School of Education Honors Len Abbeduto

Leonard J. Abbeduto, PhD, was one of seven members of the School of Education who was selected to receive a Distinguished Achievement Award, the highest honor the School bestows upon current faculty and staff. Abbeduto and other award recipients will be honored at a private reception on April 22, 2008.

Excerpt from citation honoring Abbeduto’s award (from School of Education website):

Len Abbeduto is widely regarded among the world’s leading scholars in the field of language development of individuals with disabilities.

His early research on social uses of language among children and adolescents with disabilities helped to fuel a dramatic change in the types of language interventions investigated and incorporated into clinical practice.  More recently, he has emerged as one of the top scholars in the study of fragile X syndrome, the leading inherited cause of intellectual disabilities.

Len has published more than 50 articles in leading peer-reviewed journals, written 16 chapters in edited volumes, and authored or edited eight books. His writings — on intellectual disabilities, speech and language disorders, and child language — reflect the breadth of his expertise and his standing.

At the University’s Waisman Center, Len directs the Research Participation Core, which he has developed into a national model.  Since 2001, he has served as Waisman’s associate director for behavioral sciences, and is involved in recruiting new faculty.  He directs the University Center for Excellence in Disabilities, the center’s clinical and outreach component.