Institute for Child Development celebrates 50 years of shaping autism research and care

Every moment, no matter how small, holds the potential for learning.

A playground is also a Social Learning Center, where fun games and physical exercise provide opportunities for children with autism to build friendships with their peers. Classrooms, a garden center, even chitchat in the lunchroom — students are learning from the moment they step off the bus at the Institute for Child Development until they go home for the day.

For the institute’s dedicated staff, the labor is constant but deeply meaningful.

“It’s my favorite part of going to Binghamton because I feel what we do is specific and unique. It’s just really rewarding to be able to do this,” says Alana Brower, a senior psychology major who spends much of her time at the ICD attending classes, doing practicums and working. “The relationship that you build with these children over time is very special. Seeing them makes my day.”

Founded by Distinguished Service Professor of Psychology Raymond Romanczyk, the ICD is a national and international leader in serving children diagnosed with autism, their families and their communities, and as a locus for autism-related research. Over the past 50 years, it has transformed the lives of thousands of families, shaped careers and developed some of the best practices for diagnosing and providing services to young children with autism.

“It’s a unique place on campus. We’re part of the campus community and we’re part of the larger community,” Romanczyk says.

When Romanczyk first arrived at the University in September 1974, Harpur College was interested in forging a relationship with the surrounding community. A month later, Romanczyk kicked off a program for local children with learning disabilities but was soon approached by the parents of children with more significant needs.

Autism was a little-known condition back in the 1970s, he recounts. Diagnostic criteria have changed over the decades; rather than affecting only 4.5 per 10,000 children, as previously thought, one in 31 children in the U.S. is believed to have the condition, according to figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Romanczyk offers an analogy: the standards for what constitutes high blood pressure have shifted significantly over the decades, leading to increased diagnoses and treatment. That doesn’t necessarily mean that there are more cases of actual high blood pressure; rather, many cases simply went undiagnosed, if you apply today’s standards.

Today, the institute’s special education programs serve approximately 65 children from ages 3 through 12, some from as far as Elmira and Oswego. They typically stay for several years, honing the learning skills and independence they need to benefit from programs in their home school districts. The ICD also performs around 200 diagnostic evaluations per year for children ages 2 and up, and started a summer program for autistic young adults in partnership with the University’s Department of Social Work and Division of Speech and Language Pathology.

All told, the ICD has served more than 3,000 families and has hosted around 3,000 undergraduate students, a neat numerical coincidence.

It employs 85 people, including full-time, part-time and contract employees, and has helped train more than 500 professionals for future careers.

“As research has been conducted and our understanding of autism has changed and grown, we have new ways and strategies to support autistic individuals,” says Distinguished Service Professor of Psychology Jennifer Gillis Mattson, who co-directs the institute with Romanczyk and has recently received the Binghamton University Award for Excellence in International Education. “One thing that hasn’t changed, though, is that ICD only relies on evidence-based approaches and practices.”

Beyond the classroom

In a seminar room at the ICD, students gather for Romanczyk’s undergraduate psychology class on society, science and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Most are psychology majors taking a special four-course track in ASD, although an integrative neuroscience major is taking the class as well. Long-term, they have diverse goals: board-certified behavior analyst, school psychologist, medical school.

“You’re learning all this information in class through lectures or assigned research articles or the textbook, and then you’re able to work with the children and put what you’re learning into practice,” adds Julianna Wasserman, a senior psychology major. “Some of these practicums include observing, and in some of them you’re actually doing the assessment.”

In addition to classes, undergraduates attend conferences and network with professionals in the field, an advantage for graduate school and beyond, Gillis Mattson says. Those who become involved in the institute typically remain, with some staying on past graduation.

Among them is Ella Kasper, who graduated in December 2024 with a psychology degree. She works as a teacher’s aide at the institute while figuring out her future path.

“I want to learn the most scientifically valid, evidence-based practice I can to provide support to autistic people in the future,” she says. “We need people who can create interventions for autistic individuals in order to help them improve their skills and lead a more independent life.”

Lisa Arnone ’92, MA ’05, stayed, too. During her senior year, the psychology major stumbled on an ad for a teacher’s aide position at the institute’s Children’s Unit for Treatment and Evaluation (CUTE). Today, she is the program’s director of educational and direct care services, supervising the direct-care staff and coordinating care with families and local school districts. Her service also has global reach; she has conducted trainings and workshops for professionals and educators in India.

“I feel so blessed to have been a part of many of ICD’s 50 years and I am so proud of the school, the students and the team,” Arnone says. “I am so happy that my path through Binghamton University led me to ICD.”

An impactful legacy

Graduate students from Binghamton and other universities also undertake internships at ICD in fields ranging from occupational therapy and speech-language pathology to school psychology, social work, special education and applied behavioral analysis.

Accepted into the clinical psychology doctoral program in 2007, Rachel Cavalari spent the summer before graduate school as a teacher’s aide in one of the institute’s preschool classrooms. Over the next several years, she served in multiple roles, supporting assessment and intervention, diagnostics and program management, as well as grant support and community engagement.

The experience was life-changing, she recounts. After earning her doctorate in 2012, she chose the institute as her life’s work. Today, she is the director of CUTE and of diagnostics for the institute, and assistant director of the Binghamton Regional Center for Autism Spectrum Disorders.

The ICD provided a rare chance for Laura Arnstein Carpenter, MA ’00, PhD ’03, to gain hands-on experience with young children on the spectrum at a time when training in autism was hard to come by. Today, she is a professor of pediatrics and psychiatry at the Medical University of South Carolina, where her research focuses on autism diagnosis, treatment, genetics and epidemiology.

“One of the most valuable lessons I learned there was how to filter through all the noise and stay grounded in science — focusing on interventions that are truly evidence-based,” Carpenter reflects. “Autism is a field full of promise, but also prone to misinformation and unsupported treatments. ICD helped shape a generation of clinicians and researchers who have gone on to lead programs across the country. I’m proud to be part of that legacy.”

The ICD has worked with the New York State Health Department to develop the first formal guidelines for diagnosing autism in very young children and produce educational materials used throughout the state, as well as training materials for the state’s Office of People with Developmental Disabilities. The institute’s historical significance is noted in various encyclopedias of autism, and it was listed by a National Academies report to the U.S. Department of Education as one of 10 model programs in the country. Additionally, Romanczyk was a founder of two national organizations: the Association of Professional Behavior Analysts and the Council of Autism Service Providers.

But pictures on the wall bear the best kind of testament to the institute’s success: colorful drawings from the children, and thanks from families and the community.

“We have a wonderful, intelligent group of individuals who work here. They’re super-dedicated, kind and committed, which creates a positive and impactful culture,” Gillis Mattson says.

“And on most days, we have fun,” Romanczyk adds with a smile, referring to the administrative and regulatory demands of the institute.