 Alli Gatta, M.S. Associate Director of College Support Kinny Center for Autism St. Joseph’s University |
Alli currently serves as the Associate Director and has both student facing and administrative roles. Through the ASPIRE College Support program, they support roughly 50 students both at Saint Joseph’s University and at other institutions through case management, peer mentoring and social support, and employment services. The program collaborates with university partners and leads trainings for faculty, staff, and other community partners on how to best support students with ASD. They also provide trainings and support to companies with Neurodiversity at work initiatives. The program has also started a supported residence hall – an optional living arrangement for students in our program to work on additional independent living skills and community building. |
Emily Raclaw, M.S. |
Emily directs a college support program for autistic students at a medium sized private university in the Midwest. She provides direct services as well as supervises graduate level students in mental health, executive functioning, career development, independent living skills, and academic success skills. She has developed partnerships all across the campus and the community to create holistic, multidisciplinary supports for our program. |
Lee Burdette Williams, Ph.D. |
Lee manages the day-to-day operations of the College Autism Network, staying current with new and developing programs, scholarship, partnerships and initiatives. She has presented nationally over 30 times to professionals interested in learning more about autistic and other neurodivergent students and has written numerous articles for the popular press on college students with autism and the opportunities and challenges they experience on campus, as well as the many benefits they bring to their institutions. |
 Brett Ranon Nachman Assistant Professor at University of Arkansas Director of Research College Autism Network |
Dr. Brett Ranon Nachman is an Assistant Professor at the University of Arkansas in its Adult and Lifelong Learning program. He also serves as the Director of Research for College Autism Network, in which he coordinates research efforts and monthly webinars. Brett draws on his personal identities and experiences as an autistic community college graduate to inform his research agenda. Primarily he centers on issues around inclusive teaching practices, ableism, and disability in community colleges, with a specific focus on autism. His scholarship has also extended to autistic students’ college experiences, transfer student pathways, and LGBTQ+ campus climate. Brett’s scholarship has appeared in journals including Community College Journal of Research and Practice, College Student Affairs Journal, The Review of Higher Education, Innovative Higher Education, and Teachers College Record.
He is the recipient of many national awards, including a Paul P. Fidler Research Grant (from the National Resource Center for the First-Year Experience and Students in Transition), the K. Patricia Cross Future Leaders Award (from the Association of American Colleges & Universities), and a CTE Research Fellowship from the ECMC Foundation. His research has also been funded by The FAR Fund and the Frist Center for Autism and Innovation. Brett proudly graduated from Scottsdale Community College (home of the Fighting Artichokes), where he still has strong ties, and attained his foundation as a community college researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he earned his doctorate. In his spare time, he enjoys traveling, hosting a Disney music and book-centered podcast, working out, playing board games, and spending time with his family, partner, and friends. |
 Julie DiMatteo, Ph.D., ABPP Clinical Psychologist CBT Specialists of New Jersey |
Julie is a clinical psychologist in Northern New Jersey board certified in Behavioral and Cognitive Psychology by the American Board of Professional Psychology. As the co-founder of CBT Specialists of New Jersey, a private group practice specializing in cognitive behavioral therapy for anxiety and mood disorders, she provides individual and group therapy to adolescents, young adults, and their families transitioning to college and independence. In this role, she consults with educational supports to ensure this transition is successful. During these consultations, she builds off of her prior experience in higher education as the Assistant Director of Outreach & Prevention at Seton Hall University’s Counseling & Psychological Services and as Program Coordinator of the COMPASS program at Fairleigh Dickinson University. She has conducted numerous trainings with campus staff, faculty, student leaders, and administrators to increase awareness and support for neurodiverse students particularly surrounding the relationship between neurodiversity and mental health. |
