The PARC Annual Conference provides an opportunity for our community to celebrate the scientific advances being made by our PARC faculty and students. Events typically include symposia, social activities, and an engaging student poster showcase (with prizes!).

As part of this celebration, PARC invites leading visionaries in the field of autism to provide both a scientific and community-focused keynote speeches.

The 2026 Purdue Autism Research Conference will be held on Friday April 10th, from 8am-6pm at the Purdue Memorial Union – East & West Faculty Lounge. Registration and Poster submission will open in February. 

This day-long conference will include a series of keynote and symposia by researchers in diverse fields related to autism – ranging from basic to applied sciences. Featured keynote speakers for 2026 are Dr. Diana Robins (Drexel University), an expert in early autism screening, detection, and intervention methods.  Her work includes developing, validating, and refining a widely used screening tool – the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (M-CHAT). Additionally, model system expert Dr. Graham Diering (University of North Carolins, Chapel Hill) will speak on the molecular mechanisms by which sleep modifies synapses to support cognitive functions and neural development in autism. His work integrations methods from biochemistry, proteomic, cell biology, and animal behavior.

For more information and to register: https://hhs.purdue.edu/autism/conference/