January 2025 Stepping into 2025 Study Confirms the Validity of the New Parental Stress Scale for Families of Children with Autism and Other Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Catalight’s Parent-Mediated Autism Care: Angela’s Family Story of Empowerment “Nothing About Us Without Us” Leaves Voices Out The Catalight Foundation is Supporting Families in Need JANUARY 2025 Stepping into 2025 Catalight’s 2024 was a year filled with growth and progress. We expanded our reach, empowered thousands of families and played a key role in driving meaningful change across the intellectual and developmental disability care industry. Looking ahead, 2025 promises to be a year of even greater transformation and impact driven in large part by our commitment to clinical research and innovation in care. With intention to expand our global point of view, Catalight is poised to further enhance access to care, drive continued innovation and walk with even more families on their personalized paths to achieving greater wellbeing. Our goal remains clear: to lead the way in helping to realize a more inclusive and equitable future for all. We step into the new year with confidence and purpose, ready to break new ground while breaking down barriers. With unwavering dedication, we look forward to making an even greater impact and transforming more lives in the year ahead. Study Confirms the Validity of the New Parental Stress Scale for Families of Children with Autism and Other Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities A psychometric study of Catalight’s Parental Stress Scale for families with an intellectual or developmentally disabled child published in the “Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders” shows the tool to be a viable measure of family dynamics that can be used to personalize treatments and steer better outcomes. Catalight’s Parent-Mediated Autism Care: Angela’s Family Story of Empowerment A Catalight client who recently graduated from parent-mediated therapy, Angela has three young children – two of whom are autistic. She tells the story of what led her to choose this treatment and how the flexible sessions empowered her family in a short amount of time. “Nothing About Us Without Us” Leaves Voices Out Chief Clinical Officer Dr. Doreen Samelson, Ed.D., challenges the phrase “nothing about us without us,” in the latest edition of Autism Spectrum News. She contends the philosophy excludes individuals with significant needs who cannot speak for themselves and proposes expanding the phrase to include parents and caregivers. The Catalight Foundation is Supporting Families in Need Imagine waiting two years for answers. That’s the reality for many families seeking an autism evaluation. Your donation to the Catalight Foundation helps us shorten the wait and provide critical support. Please consider supporting us in our goal of ensuring every child is evaluated within 10 days. Quick Links Last Days of Elevate Your Impact Conference Early Bird Pricing Are you an out-of-network practitioner, advocate, student or payer planning on attending Catalight’s virtual Elevate Your Impact virtual conference on March 13 and 14? Be sure to take advantage of the early bird pricing before it ends on Jan. 31. Register Today New ‘What’s Up With Catalight!’ Podcast Episode: Dismantling of the Intact Mind The “intact mind” is the idea that inside every autistic child is an intelligent, typical child waiting to be liberated. Amy Lutz, Ph.D., renowned author of “Chasing the Intact Mind,” joins host Lindsey Sneed, Ph.D., to assert that the concept marginalizes disabled children and their families. Listen Now Attending to Accessibility and Universal Design in Digital Spaces Catalight Director of Technology and Innovation Vincent Bemmel, Ph.D., and co-authors talk about the vital need for inclusive digital spaces for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Learn More Interventions to Help Children Who Have Trouble Sleeping Dr. Samelson writes about the importance of maintaining a consistent sleep routine for children with I/DD in an article for Undivided, a resource that supports parents of children with disabilities. Read More [email protected] 2730 Shadelands Drive, Walnut Creek, CA 94598 Unsubscribe | Update Preferences ©2025 Catalight. All rights reserved.
in the news | January 20, 2026 More Treatment Hours May Not Yield Autistic Children’s Skills Improvement: Study Read News
press release | January 19, 2026 Leading Nonprofit Catalight Brings Value-Based Autism Care to the Global Stage at the World Economic Forum in Davos Read press release
press release | January 16, 2026 Study Finds More Treatment Hours for Autistic Children May Not Lead to Better Outcomes Read press release
press release | January 12, 2026 Catalight and Frontera Partner to Reduce Cost and Improve Quality of Autism Care Read press release
in the news | January 2, 2026 Targeting 4 More Years and Scaling Value-Based Care Models in 2026 Read News
in the news | December 23, 2025 Doreen Samelson Named Platinum Winner of the 2025 Pinnacle Awards in Mental Health Initiatives Read News
