Joseph N. Gousie, Sr.

As a professional, Mr. Gousie has spent 45 years working in the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), including autism. Forty of those years were spent as an executive director of agencies serving people with IDD. During his long career, he has developed and managed a variety of programs and services for people with IDD from young children to senior citizens. In the latter part of his career, he has concentrated his work specifically working in programs and services for people on the autism spectrum. Most recently, his work has been in employment services and career counseling for people with IDD. Mr. Gousie’s extensive career allows him to have a unique perspective in the field of IDD programs and services.

In addition, as an individual, he is a parent of an adult son with autism and is the grandfather of a grandson who is on the autism spectrum. This has motivated and steered his interest in the field of autism. It has also provided him with yet another important perspective on autism that comes from personal family involvement while working in the system that provides programs and services to people on the autism spectrum.