John Elder Robison said the most awsome thing.

Post Reply New Topic

There was a Webinar at Autism Speaks today and John Elder Robison said something that really encouraged and excited us. A parent sent in a question about people in the spectrum going to college and what sort of services they should be looking for. He said that lots of colleges are starting to advertise special services.

Then, he said that really if you go to some place geeky you don't need special services. He said that, for instance, about half the people at MIT are Aspie's anyway, so no services are really needed.

Well, this is such great news for us!! ! My most challeged son is really great at Robotics. MIT and Carnegie Mellon are on his short list. You don't get geekier than that! WOOOT!! ! Good times ahead!! !!

Thanks for you enthusiasm. I cannot tell if you are sarcastic or not, but no matter because my message was serious and I think it was incompletely understood.

First of all, let me be absolutely clear that I am 100% behind the idea of colleges providing special services to students on the spectrum. Alex Plank - the founder of this site - believes in that. My own son - a college student believes in that. I believe in that.

The second part of my remark, about communities of geeks, was not meant to take the place of support services. Rather, what I meant by that is that there are colleges and departments within colleges where you have large populations of geeks, many of whom will warmly welcome students on the spectrum. In contrast, other schools with more straight laced populations might not be so welcoming to spectrumites.

I am always amazed at the scope of this website. Most of us may not be fans of Autism Speaks, but if they are hosting useful webinars with experts that understand the viewpoints of the membership here, then I call that a good thing.

The department of disability services at the school I'm hoping to go to told me this same thing. I didn't really 'get it' at first, but the way it's worded here makes more sense. (I'll be getting some accommodations for medical purposes, but it would be neat to meet some Aspies.)

No sir, I'd not be sarcastic about that. I think my neighbors could probably hear me cheering when you said that. I called my mom and told my son's autism coordinator today as well. Eldest Son is all about robotics. Any school he'd even be slightly interested in going to would have a high geek population. He's been taking machines and electronics apart and putting them together to build new things since he was old enough to hold a screwdriver. I've always said that his natural habitat was MIT and someday I'd have to release him back to the wild. It was a wonderful coincidence that you used that wonderful school as an example.

You've been a huge help to our family. All my kids are in the spectrum and you've done so much to help me understand them. I'd never be sarcastic about you, not in a mean or rude way. At home we refer to you as "that guy who did those guitars for Ace Freely." I can say your name a thousand times and they don't know, but if I bring up the guitars they say "Oh, that guy." They are here right now and just said it.

I think what I understood is that hte services are so normal they are just services there, not so much "special." I could have worded it better. I was just so excited about the good news for my son who's struggling right now. It made my day!

[quote="johnrobison"]Thanks for you enthusiasm. quote]

I didn't post about it but that thing you said about helping your son with school bullies was also very helpful. The boys and I had a nice talk about it on the way to school this morning. While bullying is wrong and never should be condoned, finding ways to cope with them is a good idea. My Little Guy has been on a rant about the Lightening Thief series because it gets the facts all wrong about greek mythology. I think you may have helped me help him avoid getting into trouble over that. The other kids love those books.

Kiley