Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2025

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As I was finishing up the newsletter today, full of good news about new projects and individual achievements to celebrate on the eve of the fall semester, I received the most recent American Association of Universities (AAU) statement in my inbox. This one addressed the executive order "Improving Oversight of Grantmaking," which will impact research across the country. In short, among many changes to current systems, the order aims to convert the merit-based approach to decisions in grant-making to one that is based on political appointees making decisions; requires that designates review new funding to make sure it's consistent with agency priorities and national interests; and requires agencies to give preference to funding projects at institutions with lower indirect cost rates. The order gives agency directors 30 days to review their agency’s grant terms and conditions and submit a report to the Office of Management and Budget director, and AAU notes that it's unclear whether federal agencies will continue issuing new funding opportunity announcements in the meantime. We are continuing to monitor this and will provide more information as it comes available. 

As we've been talking about for a while, the constant state of uncertainty and crisis calls for more communication with the public about science and research. That's echoed in a recent article in Medium by science writer Matt Shipman, who is research communications lead at North Carolina State. He offered several ways that people who have access to researchers and promote their work (ahem) can amplify the meaningful, impactful work that you do. That can include profiles that humanize the research community, posts that demystify scientific processes and funding for them, writing explainers on topics that tap into people's curiosity about the world, and emphasizing the economic and human benefits of research, among other ideas.

Importantly, Shipman said this is a time to meet with researchers more often, to share findings and story opportunities that could be developed and amplified for the public. So as we begin the fall semester, I hope you'll be open to talking more about your work. Reach out with ideas to share, tell us about new people or projects, and know that I'll be contacting many of you to meet over the course of the academic year. -Jen

Jen Humphrey, associate director for strategic communications

A researcher from the KU Life Span Institute is part of an international group that recently published a comprehensive review of differences in sensory processing for people with autism during the prenatal (in utero) and neonatal (birth to a few months old) phases of life. The report appears in the peer-reviewed journal Psychological Review.

Sensory processing — or, how we experience sights, sounds and touch — can be “really different” in people experiencing autism, according to co-author Carissa Cascio, senior scientist with the Life Span Institute and Kansas Center for Autism Research and Training.

“But sensory processing has been challenging to study for a number of reasons,” Cascio said. “This paper tried to get at the very early developmental angle of how these systems for processing things like touch, vision and hearing first start to develop in the brain — and then to understand where that development may diverge in somebody who goes on to have autism versus somebody who doesn’t.”

Continue reading about autism study

Supporting and improving quality of life among Kansans with disabilities is the aim of a project at the KU Life Span Institute, which has been awarded $1 million by the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services (KDADS).

The supportive technology grant will help meet a state goal to become a “technology first” state, a national designation researched and developed by longtime University of Kansas disability data scientists. The grant is one of three totaling $2.6 million that KDADS recently awarded to Life Span Institute researchers for projects that support Kansans with disabilities across not only technology use and access, but also employment and health care navigation.  

Shea Tanis, KU associate research professor and director of the State of the States in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Project, together with Abby Azeltine and Thomas Manthey, co-directors of Assistive Technology for Kansans (ATK), will lead the $1 million technology project. Through a variety of in-person and online activities planned for late summer and fall, it will involve Kansans with disabilities and their families from across the state.

Tanis said that becoming “technology first” means transforming the systems to ensure people with disabilities have access to the technologies they need and want to support meaningful participation, social inclusion, self-determination and quality of life.  

“The University of Kansas is the entity that defines and measures technology first nationally,” Tanis said. “Kansas has been identified as an ‘intermediate state’ based on their current progress. This new partnership will develop the tools and resources needed to reach the technology first ‘advanced state’ benchmarks.” 

Continue reading about grant

There is power in music: A song can make you feel sad. A leisurely paced instrumental piano tune can make you feel relaxed. An intense beat can make you get up and dance. Music has also been used to promote healing, improve memory and alleviate pain.

There is a perception, however, that the effects of music are inexact and difficult to dissect. KU Life Span Institute researcher Deanna Hanson-Abromeit disagrees.  

“A big driver in my research is I'm really tired of being told that music therapy is a soft science,” said Hanson-Abromeit, professor of music therapy and music education at the University of Kansas.

