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He couldn’t speak as a child. Now this autistic student is

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starcats
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17 May 2019, 5:32 pm

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/good-news/he-couldnt-speak-as-a-child-now-this-autistic-student-is-giving-a-commencement-address/ar-AABv2YD?li=BBnbcA1



cyberdad
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17 May 2019, 6:33 pm

His mother's Dr Josette Thompson (a physician) comments interested me when he was diagnosed at 3
“I couldn’t have a child with autism. Never talk. Never have a job. Never get married. You lose all those dreams for your child at once. I couldn’t go there.”

His subsequent achievements are certainly outstanding. Good on him :D



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17 May 2019, 7:12 pm

Congrats to him.

Off Topic - I do recommend Professor Pitney’s book.


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17 May 2019, 10:31 pm

Just reading through Pitney's interview - he says

Donald Trump, has done nothing for autism except to tout the vaccine issue. His properties have had lots of issues with ADA compliance Donald Trump. In addition, he made fun of a disabled person during one of his speeches. Trump’s record on disability issues is deplorable.

I’m a lifelong Republican and this will be the first time in my life I will not vote for a Republican presidential candidate.

Any wonder why folks here on WP continue to vouch for him (Trump)?



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18 May 2019, 3:44 am

cyberdad wrote:
Just reading through Pitney's interview - he says

Donald Trump, has done nothing for autism except to tout the vaccine issue. His properties have had lots of issues with ADA compliance Donald Trump. In addition, he made fun of a disabled person during one of his speeches. Trump’s record on disability issues is deplorable.

I’m a lifelong Republican and this will be the first time in my life I will not vote for a Republican presidential candidate.

Any wonder why folks here on WP continue to vouch for him (Trump)?

I thought his election would be a lot worse for autistics. Before the election he met with Andrew Wakefield and was about to appoint Robert Kennedy Jr. to lead a commission to study vaccines. The commission never happened and he has been mostly quiet on the issue until just the other day he said 'They have to get the shot'. I wonder if Melania got to him?


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18 May 2019, 6:54 pm

Suggesting Melania doesn't want Donald drawing attention to Barron?



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19 May 2019, 1:37 am

cyberdad wrote:
Suggesting Melania doesn't want Donald drawing attention to Barron?

Yes and good for her.


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19 May 2019, 1:59 am

I have to admit misjudging Melania, she is after all a mother...



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19 May 2019, 2:21 am

I do not know what to think of her in general but I supported her strong reaction when people started claiming Barron is autistic. You don’t hear about that or Barron much at all anymore. I do not believe that is an accident.

Any kid whose parent is the President has to deal with a whole lot of problems without people speculating about you and using you to get at your parent. Having your dad be Donald Trump makes a bad situation a whole lot worse.


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19 May 2019, 2:26 am

And yet the media peddled the idea for a while
https://www.smobserved.com/story/2017/0 ... /2305.html

It would seem that Barron is off limits as a child should not be subject to labelling which might be harmful to their personal development. Something like a "gentleman's agreement"



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20 May 2019, 11:30 pm

Re: the article He couldn’t speak as a child. Now this autistic student is giving a commencement address:

It's great to hear about this kid's achievements, but I wouldn't draw the conclusion he does at the end of the article:

Quote:
“For people on the autistic spectrum who are considering college, particularly extroverted places like CMC,” he said, “I think I’m proof you can fit in.”

There have always been autistic people who were able to graduate from college with honors. If anything, autistic people are probably over-represented among people who are able to graduate from college with honors. (See, for example, Link between autism genes and higher intelligence.)

But this proves nothing about the capabilities of ALL autistic people, who vary widely in intellectual ability.

Nevertheless the article is a worthwhile reminder that developmental delays in early childhood do not necessarily predict intellectual disability. For example, I didn't learn to talk until I was four years old, and I was thought to be "ret*d" (that was the word that was used back then) until I got into first grade, but I then began to do very well academically.

