Community College and The Autistic Student
The First of Several Newsletters
Over this past year, I wrote a few newsletters and blog posts chronicling our challenges getting our son fully integrated into the local community college. The challenges were bureaucratic (not enough administrative support), academic (oops, can’t pass the entry exam for reading), and social (one should not correct the grammar of a professor). This week, I will point you to those posts. Going forward, I’ll fill in a lot more details.
Next week will be a week off. There will be more “Travels With Ian.” We’ll be visiting Ian’s grandparents in Asheville, North Carolina.
If it’s spring, you should be making sure that your student has solid plans for the summer and next fall. Good luck with all that! If there’s no plan, hire a lawyer!
From High School to College to Job
Getting though college isn't easy for any kid; it's even harder with autism.
If there’s a good kind of autism to have, Ian has it. His IQ for nonverbal tasks, like pattern recognition and visual spacial reasons, is off the charts. He taught himself to read at age three, looked at the multiplication tables once and just knew them, and is an excellent computer programmer. The good news is that jobs in technology fields are plentiful and well compensated. In addition, as 60 Minutes reported last year, more and more large companies recognize the benefits of a neurodiverse workforce and have created modified workplaces, which include new interview techniques and sensory-safe offices.
Ian can absolutely do one of those jobs in the future. That’s the goal. But how we do we get him there? I can’t just plop in a regular college like his older brother. He couldn’t manage the social expectations of a dorm or a traditional classroom. Most college professors do not appreciate being interrupted by a student who corrects their usage of apostrophes. Without basic independent living skills - like crossing a busy city street - Ian could not live without assistance in a college dorm.
Read more at Apt. 11D, The Newsletter
Can Community Colleges Save the Day?
Our local community college is a perfectly nice place with solid buildings and green lawns. It’s not Princeton-level nice, but much better than the CUNY schools* where Steve and I worked many years ago. Yet, when you walk into the Student Center, you get smacked with a wave of misery. Maybe it’s the shuttered Dunkin Donuts by the front door. Maybe it’s the empty hallways and the rows of unused computers in the “one-stop center,” whatever that is. Maybe it’s the poorly lit bookstore that doesn’t seem to sell any books. All together, the place feels like one of those shopping malls where all the stores have left, and old people walk around to get exercise.
Read More at Apt. 11D, The Newsletter
Off the Highway
What to do if your kid doesn't go to college.
I know a hell of a lot about the middle class parenting highway — good high school, SATs, after school activities, college tours, reach schools versus safeties, college essay, majors, shopping for professors, first jobs and so on — but prior to this spring, I had very little knowledge of those remote roads off the highway for people who don’t attend college and have challenges that prevent them from getting a job as an electrician or plumber. So, I spent months talking to tons of people, sometimes paying experts, to learn what happens after high school for young adults with high functioning autism.
Read More at Apt. 11D, The Newsletter
Me, Elsewhere
And to read about our latest adventure with Ian in New York City:
And some education geekery about grade inflation and SATs.
And check out the blog, Apt. 11D, for community conversations, links, and pictures of life/fun.
What programming languages does he use? Thank you for the thoughtful posts. :)