“Happily ever after” can seem like a lofty goal when you have a child on the autism spectrum. As parents know only too well, the kind of support and education needed to give a young adult the necessary knowledge, skill, and experience to hold a job and live independently is hard to come by. That’s why the success of a program at the University of Iowa, UI REACH: Realizing Educational and Career Hopes, is good news.
Begun in 2008, UI REACH is a two-year certificate program for students with multiple intellectual, cognitive, and learning disabilities. Sally Pederson, a former Iowa lieutenant governor, founded the program after sending her son, who has autism, to a similar program in Illinois because she couldn’t find one for him in Iowa.
This year, 52 students ranging in age from 18 to 25 are enrolled in the program. Of those, roughly one third have an autism spectrum diagnosis and some may have multiple diagnoses. Most students have anywhere from a third- to eighth-grade reading level, but some cannot read at all and others do so on a college level. Students must be able to take care of themselves to a basic extent: taking care of personal hygiene, getting themselves up in the morning, taking their medications as directed, etc. The program does not accept students with a history of violence or uncontrolled mental illness.
Students live in a residence hall supported by specially trained resident assistants, and attend classes as their peers do. The program sponsors activities, like recreation night once a week, and staff encourage the students to get involved in other campus activities. “A young woman in the program tried out for the college choir and sang a solo in the final concert,” Dr. Ries says. “A group of young men started an intramural flag football team.”
The classes they attend focus on life and social skills, independent living, academic enrichment, and career development. Career counseling and internships help students focus on employment that matches their skills and interests.
The first semester of classes is set and includes subjects designed to help them transition to campus life: money management, health and wellness, and social media, as well as
supplementary academics. In the second semester, students can choose some electives that cover a range of topics, from studying to get a driver’s license and preparing for community college to science and current issues. The first year also includes career exploration, with regular field trips to community businesses and organizations.
In the second year, students have an internship and take classes focused on increasing their independence, building self-advocacy, and transitioning to life after the UI REACH program.
Students also audit a “Foundations of Special Education” course and another on multiculturalism, while some opt to take classes at a local community college. “This is another way for us to help our students integrate into college life,” says Dr. Ries. “Both the UI REACH and the traditional students learn from the experience. UI REACH students offer a unique perspective on the topics of the class. They lived special education while many traditional students were vaguely aware that it existed.”
Dr. Ries notes that the program tries to be as flexible as possible in meeting each individual student’s needs and goals. Weekly advising sessions and individual feedback help students set clear objectives, create a plan for achieving them, and focus their efforts in and out of the classroom.
Currently, the program is staffed with 14-full time positions. Undergraduate mentors, resident assistants, and a large number of student volunteers also work in the program. Undergraduate mentors help out with activities and act as teaching assistants in classes.
Student volunteers help UI REACH students integrate into college life. For example, says Dr. Ries, women on the softball team come over and act as “big sisters” for the young women in the program, hanging out in the residence hall or doing activities together. Members of the campus chapter of the National Student Speech Language Hearing Association go to dinner with UI REACH students once a month.
The UI REACH program’s support does not end at the program’s conclusion. Staff offers transition collaboration and consultation to help facilitate the leap from campus to community living. In fact, says Dr. Ries, the program’s success has its leaders looking to the future; plans are in the works to pilot a four-year program.
Approximately half of its 85 graduates live outside of their parents’ homes and 80 percent are employed. One graduate, Brian, has worked for four years at the Veterans Administration in a clerical position while another, Tim, has a retail job and his own house in Kansas City, Mo.
Two graduates have gone on to attend a four-year college that has a program for students with special needs, while others have enrolled in community colleges or training programs. Two former students have even gotten married and now live in Iowa City, Iowa, where one of them works as a nursing assistant.
“The students blossom quickly when they come into the program,” Dr. Ries proudly notes. “During our family weekend in October, many parents asked what we have done with their child because the students change so much. Students happily tell their parents that they have met ‘people like me.’”
Because of the program’s intensive support, tuition costs more than it would for a full-time student at a four-year public university. However, over the program’s seven years, it has provided more than $725,000 in total scholarship assistance.
It’s a good idea for parents to begin planning for a program like the UI REACH program well before the time arrives to send their children off to campus. Dr. Ries says fostering independence while children are living at home is a good start, remembering that it’s okay for them to “fail” on occasion. She urges parents to help their children get used to navigating from one place to another, either by walking or public transit, so they will be okay in a campus setting. Make sure they can take of things like personal hygiene, medications, following a schedule, and are able to use technology (e.g., using a cell phone and the Internet appropriately). It’s also good, she says, to give them opportunities to explore careers through volunteering or shadowing.
Teen Wins Award For A Coding Program
In 2020, Sreenidi Bala, a teenager from Farmington, Connecticut, started a passion project that would change the lives of hundreds of autistic students.
RUN Athletes Offer Summer Training Tips
With summer heat waves upon us and fall marathons on the horizon, RUN FOR AUTISM’s Bank of America Chicago Marathon and TCS New York…
New Job Seeker Content on the Hire Autism Website
Hire Autism recently published two new employment-related articles on its website. These articles aim to provide much-needed answers to job seekers’ frequently asked questions.
