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Cindy Zoeller

M.A. Ed.

Cindy Zoeller

For as long as I can remember, I have enjoyed caring for people and helping them learn something new. I've had a bit of a diverse career through my adulthood—from respiratory therapist to student to probation officer to school counselor to teacher and instructor in the field of employment. Oh, did I mention homeschooling mom for four years?

One of the more poignant moments in my life came while sitting one day in a college course titled "Foundations of Education." For most of my school life I had struggled with learning. I always believed that I was smart, yet I struggled with learning. Then on that most important day, I heard my teacher explaining about how our brains learn. That was the day that I began learning how to help myself learn. Without question, that day dramatically changed my life and shaped my career.

So much that I have been exposed to and have had the opportunity to help others learn has, initially, been about the "what" and "why" of something that a person should or could do. Often, I've seen that information may not be enough to enable the person to be successful in what they were attempting. I take learning to the next level: the "how-to" level. I work alongside others to help them learn how to do the thing that they want to accomplish.

With Fair Oaks Therapeuticum, I'm the Employment Education Specialist for our BEST (Best Employment Training Skills) Program (download brochure). This program is designed to educate and train young adults in developing the skills needed to search for and maintain meaningful employment. Our program is specifically designed for young people with Asperger's Syndrome—folks for whom constructive social interaction and communication are especially challenging. The BEST Program is a "how-to" program from beginning to end. Helping others learn how to develop the lifetime skills needed to have a proactive job search is my passion!

On a personal note, I have lived in the area with my husband and son since the mid-1990s. I was a homeschooling mom for a number of years—what a joy and a privilege! Prior to the years as an at-home mom, I worked one-on-one and in class settings teaching job search skills and have written resumes for nigh on 16 years. I've written a book on strategic job searching and have used the information in the book as the foundation for The BEST Program.



Last modified on 01.13.10

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What's New
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Therapeuticum

Available Now:
Yoga for Kids

Individual yoga therapy sessions tailored to each child's needs. Designed to aid children's attention, relaxation, body awareness, and self-regulation. Call us at (916) 962-0222, extension 1# for more information.

KQED's Health Dialogues:
Talking About Pain

February 2010: KQED's Health Dialogues explores the latest research on chronic pain and how to treat it. Guests include Dr. Robert Brody, chief of the Pain Consultation Clinic at San Francisco General Hospital and Dr. Scott Fishman, chief of the Division of Pain Medicine at UC-Davis and president of the American Pain Foundation. Find more on the hourlong show here: "Health Dialogues: Pain."

L.A. Times: Families of autistic kids sue over cuts in therapy

February 2010: Families of autistic children in eastern Los Angeles County filed a class-action lawsuit today against the nonprofit agency that provides them with state-funded services, alleging that it had illegally discontinued their therapy for the disorder. The agency, the Eastern Los Angeles County Regional Center, informed more than 100 families late last summer that the therapy—known as the DIR model, or "developmental, individual difference, relationship-based"—was being eliminated for their children because of state budget cuts.

The therapy is the basis for a popular treatment known as Floortime, in which a therapist follows a child’s lead during play activities to build communication and social interaction skills.

Brain imaging may help diagnose autism

January 2010: Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) process sound and language a fraction of a second slower than children without ASDs, and measuring magnetic signals that mark this delay may become a standardized way to diagnose autism. Researchers at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia reported their findings in an online article in the journal Autism Research.

"More work needs to be done before this can become a standard tool, but this pattern of delayed brain response may be refined into the first imaging biomarker for autism," said study leader Timothy P.L. Roberts, Ph.D., vice chair of Radiology Research at Children’s Hospital.