Barry M. Prizant, Ph.D., CCC-SLP
Barry is the co-author of the book Autism spectrum disorders: A developmental, transactional perspective (2000), the assessment instruments, The Communication and Symbolic Behavior (CSBS) Scales (1993) and The CSBS-Developmental Profile (2002) (with Dr. Amy Wetherby). Other research and clinical interests include early identification of young children with disabilities, impact of childhood disability on the family, family-centered support and treatment, understanding language and communicative characteristics of children with social-communicative disabilities including ASD, and the relationships between communication disorders and emotional/behavioral disorders in children. His latest book (with Tom Fields-Meyer), written for a mainstream audience is Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism, published in 2015 by Simon & Schuster. Uniquely Human is now published in 20 languages, was selected as the featured book on autism by the United Nations in 2017, and was ranked by Book Authority as #1 of the “100 best books on autism of all time”. With a wealth of inspiring stories and practical advice from thousands of children and older people on the autism spectrum and their families, Uniquely Human conveys a deep respect for the qualities in people on the autism spectrum. It offers a compassionate and insightful perspective that has been called “life-changing as well as uplifting”. Barry also co-hosts a podcast, Uniquely Human: The Podcast (www.uniquelyhuman.com), with his friend, Dave Finch, an autistic audio engineer and best selling author.
Over the past decade, Barry and his colleagues work has also focused on developing the SCERTS Model for individuals who have or are at-risk for social-communicative difficulties including autism, and their families. The SCERTS Model is an evidenced based framework now being implemented in a dozen countries with the manuals having been translated into Japanese, and Korean with other translations in process, providing many unique opportunities for international collaboration and travel.
Barry has partnered with Community Autism Resources, a parent-run and parent-established family support center for the past 25 years in developing and providing a weekend parent retreat for parents of family members with autism. He coordinated the ASD Symposium for 20 years that raised funds to support the parent retreat.
Barry has received widespread recognition and many honors in his career. He was an invited speaker at the United Nations for World Autism Awareness Day on two occasions (2013 & 2017) and received the Divine Neurotypical Award of the Global and Regional Asperger Syndrome Partnership (www.grasp.org), for contributions to improving quality of life for persons with autism spectrum disorders. Barry was the recipient of the 2005 Princeton University Eden Foundation Award for career contributions in autism, Fellowship in the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and the Massachusetts Speech-Language Hearing Association Clinical Achievement Award on two occasions. In 2014, he received Honors of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, the highest recognition given to a member of ASHA (175,000 members). Barry also has a special interest in the positive impact of the performing arts on neurodivergent individuals.
Barry is the proud father of Noah, a medical student at Duke University, and is married to Dr. Elaine Meyer, an Associate Professor of Psychology in the Dept. of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School. Barry and Elaine have collaborated in publishing and presenting together on family-professional communication and relationships. Barry plays drums in a blues/roots band, enjoys hiking, fishing and outdoor activities, and is an avid collector of Inuit, Native American and other indigenous art, and antiques.