supporting all families in obtaining much-needed services.
- Keynote address by Dr. Marsha Mailick of U. Wisconsin-Madison. Her talk on FMR1 CGG Expansions was enlightening and highlighted the complexity of neurodevelopment which often includes looking at family and social environments.
- 41 poster presentations which allowed researchers, professors, post-docs, graduate students and undergraduates to highlight their areas of expertise.
- 16 “blitz sessions” in which attendees took the opportunity to briefly introduce themselves and their work to the entire group.
Overall, the first SCAND Symposium was a great step forward in its aim to drive research excellence and foster multi-disciplinary collaboration in South Carolina. From an anonymous post-retreat survey of participants, there was an overwhelming response to have an annual symposium, so we are now looking forward to the second annual SCAND Symposium in Charleston on October 12th, 2018!
