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Self-Advocacy

Preparing for Adult Life and Work

Academic settings can be turbulent environments for autistic learners, especially in collegiate settings. For many, it’s their first time living away from home and being solely responsible for many small but important things, like eating in the cafeteria, using a calendar, getting from one place to the next, and setting and maintaining deadlines. There’s a…

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College Resources

College. The word conjures up so many images and experiences. For students in their freshmen year, those experiences are likely to include adjusting to independence, exciting opportunities to grow, and keeping up with a rigorous academic schedule. These resources help students with autism know what to expect and how to adapt to college life and…

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Setting Up New Year’s Resolutions for Success

Like starting a new chapter in a book, a new year brings anticipation of what we can expect. Starting the new year with resolutions sets us up for success and gives us a jumpstart on achieving our goals, whether those goals are to eat healthier, help an autistic loved one get a driver’s license, or…

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Synchrony Pledges $200,000 for New Scholarships

OAR is excited to announce that Synchrony has pledged $200,000 over the next two years to support the Synchrony Scholarship for Autistic Students of Color and the Synchrony Tech Careers Scholarship. These two new scholarships will receive $50,000 each for their initial scholarships to be awarded in 2022. The Synchrony Scholarship for Autistic Students of…

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Preparing Your Young Adult for the Transition to Postsecondary Education

This blog post has been adapted from “Chapter 5: Postsecondary Education” of OAR’s resource “A Guide for Transition to Adulthood”. Although times are still uncertain, many students are making the decision this month to start college next year. Whether classes will be held online, delayed for a later start date, or resume as usual on…

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Disclosure from Personal Points of View

Deciding when and how to disclose autism is complex and personal for each individual with autism and for their parents, particularly when making decisions about school and in the workplace. For this Perspective column, OAR asked three people with autism, Peyton Berardi, Laura Guerro, and Ben VanHook, and three parents, Susan Berardi, Lee Guerro, and…

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Trains: How My Special Interest Became My Career

Many children are born with two natural fears: the fear of falling and the fear of loud noise. For me, it all started at a railroad crossing. It was night: the sun had gone down and I was sitting between my mom and dad in the family car. We came to a stop and, all…

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Finding Resources: Part Two

This is the second part to Kat Albee’s blog post Finding Resources. In the conclusion of her blog series, Kat includes additional guidance for how those in the autism community can continue to advocate for themselves.   Using The Internet If you are reading this, then you have an advantage unique in all of human history. No, it’s…

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Finding Resources

Self-advocate Kat Albee highlights ways in which those on the spectrum can be resourceful and hold onto a positive outlook in a variety of real-world situations. This is Part One of her post. Part Two will be featured in next week’s blog.   Changing Your Mindset I recently read a memoir called Growing Up Yanomamo. It’s about…

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