Opinion: Need to Fill Service Gaps for Young Adults with Autism

An important read by Valerie Paradiz, Executive Director, Autistic Global Initiative, on the importance of measuring outcomes as our field evolves. She has presented at YAI's conference in the past. We need to ensure there's a better transition for young adults and it needs to start earlier.

I am the mother of Elijah, a 25-year-old young man on the autism spectrum. When he received his diagnosis at age 4, following two years of terrifying seizures, I was teaching German literature at Bard College in New York. I loved being a professor, but when Elijah’s struggles began to have a greater impact on his and my daily life, I chose to switch careers and concentrate on education and advocacy — for him, and also for other children with autism.

During Elijah’s time in school, I saw gaps in knowledge and help for those on the spectrum. Although my focus at the time was on children, the lack of services has persisted, undermining a whole generation of youth with autism through their school years and into young adulthood.This topic is of urgent importance: An estimated half million young Americans with autism will make the transition to adulthood over the next decade. A report released in April captures the story of this overlooked generation in hard numbers.

Holiday Message to Autism Parents

Susan Moffitt, an editor at Autism Key, is the single mother of high functioning autistic twin sons who are now fifteen. When not advocating for them, she pursues her multiple creative passions of fine art, piano composition, and writing.

For those of you who followed my articles in the past, you will know I’ve been out of the autism loop for a while, consumed by the affairs of my immediate family of sixteen-year-old twin sons with high functioning autism. 
Having seen them to their junior year of high school, I can tell all of you with younger children that it does get better.  Not withstanding the day in and day out rigors of dealing with autism, the myriad ways you work to bring your child to higher ground do, in fact, manifest in the expanse of time.