Steven Mazur, MA SpEd

Transition Specialist

For years as a special education teacher for individuals with ASD and other developmental disorders, I amassed insight and compassion to help students of all ages navigate through daily routines and develop skills to conquer many of their greatest life challenges.

Though universal design has inspired global, positive changes, our neuro-typically designed world continues to present challenges to individuals transitioning between teenager and young adulthood, and adults struggling to gain traction in their lives.

Whether it be academics, personal hygiene, handling disagreements, employment, dating, or independent living, I can help by developing instruction and guidance using research based practices that incorporate several modalities of treatment. For example, mixing Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) with Occupational Therapy (OT), an individual can see in themselves why some behaviors are counter-productive in everyday tasks such as cleaning and organizing belongings, cooking a simple meal, or perhaps applying for employment.

What is neurodiversity?

As defined by John Elder Robison for Psychology Today , “To me, neurodiversity is the idea that neurological differences like autism and ADHD are the result of normal, natural variation in the human genome…Psychologists agree, there is no “typical”: We are all individuals. (Mr. Robison is an author, scholar, multi-talented thinker, diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome at age 40.)

What type of skills are addressed?

Whether there is a need is to learn new skills or reinforce old ones, my services are customized to enhance each individual’s cognitive, emotional, and social abilities.

Using specific components of research-based therapies such ABA, CBT, DBT and OT, together we create a plan to teach young adults to use skills necessary for a more autonomous lifestyle.

Skills focus:

– social skills

– fair play

– conversation (turn taking)

– compassion building

Typical areas of concern:

• handling disagreements,
• managing stress and anxiety
• self-advocacy
• dating
• independent living

Collaborative

Case management services available. Whether it be working with an individual’s existing support team or helping to create one, I can provide assistance in finding referrals that are appropriate and effective.

What does a plan look like?

We’ll create a menu of targeted goals that incorporate life/social/transitional skills instruction, which are key in helping individuals tap into their potentials.

Individual work

Incentivized, experiential learning through activities catered to client’s needs and desires (shopping, exercise, running errands, trips to the beach, surfing, etc.)

Transition Skills Workshops™

In addition to individual work, we offer small group transition skills workshops. Workshops include but are not limited to CBT and DBT modalities to help cope with depression, anxiety, and anger issues, and daily living skills. The interactive sessions are customized to target specific skills with peer collaboration. Goals are incentivized and pertain to: Academics, conversation/communication skills making friends, dating, handling disagreements/rejection, banking/budgeting, managing stress, decision making, healthy eating, meditation, surfing, exercise, etc.

Sober living services

I work with sober living and IOPs to address the needs of particular clients requiring additional life skills for integration. Autism and neuro-divergent awareness training available for house managers and employees.