Lorri Shealy Unumb
Council of Autism Service Providers
Lorri Unumb is a lawyer, law professor, mother of three, and an internationally renowned autism advocate. She began her career clerking for a US District Judge in South Carolina and then moved to Washington, D.C. to practice law with the United States Department of Justice. She then became a law professor at law schools in D.C. (George Washington University) and Charleston, and taught advocacy courses at the DOJ National Advocacy Center. Following her firstborn son’s diagnosis with autism, Lorri began volunteering in autism, writing ground-breaking legislation for South Carolina (“Ryan’s Law”) that passed in 2007 and served as the catalyst for the national movement toward autism insurance reform. She then was recruited by Autism Speaks to advocate full-time on behalf of individuals with autism. In 2010 Lorri founded the Autism Academy of South Carolina, a non-profit ABA clinic; in 2019, the board renamed the academy “The Unumb Center for Neurodevelopment” in honor of Lorri’s extensive national contributions in the autism field. Lorri & Dan also wrote the first-ever textbook on legal issues related to autism, called “Autism and the Law.” Additionally, Lorri is in her 19th year running the Autism Law Summit, a national gathering of parents and professionals who advocate for legal and policy change. For her advocacy efforts, Lorri has been recognized with multiple national awards: • 2012 NASCAR Foundation’s Betty Jane France Humanitarian of the Year Award; • Professional Women in Advocacy “Excellence in a State Campaign” 2014 Award; • the Civitan International “World Citizenship” 2021 Award; • Longines/Town&Country magazine’s 2009 “Women Who Make a Difference” award. She is also profiled in the AAP book “Autism Spectrum Disorders: What Every Parent Needs to Know.”