On another subject, the article says:

Quote:
Among those without intellectual disabilities, only about half pursue college, with most attending community colleges and having difficulty transferring to four-year universities, said Susan White, a University of Alabama psychology professor who specializes in studying autism.

ANYONE who attends a community college is going to have difficulty transitioning to a four-year college or university. The standards are just so much higher. In my experience (having been an adjunct lecturer at a four-year college), it's extremely common for people to get straight A's at a community college, but then end up failing one or more courses when they transfer into the four-year college.

Quote:
In what specialists are calling an “autism tsunami,” some 500,000 teens with the disorder will enter adulthood in the next decade — and need more services to help them succeed in the way Youn has.

That is, 500,000 diagnosed autistic teens. Most likely, just as many autistic teens entered adulthood in recent past decades, most of whom muddled through on their own for, or fell by the wayside without help, or were diagnosed with something other than autism.


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21 May 2019, 1:28 am

LaGuardia Community College, from the experience of my wife, has rather rigorous academic standards. She actually did better in a SUNY school, Farmingdale.



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22 May 2019, 7:13 pm

Mona Pereth wrote:
Re: the article He couldn’t speak as a child. Now this autistic student is giving a commencement address:

It's great to hear about this kid's achievements, but I wouldn't draw the conclusion he does at the end of the article:

Quote:
“For people on the autistic spectrum who are considering college, particularly extroverted places like CMC,” he said, “I think I’m proof you can fit in.”

There have always been autistic people who were able to graduate from college with honors. If anything, autistic people are probably over-represented among people who are able to graduate from college with honors. (See, for example, Link between autism genes and higher intelligence.)

But this proves nothing about the capabilities of ALL autistic people, who vary widely in intellectual ability.

Nevertheless the article is a worthwhile reminder that developmental delays in early childhood do not necessarily predict intellectual disability. For example, I didn't learn to talk until I was four years old, and I was thought to be "ret*d" (that was the word that was used back then) until I got into first grade, but I then began to do very well academically.

On another subject, the article says:

Quote:
Among those without intellectual disabilities, only about half pursue college, with most attending community colleges and having difficulty transferring to four-year universities, said Susan White, a University of Alabama psychology professor who specializes in studying autism.

ANYONE who attends a community college is going to have difficulty transitioning to a four-year college or university. The standards are just so much higher. In my experience (having been an adjunct lecturer at a four-year college), it's extremely common for people to get straight A's at a community college, but then end up failing one or more courses when they transfer into the four-year college.

Quote:
In what specialists are calling an “autism tsunami,” some 500,000 teens with the disorder will enter adulthood in the next decade — and need more services to help them succeed in the way Youn has.

That is, 500,000 diagnosed autistic teens. Most likely, just as many autistic teens entered adulthood in recent past decades, most of whom muddled through on their own for, or fell by the wayside without help, or were diagnosed with something other than autism.


I totally agree with your points. I usually don't bother reading articles about the achievement of someone autistic because they can be very patronizing. Autistic person joins a symphony! Autistic person learns to swim! Anyway... I like this particular one because it was real in saying he worked his way from being nonverbal to being able to give a speech. He didn't just sit on something that was difficult, he figured out how to address it and worked to be successful at it. It tells that he took the social space he needed and maintained his boundaries while still providing something (the speech) for his community.



starcats
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22 May 2019, 7:19 pm

Guttman CC actually does a really good job of providing services as needed and helping students transition to a 4 year college.

In NYC at least, community colleges have levels. You might have had students from the schools that anyone can get in to. LGA CC is more difficult and has higher standards than some others.



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24 May 2019, 7:02 pm

kraftiekortie wrote:
LaGuardia Community College, from the experience of my wife, has rather rigorous academic standards. She actually did better in a SUNY school, Farmingdale.

What did she major in? Maybe this varies by major? Or perhaps CUNY has higher standards than at least some SUNY colleges?

I do know that, in computer science at least, people who start out at community colleges tend to end up utterly unprepared for the major at a CUNY senior college. Among other things they are utterly unprepared for the sheer amount of work that is expected at the senior college.


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