CARD-USF Welcomes New Director

For the past several months, CARD–USF has conducted a national search and has identified Dr. Karen Berkman as the new CARD Director. Dr. Berkman has a Doctoral degree in Special Education from Syracuse University and Masters degrees in Social Work and Counseling Psychology. She has over 23 years of experience in the fields of mental health and/or developmental disabilities.

“ I am so thrilled to have an opportunity to continue my work in the field of autism and related disabilities," said Berkman. "Working in the USF environment will be academically stimulating and allow me to continue creating innovative ways of providing services to children and adults with autism and their families.”

For the past six years, Dr. Berkman has been the director of the Center for Autism at Pressley Ridge in Pittsburgh, established in 1995 to provide intensive one-on-one home and community-based therapies to young children with Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) or Autism and related disorders. Her experiences at Pressley Ridge include fiscal management of a 2 million dollar budget, clinical and administrative supervision of 75 staff, program development, and research activities.

Dr. Berkman replaces Don Kincaid, whose involvement in a number of other projects has grown, and the amount of time that he has been able to contribute to administering the activities of CARD-USF has decreased.

“ I will continue to be involved with CARD-USF and the statewide CARD system,” said Kincaid, “and look forward to collaborating with parents and professionals who are committed to implementing effective practices for children and adults with autism and related disabilities. I am certain that Dr. Berkman will be as enriched as I have been by her experience with the CARD system, staff, and constituents.”

As one of six regional, university-based CARD sites, CARD-USF provides services to individuals with autism and related disabilities, their families, related professionals, and the general public throughout an eighteen county area in west, central, and southwest Florida.

The mission of CARD-USF is to provide support and assistance that optimizes the potential of people with autism and related disabilities. Efforts to achieve this mission are exemplified in the four “components for caring” that are the focus of CARD work:

• Direct Assistance – Providing individualized support for people with autism and related disabilities, and their families, in natural community settings.
• Technical Assistance & Consultation – Undertaking activities on behalf of programs (e.g., classroom, supported living residence, supported employment site, etc.) that serve people with autism and related disabilities.
• Professional Training – Providing instruction on autism and related disabilities through workshops, conferences, in-service training, and college courses.
• Public Education and Awareness – Developing and disseminating information about people with autism and related disabilities.

Additional information can be found at the CARD-USF website at http://card-usf.fmhi.usf.edu or by calling (813) 974-2532.

CARD is located within the Department of Child and Family Studies (CFS), a department of the Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute, University of South Florida. The faculty and staff of CFS are committed to enhancing the development, mental health and well-being of children and families through leadership in integrating research, theory & practice.