<p>Looking for colleges that provide a supportive disability services office for kids with Autism Spectrum Disorders. The services need to be more than classroom accommodations but rather include 1-1 counseling and career services with knowledge of ASD needs. thank you.</p>
<p>It costs a fortune, but look into College Living Experience (CLE), a residential program for students with Aspergers and other developmental disabilities. A CLE student lives at a CLE location, but goes to a regular college. I’ve heard that CLE-Denver is good, and also the one in Florida and the one in Austin.</p>
<p>Another similar, and similarly expensive, program is College Internship Program (CIP), which has locations in Berkeley and some other cities. Again, the student has a structured residential program, and goes to regular classes as a regular college student.</p>
<p>There are not enough programs, not nearly enough, to support all the students with autism spectrum disorders. I and other posters have discovered that what a college says it will do to support your ASD student is not necessarily what it actually will do. Beware. Ask other parents of autistic/Aspergers students at the school you’re investigating.</p>
<p>I’ve heard good things about Marshall in WV.</p>
<p>[Marshall</a> University Autism Training Center](<a href=“http://www.marshall.edu/coe/atc/services/available_services/ModelCollege.asp]Marshall”>http://www.marshall.edu/coe/atc/services/available_services/ModelCollege.asp)</p>
<p>Cardinal Fang - CLE does cost a fortune and I have heard very mixed things about it in DC. I keep waiting for the explosion in good (but at least moderately affordable programs) and they haven’t come. My son is a HS Soph. and when we started down this road in early elementary there was almost nothing and now elementarty schools have so many great options. I feel like he is 5 years to early, when he was first diagnosed no one had heard of Aspergers or knew what to do, so much as changed, just not fast enough.</p>
<p>Look into Lesley in Cambridge MA.</p>
<p>NY Institute of Technology supposedly has a very supportive program for Aspies.</p>
<p>Also, Curry College caters to LD kids but I’ve heard mixed things about them.</p>
<p>Iona College in New Rochelle, NY has an LD program for which you pay an extra fee to get private guidance, etc. The niece of a friend of mine, who was LD but not Aspie, did very well there.</p>
<p>Mom24boys, sigh. My son turns 21 this week. I was thinking that he is 5 years too early. I guess he is actually 10 years too early.</p>
<p>OP, also look into Landmark College in Vermont. Although they are supposedly a school for kids with learning disabilities, they also have some students with Aspergers. ADD-inattentive and Aspergers have a lot in common.</p>
<p>Another place to investigate is the SALT program at University of Arizona.</p>
<p>My 17 year old daughter has aspergers and we don’t know what to do with her next year. She is smart, but an option is to leave her in school district another year, although I would need someone outside of my district (so no school politics are involved) that is a good parent advocate and knows the laws, or a small college that would get her involved socially etc. I heard Landmark doesn’t help kids with socialization.</p>
<p>My son has just completed his first semester at a CLE. For him, it was fantastic. Tons of support.</p>
<p>Here’s some parts of a post from a mom whose Aspie child is at Bama…</p>
<p>*My son has just finished his first semester at UA. The UA-Acts program is wonderful. </p>
<p>His Major is History. He is in a suite with three other roomates but he has his own room. [Each student has his own room in a 4 bedroom “Super Suite”.]</p>
<p>His Acts mentor has been such a great support for him, she helps him but she does not do it for him. My son really likes the program and feels like he could not make it without it. </p>
<p>We are really happy at UA so far. *</p>
<p>[UA-ACTS</a> Program - The University of Alabama](<a href=“http://autism-clinic.ua.edu/uaacts/resources.html]UA-ACTS”>http://autism-clinic.ua.edu/uaacts/resources.html)</p>
<p>[Autism</a> Spectrum Disorders Clinic - The University of Alabama](<a href=“Redirect Notice”>Redirect Notice)</p>
<p>[url=<a href=“http://uanews.ua.edu/2007/12/ua-launches-college-transition-program-for-students-with-autism-spectrum-disorders/]University”>http://uanews.ua.edu/2007/12/ua-launches-college-transition-program-for-students-with-autism-spectrum-disorders/]University</a> of Alabama News UA Launches College Transition Program for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders<a href=“launched%20in%202007”>/url</a></p>
<p>Anyone have direct student experience w/colleges enrolled in federal TRIO program? Seems that these TRIO programs would provide many beneficial LD-related student supports also accessible to AS-documented students - for high-achiever AS students that have successfully navigated mainstreamed HS curriculum/environment. I’m aware that several midwest LACs participating in TRIO program are flagged as good places for high-achieving AS students from other CC posts.</p>
<p>If this is out of bounds, moderators, please delete:</p>
<p>I’ve been thinking about building a webpage where people can share their experiences with different schools (as it specifically relates to how they do/don’t serve ASD students) - it doesn’t seem like anything of the kind exists. There are a few “best of” lists, and then some pages of private organizations serving students. </p>
<p>I’d love to hear any thoughts - it would be an undertaking but it seems one that is in increasing demand!</p>
