The PacWest LEND Consortium Celebrates the Careers of Three LEND Program Leaders

Dr. Sandra Heimerl, DPT has been an integral part of the PacWest Consortium since 2003 when she joined the New Mexico LEND (NMLEND).  Sandy Co-Chaired PacWest for years and facilitated numerous panel and poster presentations for the annual AUCD Conferences. With her retirement, the PacWest will miss her passion, joy, and enthusiasm, her intellect and comradery.

Dr. Heimerl’s spent 10 years as the Director of New Mexico’s LEND program (NMLEND), 21 years as NMLEND Physical Therapy Faculty, and over 40 years as a physical therapist and many other roles serving the people of New Mexico and Wisconsin.  Her career in Physical Therapy focused on pediatrics and neurodevelopmental disabilities. Her passion in working in the field has been to provide leadership and training in an academic setting both practicing at the University of Wisconsin Waisman Center and for the past 23 years at the University of New Mexico Center for Development and Disability (CDD).  At UNM, with her colleagues, she initiated telehealth practices at the CDD and conducted and published research on the motor delays in young children with autism. 

Sandy has been part of the NMLEND since 2003 providing leadership and support to hundreds of trainees and dozens of faculty members. She provided clinical evaluation and training as the physical therapist for the CDD Early Childhood Evaluation Program and for the UNM NICU follow-up Special Baby Clinic. Sandy collaborated with the UNM PT and OT programs to provide a yearly continuing education series to pediatric therapists and she assisted in research on intervention for children with autism who toe walk.  Sandy continues to co-lead the New Mexico Early Cerebral Palsy Detection and Intervention Task Force that provides advocacy and education to address early detection of infants at risk for cerebral palsy in New Mexico.

The PacWest Regional Consortium celebrates the career of Dr. Debra Vigil, who is retiring from her faculty position in the Department of Speech and Language Pathology after twenty-five years of service at the University of Nevada, Reno.  During her time in the Department, she has been active as an educator, clinician, and scholar, with expertise and interest in autism spectrum disorders.  She spearheaded a Nevada Autism Summit from 2003 to 2006 that gathered parents of autistic children and service providers to develop a set of recommendations for improvement and founded the University Center for Autism and Neurodevelopment (UCAN) Assessment Team that provides high-quality, comprehensive, interdisciplinary team autism assessments to Nevada children.

Dr. Vigil was part of a founding team that successfully applied for the MCHB LEND grant to establish the first Nevada LEND training program in 2011.  Dr. Vigil has been an essential member of the leadership team, serving as Co-Director, Clinical Sites Director and member of the Executive Leadership team.  She was the CDC Learn the Signs Act Early Ambassador from 2016 until 2019.

Debra has been very active in AUCD and Co-Chaired the PacWest Regional Consortium from 2015-2019.  There is no doubt that Dr. Vigil’s determination and drive has improved the lives of thousands of Nevada children with autism and their families.  She has also brightened the lives of her colleagues and friends with her joyous laughter, adventurous spirit, and generosity. 

fter 30 years of exemplary service to the University of Alaska Anchorage as the Director of the Center for Human Development, Alaska’s UCEDD, and over 45 years in the disability field, Dr. Karen Ward retired on June 30, 2024. Dr. Ward co-authored the grant that developed the Alaska LEND without Walls and was the LEND Director until her retirement. Dr. Ward was fully engaged with the activities of the PacWest.

Her vision for what was important for Alaskans with disabilities guided the development and success of the Center for Human Development and ensured its viability as a leading agency to support and advocate for Alaskans who experience disabilities. As a Professor in the Department of Psychology, she led the development of several courses/programs including an Occupational Endorsement Certificate in Children’s Behavior Health and a postsecondary education program for students with cognitive disabilities. Her research focused in the area of sexual health and sexual violence of people with disabilities and she led the development of the “Friendship and Dating” program, an evidence-based curriculum and train-the-trainer program that supports the development of healthy and meaningful relationships for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.