Hanson-Abromeit recently called for greater use of the framework she established, the Therapeutic Function of Music Plan, or TFM, to improve the rigor of music-based interventions development, implementation and research. Writing in the May 2025 edition of Frontiers in Psychology, she described how the TFM can specify what the music contributes to the intended outcomes and should be applied to developing music-based interventions defined in the National Institutes of Health MBI toolkit. 

The TFM matrix she published in 2015 describes how the musical element of rhythm can, for example, support the use of gestures. Studies have also shown variation in rhythm can increase neural tracking, which describes how the brain responds to sound such as speech. The different music elements that seem essential to create a change then inform music compositions. 

Continue reading about framework

Congratulations to Nancy Brady, who was recently recognized by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (AHSA) with the 2025 Honors of the Association, its highest recognition. The award recognizes Brady, past chair of the KU Department of Speech-Language-Hearing, for her contributions to the field. 

Read more about Brady's recognition.

The nonprofit organization and news site Ballotpedia used a definition of hyperpalatable foods developed by Tera Fazzino to make an analogy about political news in a column by the organization's founder and CEO, Leslie Graves. 

F.D. Flam, host of "Follow the Science" podcast, interviewed Fazzino for an opinion piece in Bloomberg (available without paywall on livemint.com), "What if Everything We Think About Obesity is Wrong?" 

MSN.com and Medical XPress were among sites that picked up a KU News story on recent findings by Carissa Cascio and colleagues on sensory processing and development in people with autism. 

The Lawrence Journal World reported on the local July 26 celebration of the 35th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Several organizations including the KU Center on Disabilities came together to mark the occassion.  

KUCD Director Karrie Shogren and Research Aide Sean Tyree were invited to join Governor Laura Kelly and leaders in the disability community from across Kansas to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the passage of the ADA (view on KUCD social media). 

The KU Office of Research feature "I am Striving" focused on the work of Life Span Institute investigator Amber Rowland in the July issue of KU Discoveries. 

The Kansas Department For Aging And Disability Services (KDADS) recently called attention to the expansion of its partnership with the KU Center on Disabilities to strengthen competitive integrated employment (CIE) across the state. KUCD, in collaboration with partners at UMass Boston, will provide coordinated, high-quality training and technical assistance to Home and Community Based Services IDD waiver providers working to build or expand their employment services. KDADS noted that the initiative will build on the success of the Kansas Employment First pilot, where over 170 individuals with disabilities secured CIE averaging $13.89/hour and 22 hours/week.  "This effort lays important groundwork for a more connected, skilled, and person-centered employment support infrastructure across Kansas," KDADS said in the statement.

Congratulations to Brandon P. Miller, a fifth year doctoral candidate in the Department of Applied Behavioral Science and a researcher mentored by Michael Amlung at the Cofrin Logan Center for Addiction Research and Treatment, who was recently awarded a 2-year Individual National Research Service Award (NRSA) Predoctoral F31 Fellowship from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). The fellowship, “Contextual factors influencing cannabis use and behavioral economic demand in the natural environment,” will provide intensive training in methodology, quantitative analyses, and cannabis pharmacology, under the mentorship of international experts in cannabis science, ambulatory assessment, and statistical approaches. The mentorship team includes Amlung as sponsor and  Kandace Fleming of the KU Life Span Institute's Research Design and Analysis as consultant. Additional consultants include scientists from Brown University, Colorado State University, and Johns Hopkins University.  

Congratulations to the following researchers on their awards, which were announced by the KU Office of Research this summer from May-July. Each is listed by investigator, project title and sponsor:

Jay Buzhardt, "AccessAble Kansas: A Digital Gateway to Disability Support and Healthcare Navigation," University of Kansas Medical Center Research Institute; and "Increasing Access to Evidence-based Practices for Latino Families of Children with Autism: Development of the Embajadora Training and Outreach Program," U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.

Evan Dean, "Kansas Employment First Training and Technical Assistance Center," Kansas Department For Aging And Disability Services.

Amy Gaumer Erickson, "Evidence-Based Professional Development System Evaluation (TASN Eval)," Kansas Department of Education.

Christina Holt, "Participatory Evaluation and Capacity Building for the Kauffman Foundation’s Collective Impact Initiative," Kauffman Foundation.

Lyndsie Koon, "Examining the Effectiveness of a Community-based High-Intensity Functional Training Intervention on Functional Health Outcomes for Adults with Mobility Disabilities,"
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.

