NEW YORK — The seventh annual class of Autism Speaks Weatherstone Predoctoral Fellows includes a Hays High School graduate. Selected from a highly competitive pool of applicants, the eight promising young investigators will pursue two-year autism research projects under the mentorship of the field’s leading scientists.

Kathryn Unruh of Vanderbilt University will investigate visual attention, nonsocial interests and motivations in toddlers affected by autism. Her goals include insights that can guide the creation of early intervention programs that improve social learning and development.

Unruh will work with developmental psychologist James Bodfish, whose research and practice focus on severe and treatment-resistant forms of autism.

She is a 2008 graduate of Hays High School.

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