Autism and/or ADHD program results

@uniquefirsttry,

I am so sorry that was the response from RIT. Was that from the Spectrum program directly? I’ve interacted directly with the Spectrum Program, the ASC Program (Empower) and to a lesser degree, disability services directly.

I do know a current student in the Spectrum program (sophomore) and it’s been wonderful for her.

Essentially there are 4 types of support at RIT.

Spectrum Program - Paid, 2 levels (1x or 2x per week, academic plus social) $3000/$4000 per year
Empower - Fee based academic coaching, 2 levels $790 per semester
ASC Courses - Free
Peer Academic Coaching - Free

The fee based academic coaching is not specific to any student population, whereas the spectrum support program is

Our current plan for our 2019 HFA student with EF issues is (most likely) to do a combination of Empower and ASC courses, but we will also be filing with Disability Services to see what they will offer.

For our student, the spectrum program is more than he needs but the family I know it in is really happy, I would be happy to reach out if you have specific questions. I’ve had great response via email from both spectrum support and empower/asc. We have not yet filed with DIsability services as we want an updated 504 report from the HS and that meeting is this week.

@sdl0625 may have some additional insight.

I can actually understand the “nothing to see” comment (it’s not like it’s a physical space), but would think that meeting and discussing how it works, etc, would be an option. I really can’t weigh in on UConn but I have heard it’s a very strong support program. I’ve had great response via long distance communication (email). Aero is very strong at RIT and competitive, congratulations on having some very nice choices!

Thanks for your fast response and I’m thrilled to hear something positive for RIT. Yes, I spoke directly with Spectrum Support Services. I obviously didn’t drive up there but was anxious to. Had very different interaction with UConn’s Beyond Access which I think is the more robust of the 2 programs. Uconn has a number of other positives: it’s close to us and somewhat cheaper than RIT. He received nice scholarships from both but if he goes below the GPA at RIT, it’s like an adjustable rate mortgage that explodes and goes up to 60 something thousand dollars a year whereas Uconn is much more reasonable if he goes below the required GPA — we are instate. So much to think about that I never envisioned. He was a late Asperger’s/ASD1 diagnosis at the beginning of senior year this year. The support program is really driving our thinking at the this point. I hope other Beyond Access parents will chime in.

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@uniquefirsttry, I have a meeting with the SSP people at RIT in two weeks. I will let you know how it goes. They are bringing DSS into the meeting

@uniquefirsttry , Would you please elaborate on “They even allowed me to come in and meet with them and when I did there was no hard sell but they said all the right things w/o me even having to ask.”

We are very early in our process and still trying to formulate the right things to ask. While some of them are obvious, if you don’t ask the right questions, you don’t get the right answers. So I would like to try to get out of the gate with the right questions if you would not mind sharing some of yours. Thank you!

Late HFA/EF diagnosis here as well, latter part of junior year although they say Aspergers isn’t a diagnosis anymore.

Had a really great 504 update meeting yesterday and they are updating his accommodations so we can send them to RIT. I am hoping they will provide the academic coaching but we will see. That more than anything is what he needs.

It is smart to consider the gpa requirement seriously. If my son loses his scholarships he would be coming back home and attending elsewhere, that’s just the reality and he is very aware.

The other thing is to make sure your student is on board with participating in any of the programs, if they aren’t on board it doesn’t matter how good the program is.

@FlyAwayTime Sure. First, Beyond Access invited me to 1) come in to their offices and 2) come in to meet without my son. Conversely, WPI wouldn’t meet with just me. WPI was adamant that we take my son out of school so we could all meet together (no Saturday meetings) or that he disclose on Accepted Students Day at a table the disabilities center will have alongside other tables that day. When you get a late diagnosis like he/we did (ASD1 from new DSM 5 manual, essentially same characteristics that used to be termed Asperger’s. And no my son didn’t get to take his SAT with accommodations; our timing is that terrible! lol) it can be very hard to have your disability be your lead in. I thought it was weird of WPI to insist on that. He wants to arrive on campus leading with his achievements and not have other accepted students see him a having a disability. Also he’s missed so much school this year due to senior stuff and visiting specialists (we had thought about a gap year for our son at different “transition programs” but found it was not suitable for him and since tuition goes up every year we didn’t want to wait) that I preferred not to have him miss another day. WPI doesn’t have a fee based spectrum support program like RIT and UConn (and several other schools) but that is the experience I had in trying to meet with their disabilities center staff.

