CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Incoming freshmen at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign this fall with autism spectrum disorder can take part in a new program that will offer a variety of support to help them succeed at college and beyond.
The Illinois Neurodiversity Initiative pilot program will offer autism-specific services to promote students’ academic, social and professional success..
Often used in reference to autism, neurodiversity also comprises conditions such as dyslexia and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in which the brain functions, learns and stores information in nontypical ways.
Jeanne L. Kramer, the director of The Autism Program and the I-Ready virtual summer camp for college-bound high school students with autism, said the goal of I-N-I is to support neurodivergent freshmen from move-in day until they obtain jobs and graduate.
The program will address four types of skills or needs – academics, social skills, mental health and job skills.
Students in the program can participate in courses that promote self-awareness, self-advocacy and executive functions such as planning and organizing their coursework; a social mentoring group; and individualized weekly mental health check-ins with clinicians in the department of psychology.
Read more from the University of Illinois News Bureau.