FROM THE NEST | SPRING 2023 | 7 The project will connect young teachers with mentors who can help with skills. Kristi Morin is passionate about autism research. When asked what drew her to the field, she repeats a well-known quote from advocate Stephen Shore: “If you’ve met one person with autism, you’ve met one person with autism.” People with autism often have problems with social interaction, may exhibit restricted or repetitive behaviors and have different ways of learning. But it’s the unique presentations that make it such a challenge for new educators to meet the specific needs of individuals with autism, said Morin, an assistant professor of special education. Project STAY That’s why Morin and her colleagues developed Project STAY, Supporting Teachers of Autism in Years 1-3. The four-year project will develop an induction program designed to meet the needs of new teachers working with autistic students in high-needs schools or districts. “Let’s give them the support that they need so they don’t also leave,” Morin said. The team is developing online modules to connect young teachers with mentors who can help with skills, such as how to communicate appropriately. She plans to launch a pilot program for a small group of new teachers to get feedback, then roll it out to a larger group of school districts. Early Career Award Morin received a National Center for Special Education Research Early Career Research Award of $700,000, funded by the U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. She is collaborating with Grace Murphy, a doctoral student in special education, and Lee Kern, professor and director of the Center for Promoting Research to Practice at Lehigh, and director of Lehigh’s Autism Services Clinic.—Christina Tatu Helping Autism Educators STAY Project aims to help new teachers working with autistic students. RESEARCH TREATING DISEASE THROUGH NEUROSTIMULATION Mayuresh Kothare, the R. L. McCann Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, and researchers from four other universities are investigating how the neurostimulation of peripheral nerves—the nerves located near various organs—could be used to treat other diseases, just as pacemakers are commonly used to help regulate heart function. With about $2.2 million in support from the National Institutes of Health, the team is developing software and modeling tools for optimizing the delivery of neurostimulation signals to peripheral nerves to treat conditions such as cardiac arrhythmia and hypertension. The team includes researchers from Emory University, University of Pittsburgh, Thomas Jefferson University and San Jose State University. Retired Lehigh computer science faculty member Mark Arnold as well as several students and postdocs from across the institutions are also collaborating on the work. RESEARCH ILLUSTRATION BY RAYMOND BIESINGER / LARRY FINK
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