With RIT, I got the feeling they didn’t even want me to come in. “Just come by on accepted students day, there’s really nothing to see here in our office.” Also, when you call RIT program, no one ever picks up. I get the sense they are significantly less staffed than the Uconn program, which has answered every time I’ve called (only about 3 times) with an incredibly cheery staff person, who’s a grad student tyically studying psychology and education. When I did get someone from RIT program to call me back (several days later), she asked me “why would you want to come by here?”, I replied that the support program in place would have a big impact on where my son decides to go to college and the person literally said Really?! as if she thought that was an odd thing to say. And yes, @eandesmom, the very nice scholarship he got from RIT explodes like an adjustable rate mortgage where he’d/we’d suddenly be on the hook for 10s of 100s of $s if he wants to stay at RIT. My 17 year old is not where he need to be yet to take on a financial commitment like that. It’s a terrible burden for any kid, disabled or not.

I have also been looking at r/RIT a bit lately – reddit’s RIT subreddit – and those kids are so darned stressed about money, much more so than the Uconn postings. And RIT’s had a challenging recent history of mental health issues I won’t go into here.

In terms of questions to ask for a fee base spectrum support program – how many hours a week of coaching do you get for the fee you pay? How would it fit in his schedule?

How do they help the student disclose to professors

What is needed in terms of documentation, etc for accommodations. What accomos are available

How do the accomos work, have them paint a picture for you – where does student takes tests (in class or in a special more private location), get coaching, can come to study if need be, skype with their therapist if roommate won’t give them privacy, that kind of thing

Does the program guarantee that student’s diagnosis will remain private? ie just bc students gets accomos doesn’t mean professor and or peers need to know his diagnosis – I didn’t know that!

How do you get professor to agree and deliver on all the accomos? A good program will describe that to a tee rather than having it all be incumbent just on student to make sure prof follows thru. That’s a likely recipe for failure for a lot of ASD kids

What is the experience and skill set of the staff in dealing with Autism/ADAHD/NVLD/(your student’s issue here). Grad students – are they educated on the profile they’re dealing with? Who supervises and trains them?

Get a FERPA waiver. A good program will tell you how to handle all that and why it’s necessary in 90% of these situations.

How many staff are there? How many students does it support in a given semester? How does office mood feel to you? Stressed? Empty? How many students does each academic coach carry. Does student get matched with one coach or do they have to see different coaches depending on who’s in that day?

How many students do all 4 years in the program? If few do all 4 yrs (or 5 if engineer) does that mean program is that great that students didn’t need subsequent yrs after yr 1 or some other less positive reason?

I could go on but need to get back to work.

What is the experience of the staff in terms of ASD1, non verbal learning disabilities, ADHD, meds, etc? When I said about Beyond Acceess group “there was no hard sell but they said all the right things w/o me even having to ask.”, what I meant by that was 1) they didn’t try to sell me on anything, it was very low key, no pressure and 2) that they described my son to me completely. They already know who he is. He is a very certain type of kid whose academics well exceed his social skills, but in such a way that his entire academic career could be derailed if he doesn’t have certain supports. You need to communicate well in order to do well academically. They have experience and more importantly best practices around what works. We are definitely leaning toward Uconn bc of the Beyond Access program. RIT and WPI are schools that this time last year we dreamed of my son attending – they are incredible schools – but he probably needs a level of support they are just not delivering at the same impressive level that Uconn is. Hope this answers your q!

