Connections

CoP ASD/DD Online Gathering
Recordings and Resources Available

Wisconsin Community of Practice on Autism Spectrum Disorder and other Developmental Disabilities

in partnership with

Wisconsin Autism Transition Demonstration Project Coalition

A free, virtual gathering

 

Caregiver Perspective in Transition to Adulthood

May 7, 2026                   9:00am-11:00am

Join us for an engaging and supportive conversation about the well-being of the hidden superheroes in our lives – caregivers. Learn about the issues that may be impacting you or the often hidden helpers in your life.

Tentative topics:

  • Bright Spot: Hidden Superheroes
  • Faces of Caregiving Panel
  • Project Updates
  • Small Groups

Registration QR code for May 7 gathering Scan the QR code with your phone camera and click to open the registration.

Or register at: go.wisc.edu/copwautdmay2026

Hidden Superheroes. Harriet Redman, Wisconsin Family and Caregiver Support Alliance member, will share meaningful information and insights from her experiences as a caregiver and the work she and other members of the Alliance are doing as they implement recommendations from the National Strategy on Caregiving throughout Wisconsin.

Faces of Caregiving Lived Experience Panel: Caregiving can mean many things and include many different tasks or responsibilities. Often caregivers are family members and their roles change as their needs or their loved one’s need change. Our panel will share their experiences. We welcome in Harriet Redman, a member of the Wisconsin Family and Caregiver Support Alliance to moderate a panel including a grandparent, a sibling, an autistic adult, and the parent of an autistic young adult.

We hope you’ll leave inspired and empowered with actionable tips to better support the caregivers in your life. Plus, discover how Wisconsin employers are successfully meeting the growing needs of caregivers in their workplaces while helping their businesses thrive.

There is no compensation for attending this meeting.

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Presenter Bios

Harriet Redman M.S. Ed. is Founder and retired Executive Director of WisconSibs, Inc, the first non-profit organization dedicated to the interests of siblings of people with disabilities from childhood through adult. Redman developed innovative family education programs for a Fortune 500 company (AAL/Thrivent) and later became a marketing director for the same company. When her son was born with a rare chromosomal disorder, she turned her program development and marketing skills to the lifespan needs and interests of siblings of people with disabilities. She and her husband are full-time caregivers of their 33-year-old son who many know as The ShhRedman. Redman continues advocating with people with disabilities and their siblings, serving on several projects concerning the expansion of housing solutions for people with disabilities, caregiver wellness and ensuring their financial and workplace security, caregiver coalitions, facilitating Advance Care Planning workshops, and as a board member for disability and aging organizations. In 2017, Harriet along with several professionals from throughout Wisconsin established the Wisconsin Family and Caregiving Alliance. She co-chairs the Engaging Employers Task Group.

Colleen McCluskey

Kaitlin McNamara

Danielle Tolzmann

This day is a partnership with Wisconsin Autism Transition Demonstration Project out of the Waisman Center’s University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disability and a number of individuals and organization leading the CoP ASD/DD. The purpose of the Community of Practice on Autism Spectrum Disorder and Other Developmental Disabilities (CoP ASD/DD) gatherings is to bring together diverse stakeholders from across the state to improve the formal and informal systems of services and supports for individuals with ASD/DD, their families, and the professionals who work with them.

For more information on the Wisconsin Autism Transition Demonstration Project:

To sign up for the CoP ASD/DD listserv, send an email to tmarkle@wisc.edu.

If you have any questions about the CoP ASD/DD, please contact Tim Markle.
E-mail: tmarkle@wisc.edu
Phone: 608-262-8033

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The Connections Initiative chose to use a Community of Practice approach to help bring together diverse stakeholders around the important issue of improving the infrastructure of care for people affected by Autism Spectrum Disorder and other Developmental Disabilities. To learn more about the CoP ASD/DD approach, please view the Powerpoint that Sharon Fleishfresser, Medical Director of the Wisconsin Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs Program, presented at the March 5, 2009 Community of Practice.

Growing up: Moving from Teen to Adult

WAuTD Coalition partnered with the CoP ASD/DD (Community of Practice on Autism Spectrum Disorder and other Developmental Disabilities) for a virtual gathering on February 24th.

  Topics

Resource Sheet with links referenced in the video and upcoming events relevant to the group: ResourceSheet2.24.26

  • Update on WAuTD
  • Small Groups