Transitions for spectrum teens from high school

[drdeb]

As a mom of an Autistic teenage son and a counselor, I am always looking for success stories of transitions from High School to college for higher functioning teens on the spectrum. Would love to hear about schools, programs, companies who support this populatin.

[auntie]

For your son? Or just in general?

There's a lot out there.

www.adnetonline.org/:/HTML/Topics/Asperger/AS%20programs%20for%20young%20adults.pdf

www.aspergersyndrome.org/Local.aspx

DS graduates from the local community college next week. He did really well there; it was a nice bridge step although the social piece is so much harder. He'll start at a large public uni in August. That said, I do know a lot of kids on spectrum who did go away to college- some of them crashed and burned, some were academically successful and didn't socialize at all and a few met like-minded peers. It's hard to predict which way it will play out for any individual kid.

The employment piece is much harder. Unless a young person brings a valued skill to the table, employment (especially those "first jobs" that are public facing don't happen IME. DS is attempting to get a job for the summer with the potential to work PT in the fall. His availability and work ethic (Eagle Scout, drug-free and Phi Theta Kappa) haven't translated into a job. He's a great individual, but employers pick up on him being different and he doesn't get a call back.

[auntie]

May 19, 2014 13:12:56 GMT -5 mryrcn said:

I wish someone would just come and help me through the transition. We still have 3 years of public school left but I'm afraid DD is sick of being in school. Checked out a local day program that I loved; however, we don't have CAP/Innovations funding yet for DD and aren't ready to pay $1,400 a month out of pocket. She isn't ready to work at all.

What are your expectations going forward?

Will your DD graduate at 18 or will she benefit from district services until 22? Have her transitional IEP services included vocational readiness? One issue I found with our district's high school is that they tended to be all vocational or all academic- never the mix of both. 

I have a friend who created a hybrid 5 year plan for her HFA son. He attended high school for morning graduation requirements (AP Eng/Hist) as well as a study skills/organization class and then took 2 classes at the local college. He resented the the plan and managed to flunk his AP classes. He's agreed to do a GED instead. He did work with his state's vocational rehab to do some computer work in a semi-sheltered type setting.

[auntie]

May 20, 2014 8:35:25 GMT -5 mryrcn said:

My daughter is currently 19 and functions at a 4 year old level cognitively. Voc rehab isn't willing to work with her until her last year of school.

That's unfortunate. Transition planning in the schools here starts around 16; it used to be 14 but the pushed it out further. But that was the school model; I thought vocational rehab was available once a person became an adult at 18.

Is there anything you can do within the IEP to make her time at school more meaningful to her? 

Her teacher and I have decided to focus her goals towards job skills instead of academic skills.

As an adult, that makes sense. Our schools made it more of an either/or, so DH and I have been the ones doing a lot of the skills training around employment. Have they been supporting her in adaptive skills like meal planning/preparation, basic money skills, housekeeping to prepare her for more independence in adulthood?

We can certainly work towards that and maybe having her go out for a few hours each week with other students to work at a local grocery store or some other facility. She did that 2 years ago but had some medical set backs which caused her to regress a great deal.

It would be great if she could get some part time work in. Our local grocery stores employ a couple adults with ASD and one with Williams Syndrome. It seems to be a good fit for the employees to be out in the community. There's also a sheltered workshop locally that collates printing orders, they don't offer full time employment, but the parents I know whose DSs work there say it's largely a good option for those who will be on SSI.

[suebeehoney]

Sorry I am responding to this a year later than you posted.  I am new to GBCN.

Rutgers (State U of NJ) has an excellent program for students on the spectrum.  There was a news article about it that I cannot find, but below is the program info.  


rhscaps.rutgers.edu/services/autism-spectrum-college-support-program


www.healthcentral.com/autism/c/1443/162384/colleges-universities-programs

[suebeehoney]

Here is the news article.  It was in the Asbury Park (NJ) Press.  Obviously not the only program out there, but you may find some things that you can ask about as you look at schools.

www.app.com/story/news/education/college-news/2014/05/16/rutgers-university-autism-graduation/9159959/

[auntie]

Sounds interesting, but IME, families who have done these programs commercially aren't especially happy with the return on investment. This sounds very like the College Learning Experience model.


experiencecle.com/


Bottom line, what's this cost and why can't these minimal services just be offered under the University's Office of Disability Services?  I mean Rutgers is NJ's UCEDD- between this well funded resource and Disability Services I don't get why this costs extra. Surely the "peer mentors" could be grad students in Social Work or Education or undergrads doing internships.


www.aucd.org/directory/detail.cfm?program=UCEDD&CFID=24920647&CFTOKEN=66082145&address_id=8