“NO ONE BENEFITS FROM YOUR FEAR OF AUTISM EXCEPT THE PEOPLE WHO WANT TO SELL YOU THE ANTIDOTE. THE REAL ANTIDOTE IS ACCEPTING YOUR AUTISTIC CHILD FOR WHO THEY ARE AND THEN GETTING THEM THE SUPPORT THEY NEED.”
- Robin Roscigno, “Your Autistic Child Can Have a Great Life: Here’s How”, TEDx Mile High
History
Andrew Shahan has spent the last 35 years working with and learning from autistic and developmentally disabled children and their families in in early intervention programs, healthcare organizations, schools and university-based research programs. Born and raised in the New York area, Andrew holds a BA in psychology from Boston University, a master’s degree in early childhood special education from San Francisco State University and a California infant-family early childhood mental health certificate. Andrew served on the first California State Legislative Blue Ribbon Commission on Autism.
Andrew’s many years of direct work with children and adolescents inspired him to learn everything he possibly could about child development, autism and communication from autistic individuals, families and leading researchers and practitioners. Andrew witnessed the striking inequity across families and communities in accessing quality care, and was awed by the strength and determination of parents to do whatever was necessary to help their children. During the 2000’s, Andrew was fortunate to receive advanced training and mentoring in the Integrated Playgroups (IPG) Model and the SCERTS Model. As a graduate student, Andrew saw how many “evidence-based” programs and approaches weren’t accessible to or appropriate for culturally diverse families and care providers. He also saw how the voices of autistic people were often not considered by non-autistic researchers and practitioners in developing intervention methods and programs. Andrew always believed that a more practical, strengths-focused, neurodiversity-affirming and culturally responsive way to support children, families and professionals was possible.
In 2006, Andrew’s work shifted from direct work with children to coaching parents and professionals. Rather than addressing “problems” or “deficits”, Andrew focused on recognizing and building upon existing child and family strengths. Andrew spent the next 13 years working in large organizations empowering parents and professionals to support children’s communication, social and emotional development in daily life. His efforts across medical, educational and mental health systems of care included Kaiser Permanente, the University of California, Children’s Hospital, Oakland, Easter Seals and many California public schools. Andrew discovered Europe’s leading video-based coaching approaches, Video Interaction Guidance™ (VIG) and Marte Meo™ in 2013. He was quickly inspired by their unique ability to help parents build on the initiatives and strengths of their autistic children. Andrew has extensive training in both, and he currently uses video-based coaching in the training, coaching and consultation he provides to families and professionals in the San Francisco Bay Area, across the USA and internationally.
Andrew believes deeply that the voices of autistic and neurodiverse individuals and their families must guide all efforts to improve care. He has unshakeable faith in the power of families to impact their children’s development, and in the power of professionals to provide care with greater thoughtfulness, awareness, sensitivity and love. Andrew brings a unique combination of cultural humility, knowledge, experience, empathy, openness, lifelong learning and humor to the families and communities he gratefully serves.
Get in touch
At Autism Coaching, we know that finding the right people to support you and your child or your professional staff/team is a very big deal. That’s why we offer free consultations to discuss your needs, goals, and how we work with parents, families and professionals.