John Elder Robison
347 Page Boulevard
Springfield, Mass. 01104
413-785-1665

I am best known as the author of Look Me in the Eye, which tells my story of growing up with undiagnosed Asperger’s, in the years before it was commonly recognized. Look Me in the Eye (2007) was followed by Be Different (2011) My first book was a memoir; my second gives advice to young people growing up on the spectrum today.

As of November 2011, my writing is published in over twenty editions that are sold in seventy-plus countries. At this time, Look Me in the Eye is the most widely read memoir of life with Asperger’s in the world.

I began writing because I wanted to help young people living with autism. My books have opened many doors to help me achieve that goal. Over the past five years I have become increasingly identified as an autism advocate, and a supporter of innovative autism science and therapy.

In the past few years, I have…
• Joined the science board of Autism Speaks, where I help review and recommend research the organization should support;
• Participated on autism review boards for the NIMH;
• Joined two of the organizing committees for INSAR, the organization that puts on the annual IMFAR autism science conference;
• Worked with CDC and NIH in this spring’s autism prevalence workshop;
• Participated in the recent NIH autism research ethics conference;
• Participated in last year’s autism genetics ethics conference in Toronto;
• Served on advisory boards for autism policy at two of Harvard’s teaching hospitals;
• Served on advisory boards for several leading autism advocacy groups.

Prior to that, I had several careers, beginning when I worked as an audio engineer after leaving school, at age sixteen.

I started out with regional New England bands, including FAT, The Fabulous Rhinestones, James Montgomery, and the James Cotton Blues Band. The musicians in the James Cotton band later found fame in the Blues Brothers movie.

At age twenty, I became the American engineer for Britannia Row Audio, Pink Floyd’s sound company. In that job I built the first five-way sound system in the world, and I designed limiter systems and control systems that became standards in the sound reinforcement industry.

A few years later I was hired by KISS, for whom I created illuminated, fire breathing, smoking, and rocket firing guitars. My guitar creations were a key part of the band’s live performance, and they were seen by millions of people. I was the first person to incorporate special effects into a playable instrument like that.

I then went to work as a staff engineer at toy maker Milton Bradley, where I worked on Microvision, Super Simon, Milton, and other electronic games.

After that, I held several other engineering management jobs before leaving electronics to start Robison Service, a company that specializes in the repair and restoration of high-end European automobiles, particularly Land Rover, Rolls Royce, and Bentley.

It was at Robison Service that I learned about Asperger’s, from a therapist who also owned a Land Rover. The knowledge of my differences proved to be life-changing, transforming me from successful loner to downright popular. Seeing that, I resolved to reach out to others who are living with differences like mine, in hopes they too can find a path to greater success and happiness.

Today, I divide my time between family, the operation of Robison Service, writing, service on various autism and autism science boards, and my speaking schedule.

Here is a partial list of places I have spoken:
• Addressed stakeholder events, IMFAR 2010 and IMFAR 2011 conferences
• Keynote speaker, Texas State Autism Conference (2011)
• Invited speaker, Autism Genome Project Conference, Toronto (2010)
• Keynote speaker, Asperger Association of New England annual conference (2008/9)
• Invited speaker, James Quillen Medical College, University of Tennessee (2010)
• Keynote speaker, Autism Society of America Conference, Atlanta (2011)
• Invited speaker, National Institutes of Heath (2011)
• Keynote speaker, Penn Autism Conference, Philadelphia (2010)
• Kinney Autism Conference, St. Joseph University, Philadelphia (2011)
• Addressed public program at the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, CA (2011)
• Autism Speaks Canada, Toronto (2011)
• Keynote, annual conference of Connecticut Special Education Professionals (2011)
• Guest lecturer, Harvard Graduate School of Education, (2010)
• Guest lecturer, Harvard Medical School, (2011)
• Invited speaker, American Psychological Association annual convention (2009)
• Keynote speaker, annual conference of the Wisconsin Dept of Public Instruction (2009)
• Invited speaker, University of Wisconsin at Eau Claire (2010)
• Keynote speaker, annual conference of the Illinois Superintendents of Schools
• Invited speaker, University School of Milwaukee
• Invited speaker, Monarch School, Houston, TX
• Invited speaker, River Street School, Capital Region Education Council, CT
• First year program speaker, SUNY Potsdam
• First year program speaker, Defiance College, OH
• Invited speaker, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (several appearances)
• Keynote speaker, Mount Sinai School of Medicine Seaver Autism Conference (2010)
• Invited speaker, University of Missouri Medical School – Thompson Autism Center
• Keynote speaker, Tufts Medical School/Baystate Child Psychiatry conference (2009)
• Keynote speaker, High Functioning Asperger Association of NY (2010)

Current Affiliations:
• Member of the Science and Treatment boards of Autism Speaks.
• Adjunct faculty member in the Dept. of Communication Sciences and Disorders at Elms College, in Chicopee, Mass.
• I serve on the nominating committee and the public relations committee for INSAR, the parent group of the 2012 IMFAR autism science conference.
• Member of the Youth Care advisory board for Harvard’s Mass General Hospital.
• I continue to own and operate JE Robison Service in Springfield, Mass.