Dr. Brian Boyd: Who Autism Research Leaves Out, and How We Fix It

The UNC researcher behind the Black Empowerment and Autism Network on bias, access, and building care systems that actually fit families. Autism research has historically been built on a narrow slice of the population. Dr. Brian Boyd argues that gap is not just an academic problem. It shows up as later diagnoses, thinner services, and worse outcomes for the families who were never in the data. In this episode, Dr. Boyd joins host Jeff Skibitsky to talk about founding the Black Empowerment and Autism Network (BEAM), now close to 70 members across research, medicine, and clinical practice, and what it takes to build systems of care that respond to the families in front of them. What we cover Why a two-year-old whose first word was "pentagon" shaped two decades of research on focused interests How BEAM started as career advice and became an international support network, including Black autistic researchers The three places disparities show up: access, quality of experience, and outcomes Why Black autistic children are twice as likely to carry a co-occurring intellectual disability diagnosis What culturally responsive support actually looks like in practice, starting with cultural humility Practical advocacy for families who feel dismissed in an IEP meeting or a doctor's office How underfunded, understaffed systems push providers toward cookie-cutter care What researchers owe communities before they ever collect a data point Why Dr. Boyd is still hopeful right now About Dr. Brian Boyd Dr. Brian Boyd is the William C. Friday Distinguished Professor in the UNC School of Education and Director of the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute at UNC Chapel Hill. His work focuses on evidence-based practices, racial disparities, implicit bias, and how schools and service systems can better support autistic people and their families. He founded the Black Empowerment and Autism Network (BEAM). ............................................................... Autism weekly is now found on all of the major listening apps including apple podcasts, stitcher, Spotify, amazon music, and more. Subscribe to be notified when we post a new podcast. Autism weekly is produced by ABS Kids. ABS Kids is proud to provide diagnostic assessments and ABA therapy to children with developmental delays like Autism Spectrum Disorder. You can learn more about ABS Kids and the Autism Weekly podcast by visiting abskids.com.