<p>PghMomof2 - I think that would be a great website and it would be great if people would also share their stories of what didn’t work and what they learned from the experience. Things they wished they had known in HS, etc.</p>
<p>It would be nice if a thread for AS parents took off like Jewish B Students.</p>
<p>At least on paper, the program at Alabama sounds perfect.</p>
<p>I don’t want to put too much pressure on you, but try to get it right the first time. Don’t send your kid off to a less than ideal situation with your fingers crossed, hoping things will work out, because they probably won’t. That great GPA and those great test scores only matter when they haven’t already been in college. Once they have a semester or two of poor college grades, the HS achievements mean nothing. </p>
<p>I mention that because when he was in HS, my son would have been offered in state tuition at Alabama. With his record as a transfer, he would have to pay full price, which would be cost prohibitive.</p>
<p>I think it depends where on the spectrum your child is…My son is able to get by with minimal accommodations with regards to his Aspergers but he also has heavy duty learning disabilities that we interviewed each support center of each school.</p>
<p>With his Aspergers one of the most important things was making sure he was not tripled in a double room. We talked and decided he could handle a regular room with a roommate but adding a third person to the mix was way to stressful. So, his Dr sent a letter and the housing department accepted it and all was well.</p>
<p>He does need lots of academic support and we were careful to talk with the schools to make sure his needs were met. We are very happy with how his first semester has gone…</p>
<p>I would contact the support areas of each school that your son might want to attend and find out what kind of services they might offer to you son…</p>
<p>Southern Illinois university and Arizona state. Not conversant with the details, but both, SIU in particular, have excellent programs and reputations.</p>
<p>missypie - Alabama does sound great esp. since his PSAT scores will likely make him a NMF, so it is very much on our radar. Our issue is how much to let him reach, we have a safety plans with back-ups. If whatever school he goes to in fall 2013 doesn’t work out the CC nearby has a very strong support program and we live within commuting distance of UMBC (which might end up as his 1st choice anyway).</p>
<p>We have moved twice for schools and the last move had 3 possible plans and it was the last school that worked. From pre-school to 9th grade DS attended 10 schools (private, private/gifted, public special ed, montessori, and private special ed). He has attended his local public HS since 9th grade with less and less supports and harder and harder classes. </p>
<p>He wants the most challenging academic situation he can get into and sees it as a reward for the hard work to get to this point. He is also maturing and starting to see how important the supports built around him have been and is openning up to support at a university.</p>
<p>A few yrs ago community college would have been viewed as a huge un-likely accomplishment, so these are great problems to be thinking about.</p>
<p>One big piece we are still missing is current pycho/educational testing because we our waiting for him to by 16 yr 9 m so testing can be scored as an adult and accepted by colleges.</p>
<p>Higgins2013 - What is the TRIO program, the only thing I found searching was in regard to low income students?</p>
<p>DS plans on studying engineering (not sure maybe mechanical or chemcial) and schools on our list so far are UMBC, Alabama, U or Rochester, Case Western and maybe Carnegie Mellon or Pitt or WPI any other suggestions?</p>
<p>I know off the top of my head Beacon College in Florida. It is a school for kids with ADHD and learning disabilities, however I know some ASD kids go there. My friend’s Aspie/Autie (right on the border depending on which diagnoses system you go by) sister goes there and loves it. They have specialized services because they were set up for the non-average kid.</p>
<p>I know another Aspie friend at Brown who is so happy there, and he’s really found a niche there. However, he is more high functioning. I’m not positive about what types of services they have.</p>
<p>For an engineering student, it might be helpful to look for schools with strong co-op programs. Ask about placements for various majors in the past few years. An Aspie in particular will benefit from close coaching in preparing a resume, going on interviews, and getting paid work experience well before graduation. Co-op offices at engineering schools are used to having students with ASD’s.</p>
<p>OP, here is what you have to figure out. Does your son have Executive Function problems? Aspies tend to be either hyper-organized or the most disorganized person in the room. Is he also ADD/ADHD? Do you help with time management, organization and initiation? There are students who have the social issues associated with Asperger’s, but do not have EF problems. Many of those students do fine in college from an academic standpoint. The EF issues are the killer for so many - Aspies, but also the ADD/ADHD crowd. I am convinced that this is one of the big issues behind the low male college graduation rate.</p>
<p>My daughter is in the TRIO program at Arizona State due to a head injury she suffered the spring before freshman year. I can tell you that they have been fantastic with her and the accommodations she has gotten. She is transferring (hopefully) to Rutgers for her junior year and I know that she will not get the same type of services as she gets at ASU. We are hopeful that she will no longer need them.</p>