Donado to Speak at Second Annual Autism Summit

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Princeton, N.J. (May 20, 2009) —

Yvette Donado, Senior Vice President of People, Process and Communications at Educational Testing Service (ETS), will address the issue of “How to Find the Perfect Employee” during the Second Annual Autism Summit at Bergen Community College today.

Donado’s remarks will be offered during a panel discussion on the opportunities and responsibilities of hiring people with autism. The panel discussion will be moderated by Leslie Long, Director of Public Policy for Autism New Jersey. Other panelists include Fred Daibes, a construction firm owner and father of an autistic child; Lisa Parles, an attorney and specialist in disabilities law; and Edward Pittarelli, dean of Program Development, Learning Technologies, and Process Improvement at Bergen Community College.

“Our educational system has shortchanged students with learning disabilities and in so doing, has shortchanged employers who can use their skills,” Donado says. “The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act gives states a 2014 deadline for improving performance of such students, and the best solution for that is educating educators on what works best. Autistic people can lead productive lives if all of us give them educational opportunities — and a chance to hold down a decent job.”

“At ETS, we have a policy of hiring diverse, talented and innovative people to serve the educational community, and this includes those with disabilities,” adds Donado. “They are among the hardest working, most dedicated employees we have, and ETS gains a great deal from their contributions.”

The keynote speaker for the summit is Joan Verplanck, president of the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce. The conference is sponsored by the New York Center for Autism and Hire Disabilities. Funding is provided by a grant from the Kessler Foundation.

About ETS

At nonprofit ETS, we advance quality and equity in education for people worldwide by creating assessments based on rigorous research. ETS serves individuals, educational institutions and government agencies by providing customized solutions for teacher certification, English language learning, and elementary, secondary and post-secondary education, as well as conducting education research, analysis and policy studies. Founded in 1947, ETS develops, administers and scores more than 50 million tests annually — including the TOEFL® and TOEIC® tests, the GRE® test and The Praxis Series™ assessments — in more than 180 countries, at over 9,000 locations worldwide.