As a growing number of families in Cleveland and across the nation are facing a loved one's diagnosis of autism, a symposium at Lee University aims to arm caregivers and educators will tools to cope with the complex condition.

The seventh-annual Southeastern Autism Symposium will be today and Friday at Lee University's Helen DeVos College of Education in Cleveland, Tenn.

The symposium, which will include a number of sessions, is geared toward educators, medical professionals and parents and will explore the costs -- financial and emotional -- of autism and strategies to work with people with autism, said Dr. Debbie Murray, dean of the College of Education.

Parents of children with autism are attending the symposiums in greater numbers in recent years, Dr. Murray said. She attributed the increase in parental attendance to keynote speakers who themselves have autism.

This year Sondra Williams, an autism awareness advocate who was diagnosed with autism at age 38, will speak.

"If you have a child with autism, you're struggling every day to meet the needs of that child, and sometimes you don't see how your child can turn out as an adult," she said. "If you see an adult with autism who is functioning and independent, then that gives a parent great encouragement."

Dr. Murray said she expects about 100 people to attend.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that 1 in 150 U.S. children has autism, and diagnoses are on the rise, Dr. Murray said.

"We're seeing more and more children with autism in regular classrooms. We hope that some of the issues we cover in the symposium will help teachers and administrators make sure that (the children's) transition to the regular education program is successful," she said.

New this year, Lee also is hosting a camp for children with autism, which ran Monday through today. Children went swimming at the local YMCA, participated in therapeutic horseback riding and other outdoor and art activities, Dr. Murray said.

Florida-based attorney David Nevel also will speak at the event, based on his experience as a behavior analyst and as a father of a child with autism. He said he will discuss the need for legislation mandating insurance coverage for behavior therapies for children with autism, which can cost $36,000 to $50,000 a year.

"It can devastate a family," he said.

A bill to mandate such coverage was introduced this year in the Tennessee Legislature but is still with a subcommittee.