Create a Plan
“The educational system is ‘home base’ for a family with autism,” says Kerry Magro, of Autism Speaks, who was diagnosed with the condition as a child. Your child probably has had a specialized plan called an IEP (individualized education program) to help her through the lower grades.
“As kids who are on the autism spectrum enter their high school years, they should have an IEP that is focused on the proper transition plan for after they leave school,” says Matthew Cruger, PhD, senior director of the Learning and Development Center at New York’s Child Mind Institute.
Like your child’s earlier IEP, you’ll craft this one with teachers, school administrators, and other specialists. It focuses on things like:
College or vocational education
Work
Adult service
Independent living
Community involvement
Autism Speaks has many aids for adults living with autism, including transition tool kits. These provide guidance and timelines for the process in your state.
Housing
About 16% of young adults with autism live away from home. Depending on your state, your child’s housing options may include:
Supported living in a home or apartment with a caregiver
Group-home living with an on-site staff
Foster-home living with professional teaching parents
Assisted living/intermediate care facilities
You can find out about housing support and services — and who pays for them — from your state’s developmental disabilities service.
Magro suggests that families assess their budding adults’ readiness to live away from home and determine the help they will need. “Anyone with autism preparing to live on their own needs to learn the basics of independent living, including organizational skills, money management, and social skills,” he says.
Putting It All Together
Some programs can help ease the transition with guidance on many aspects of adulthood, from social and kitchen skills to pastimes like book clubs and fitness activities. Then it’s a matter of planning, planning, and more planning, Magro says. But most likely, that’s something you already know a lot about.
Continue reading below…
“The families that I work with have learned very early on that they have to get through lots of obstacles to provide their children with what they need,” Cruger says. “That will come in handy in making the transition to adulthood.”
Going to College With Autism
If your child is college-bound, support is available. “Community colleges all have programs for students with disabilities,” Cruger says. More than 20 four-year colleges offer services to help manage the change to college. Some are free. Others cost between $2,000 to $8,000 a semester above the school’s tuition fee.
You can also hire a coach through services like College Autism Spectrum. They can help your young adult figure out college structure and learn things like the unspoken college rules of conduct that can be hard for students with autism to understand.
You and your child can learn about college life and get advice from those who’ve been there in Navigating College – A Handbook on Self-Advocacy Written for Autistic Students from Autistic Adults. It’s available online.
Work and Day Programs
In 2012, the mortgage finance company Freddie Mac set up a paid internship program for college students with autism. Other employers are also starting to see adults with autism as an untapped source of brainpower.
“Supported employment” helps many young adults enter the workforce. “A workplace mentor helps to find them a job that suits their interests and abilities and checks in with them periodically to make sure it works,” says Bruce Litinger, executive director of the Early Childhood Learning Center of New Jersey. The non-profit provides services to children and adults with special needs.
There are also vocational programs that provide counseling and on-the-job training to high school students with autism. To find one, check with your state’s developmental disabilities service.
What if your child isn’t heading off to work? “Even if a young adult with autism can’t have a paying job, that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t want to have some independence,” Litinger says. Taking part in activities like volunteering, gardening, art, and music can help him enjoy a more full social and emotional life.
Leave a Reply