On Friday, June 9, Brian Boyd, PhD, interim director of the UNC Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute and William C. Friday Distinguished Professor of Education in the UNC School of Education, hosted the first in-person meeting of the Black Empowerment in Autism Network, which met in Peabody Hall on the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill campus.  

The first-of-its-kind group of Black scholars was developed to make autism research more inclusive and examine the ways that autism impacts Black children and their families. The network aims to provide opportunities for Black autism researchers and experts to connect, share their experiences and knowledge, and discuss ways to improve understanding and support for Black autistic individuals.  

"We want to represent the broad range of research that we see in autism and mentor the next generation of researchers,” said Boyd, whose 20+ years of research has led to effective classroom and home-based interventions for very young autistic children. “We want the group to represent a continuum of autism research with the goal of thinking about different audiences and ways to convey who we are, what we do, and what we want to accomplish.”  

"We want to represent the broad range of research that we see in autism and mentor the next generation of researchers,” said Boyd. “We want the group to represent a continuum of autism research with the goal of thinking about different audiences and ways to convey who we are, what we do, and what we want to accomplish.” 

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, Black researchers make up approximately 7% of full-time faculty members at postsecondary institutions. Of those 7%, Black faculty research specializations are varied. As a field historically led by White scholars, autism research has had a scarcity of Black researchers and collected data that appropriately represents Black autistic populations — and the network is working toward increasing support and representation for both groups.  

During the meeting, more than 20 researchers, educators, medical professionals, psychologists, speech pathologists, and social workers convened to discuss strategies to bridge the gaps in autism research and ways to enhance communication tactics between practitioners and clients. Read the full story from the UNC School of Education to learn how the network is working to support more equitable and effective outcomes for Black autistic populations and to develop a mentorship collective for up-and-coming researchers of color.