Defining Autism: From Nonverbal to National Speaker

NEWARK, Ohio, Aug. 9, 2017— Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is now identified in one out of every 68 births in the United States according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Despite its prevalence, many are unfamiliar with what it means or, because it affects a person’s ability to communicate, how to interact with people on the autism spectrum. Central Ohio Technical College (COTC) welcomes award-winning national speaker and best-selling author Kerry Magro on Thursday, Aug. 17, 2017, for two public events on the topic of ASD.

Magro became an advocate for ASD after coming out about having autism for the first time while attending Seton Hall University as a freshman in 2007. Since then he has spoken to break down barriers of hate and intolerance towards those with special needs.

From 4:30 to 5:30 p.m., Magro will present “Autism Hasn’t Stopped Me from Having Five Jobs.” This session is particularly beneficial to employers, human resources managers, business owners and anyone that may interact on a professional level with someone with ASD.

From 7 to 8:30 p.m., Magro will speak more broadly on “Defining Autism: From Nonverbal to National Speaker.” Both presentations are free and open to the public. They will be held in the auditorium of Founders Hall on the shared Newark campus of COTC and The Ohio State University located at 1179 University Drive.

Magro was diagnosed with Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS), a form of autism, at age 4. Now at age 29, he has authored three books, including Defining Autism from the Heart which became an Amazon best-seller, consulted on the movie Joyful Noise which stars Queen Latifah and Dolly Parton, and founded the non-profit organization KRM Making a Difference that gives college scholarships to adults diagnosed with ASD.

COTC was ranked number one in Ohio and number 19 in the nation by PayScale in its 2016-17 College Salary Report ranking the best community and career colleges by salary potential. COTC is a fully accredited, public college dedicated to providing high-quality, accessible programs of technical education in response to current and emerging employment needs. COTC is the only technical college in Ohio operating four full-service campus locations: Newark, Coshocton, Knox and Pataskala.