Registration for MoLA 2026, including Bridge Day, is now open! Please review details on our Registration page.
MoLA 2026 will include a Bridge Day on Saturday, March 14th, 2026 from 9am – 1pm. The event will begin with a presentation from endever* corbin and Dr. Alyssa Hillary Zisk. This will be followed by breakout sessions on the topics below. This new component of MoLA aims to bridge the gap between researchers who study language in autism and those with lived experiences that can help inform scientific questions. This event is open to researchers, autistic individuals, parents and caregivers of autistic individuals, clinicians, teachers, policymakers, and service providers with an interest in language in autism. The goal of Bridge Day is to create space for conversation. Researchers will have the chance to share what they’re working on, and those with lived experiences can offer insights, questions, and perspectives that help shape that work in meaningful ways. We hope this exchange leads to deeper understanding on all sides—and ultimately, to research that is better informed by the questions that matter most to the autism community.
Bridge Day Breakout Session Topics:
- Finding a Voice: How Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) can support communication for autistic individuals
- Why Echolalia Matters: Understanding repetitive language and communication
- Growing and Learning: Understanding how language in autism can change with development
- Making Clinical Decisions: Practical information about language intervention and services in autism
- Communication Is More Than Words: The importance of gestures and facial expressions in autism
- Is More Better? Learning and using two or or more languages for autistic individuals