Alana Schnitz, "Start Young," The Family Conservancy.

Karrie Shogren, "Changing Systems and Empowering People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities to Obtain Employment on Inclusive Research Teams," National Institute On Disability & Rehabilitation Research.

Shea Tanis, "Supportive Technology Grant Agreement," Kansas Department For Aging And Disability Services.

Dale Walker, "Project Eagle: Early Head Start" and "Project Eagle: Head Start," University of Kansas Medical Center Research Institute.

Recent publications by Life Span Institute affiliated researchers:

Hiebert, L., Rojas, R., & Iglesias, A. (2025). Impact of academic language of instruction on Spanish and English growth and loss in bilingual children. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1044/2025_LSHSS-24-00120

Hicks AJ, de Souza NL, Del Pozzo J, Kurth NK, Hall JP, Dams-O'Connor K. Traumatic Brain Injury in Those With Preexisting Disability: Prevalence, Characteristics, and Psychosocial Function. J Head Trauma Rehabil. 2025 Jul 29. doi: 10.1097/HTR.0000000000001080. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 40706001.

The Global Autism Interactive Network (GAIN) at the Life Span Institute will offer ADOS-2 (Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, Second Edition) introductory training, a 3-day in-person clinical training, 8:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m., August 27–28 at the KU Clinical Research Center, 4350 Shawnee Mission Parkway, Fairway, KS 66205. Information at gain.ku.edu. 

Clinical Trials Finder meeting moved to Sept. 5: A One KU task force of KU-Lawrence and KU Medical Center staff began meeting this summer about a proposal to create a single KU online portal for clinical trial participant recruitment. If realized, the platform would allow the public to browse available trials fed by information submitted by researchers on all campuses. Jen Humphrey and Lisa Hallberg serve on this committee and are seeking information from Life Span Institute investigators to inform the process. Researchers are invited to discuss the proposal and identify needs for the development of the future website. The meeting will be 11 a.m.–12 p.m., Friday, Sept. 5 on Zoom (code: 812120). Request a calendar invitation. 

Assistive Technology for Kansans will offer its first ATK Chat, AT for Daily Living, at 9 a.m. Tuesday, August 26 on Zoom (code: 1234). The session features practical tools and offers a chance to talk about strategies with experts. 

Juniper Gardens Children's Project encourages the LSI community to save the date for the 2025 Garden Party, 3–6 p.m. Thursday October 16 at Juniper Gardens in Kansas City, Kan.

Virtual Town Halls for the Lawrence campus: The next KU Lawrence campus town hall hosted by Provost Barbara Bichelmeyer will be 1 p.m. August 21 via the Provost's webpage. Additional town hall dates for the fall semester include Sept. 18, Nov. 20 and Dec. 18. 

KU Human Resources asks that supervisors review staff self-evaluations and 2026 goal plans. Sept. 1 is the deadline for supervisors to review employee self-evaluations and complete the performance evaluation process. Goals for 2025-26 can be entered on plans at any time.

KU Marketing and KU IT have announced that all KU websites using the current content management system will undergo automatic styling updates on Monday, Sept. 15 to reflect the new KU brand, Towering Toward the Blue. Styling updates will affect the fonts, colors, buttons and graphic elements on Sunflower CMS sites. These changes will not alter content, functionality, or navigation on KU web pages. If your research project website is not a KU CMS site, you will not be affected by this update. (For example, KUMC sites will not be part of this update.) Site administrators will have an opportunity to preview the changes beginning Aug. 18 ahead of the change in September. If you have custom CSS styling on your site, there is a chance that the custom coding will not work with the new styling. If you know that you have custom CSS styling on your site, please reach out to KU IT for assistance. 

You can't get there from here: Move-in day is here, starting today and continuing on Thursday and Friday. The Lawrence Journal-World has all the details of streets and areas to avoid as students and families arrive. 

Connections is produced by strategic communications staff at the Life Span Institute for affiliated researchers, staff and students. 

Writing and editing by Jen Humphrey and Christina Knott.
Image credits: Adobe Stock, Assistive Technology for Kansans, KU Marketing/Meg Kumin, Roxanna Silva, Drew Rosdahl, Jen Humphrey, KU Marketing.

Please submit news, kudos, achievements and other items for consideration here.

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