By Joan Magruder

Jo Frost, the star of ABC Television’s “Supernanny” reality series, sought expert help from UCSB when she tackled the parenting issues of a couple whose 3-year-old son has autism.

The expert was Lynn Koegel, clinical director of the campus autism center. She and her husband, education Professor Robert Koegel, are renowned for their work with autistic children and their parents.

Koegel will appear on a “Supernanny” episode on Nov. 4 at 8 p.m., which will be broadcast on Channel 3 in Santa Barbara.

Koegel and Frost worked with the family for three days teaching Tristin, who had been completely nonverbal and caught in his own world of spinning, jumping, and swinging, how to talk. “We also taught the parents how to include him in family activities,” recalled Lynn Koegel.

After two days of the parents being on their own, Frost and Koegel returned to give the family some feedback.

In a week, Tristin had begun speaking hundreds of times, using 20 new words; playing games with his family; and doing simple household chores, much to the amazement of his parents and 4-year-old twin sisters.

A defining feature of autism is a lack of communication skills, which affects all types of interactions with other people. Koegel’s techniques, refined by more than 30 years of experience at the autism center with her husband, include reinforcing verbal communication by rewarding the child with highly desired items and activities.

“Considering the short amount of time that I worked with him, I felt Tristin made really great progress,” she says. “However, he will need continued intervention and the family will need continued consultation.”

Koegel says the experience of working on the show was incredible. She did not mind the intensive screening she went through, which included a background check and a battery of physical and mental exams, tapings and interviews, before being selected the guest expert for this season.

She has already appeared in an earlier episode involving the Arthur and Cathy Webb family, which includes a child with Down syndrome. That episode has not yet been scheduled for re-broadcast.

“Jo Frost is totally dedicated to bettering the lives of children,” said Koegel, “and working with her was a pleasure.”