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I have skimmed this page and don’t know anything meaningful about the schools you are discussing. However, I think it would be important to let the schools know, if you did not, that your son’s decision will be dependent upon getting a clear commitment of the support they will provide him and the way it will be delivered, which is why meeting in person matters. This is your point of maximum leverage. If they won’t commit here, they certainly won’t do so later.

In the cases of both my son and daughter, we asked for a clear commitment for the services they would provide. This caused some of the schools (my son was choosing between 2-3 and my daughter had a clear first choice and a second choice) to ask for more information explanation (I’d already provided IEP, boatloads of neuropsychological testing, etc.).

My son chose an LAC over an Ivy based upon the forthcoming response of the Disabilities Services Office and the Dean of Freshman at the LAC and the underwhelming response of the Ivy. In the other case, my D’s first choice gave an explanation for the services they would offer and we stopped there.

We did find that each kid had to inform each professor – before every test, I think – about extra time or rooms, etc.
Most professors were responsive, but some were not. If one of the schools worked directly with the professors, that would in my mind make a big difference.

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@shawbridge that is great advice

@uniquefirsttry I don’t think it’s fair to compare $ postings on reddit between a private and a public. RIT (or WPI or any private) is not trying to, and will never compete with instate pricing. Nor do they meet full need which they make pretty clear. OOS starting price at UConn is less than RIT and RIT is not known for generous merit.

Unfortunately you can visit a lot of private schools, or OOS publics that have kids and parents stressed about money and that’s tough. We made it clear day one to all our kids that merit based money is what can help them get where they want to go but, should they lose that we will not, nor will we let them, take out loans to make the difference. We’ve gone into it with well thought out back up plans as to what they will do/can do, should they lose their scholarships. My current sophomore at UVM has ADHD and while his needs are different than my S19, it was still a risk as if he lost the scholarship, he’d be back instate in a new york minute. Setting the expectations up front, setting up clear check ins and communication etc, has really helped him stay on top of things.

If you want a school you know 100% they can stay at and be affordable, regardless of gpa then any school with a merit based gpa requirement beyond satisfactory progress is likely to be a riskier choice that only your family can decide.

I would have been horrified at what WPI suggested, my late diagnosis kid would not want to head straight to that table on accepted students day either, you’d expect a bit more sensitivity than that.

@uniquefirsttry
If you have not used this resource before, you might look at the WPI website below and go through the four boxed entries. It appears they are trying to deal with all related issues at one time as they involve individual student privacy and parental rights. There are probably too many cases to cover on Saturdays.

If U Conn is accomplishing this, it is very commendable!!!

Except for Columbus Day Weekend, all regular college interviews were (probably still are) held during office hours at the admissions office. More out of state and distant interviews were held with alumni and by touring admissions counselors. It is likely that Alumni and admissions staff do not have the expertise to deal directly with Autism and/or ADHD issues.

Please see https://www.wpi.edu/offices/office-disability-services

WPI '67

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@uniquefirsttry Thank you for such a thorough response. I really appreciate the time it took. I am quite surprised about your experience at RIT. It is a bit far for us anyway but I felt that we were missing the crown jewel of programs, and evidently not. I do notice how well staffed the phones are when calling various DOs but I also try to keep in mind that some of the college touring and admission contacts are happenstance. The tour guide you happen to encounter, etc. But there was a theme there with RIT.

Can I ask you to explain this, as I am not familiar.
“I have also been looking at r/RIT a bit lately – reddit’s RIT subreddit – and those kids are so darned stressed about money, much more so than the Uconn postings. And RIT’s had a challenging recent history of mental health issues I won’t go into here.”

I did not know that Professors do not need to know diagnosis but I am wondering what the benefit might be of not sharing it. Privacy, of course, but they would certainly gain a better understanding of my student.

U Conn sounds like a great match for you and I am happy for your family that you found one.

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