April 2 is World Autism Awareness Day

April 02--FAIRMONT -- Blue lights will shine around the world today in commemoration of World Autism Awareness Day and the "Light It Up Blue" initiative, which is led by Autism Speaks. This organization's mission is to change the future for those who struggle with an autism spectrum disorder.

The goal of World Autism Awareness Day is to gain knowledge about autism, a condition people may not know about or understand.

"Autism awareness is very important because of the increased prevalence in the autism diagnosis," explained Julie Sole, the director of the Marion County Disability Action Center. "It's still such a mystery, and the varying degrees and barriers that people with autism face are so vast. Just like no one individual is alike, no one individual with autism is alike either."

According to a study produced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the latest prevalence estimate for autism is that it affects 1 in 68 children.

These numbers have increased from those in the past. In 2002, 1 in 150 children had autism, and in 2012, an estimated 1 in 88 children was affected.

In West Virginia, the State Department of Education reports that the percentage of autistic students rose from 389 to 1,230 between 2002 and 2010. That's an increase of more than 200 percent.

As Sole explained, while so many children are affected, none of the cases are the same.

That is something Sole hopes to raise awareness about.

"The learning and the behaviors, delays and progressions of autism can be so different from one individual to the next individual. I think that is what is so hard for the families to grasp," Sole said. "It's equally as hard for us service providers to grasp and understand the needs of individuals with autism because they are so different.

"It's a real struggle for the families and the autism community in general to find answers and to find the correct therapies and learning environments because there is no one answer to an individual with autism."

World Autism Awareness Day will be celebrated for the eighth year today after it was sanctioned in 2007 by the United Nations as a global campaign. It is only one of four diseases to have its own day of recognition, according to Autism Speaks.

Blue lights shining locally will symbolize this global awareness effort.

Fairmont State University will have blue lights shining on campus, and some county schools have distributed information to students about this condition.

Andrea Davis is is a special educator at Monongah Elementary School. She teaches students throughout the year about why it is important to understand those who have this condition.

"I think that because students are so mainstream now in the classroom that it's a good idea to raise awareness and make the students aware of things that might come about in the classroom," she said.

Davis believes students should understand things such as behaviors, communication skills and different challenges that autism poses.

West Virginia University will also be participating in "Light It Up Blue."

The College of Education and Human Services will host an awareness event with cake, giveaways and experts to inform those interested in learning more about how autism affects the world today.

"A lot of people have questions about autism, and they may be either afraid to ask or not know who to ask," said Christie Zachary, the director of communication and external relations for the college. "We want to make sure that we have our experts on hand for that."

In addition to the experts, the "Light It Up Blue" event will be hosted by a group of students.

"'Light it Up Blue' is an event organized by a student organization called 'Autism Speaks University,'" explained Dr. Michael Mayton, the faculty representative for Autism Speaks University. "ASU here on campus is sponsoring this event. Basically it's in commemoration of the U.N.-sanctioned World Autism Day."

As the globe shines blue, the goal of increasing understanding of autism will hopefully be achieved through shared experiences and understanding.

Autism Speaks is encouraging everyone to get involved with this event through registration on its website. Those interested can follow the event world-wide by following #LIUB.

Email Sean McNamara at smcnamara@timeswv.com or follow him on Twitter @SMcNamaraTWV.

Copyright 2015 - Times West Virginian, Fairmont