Presenter:

Gary McManus (Spectrum Support Program Specialist, Rochester Institute for Technology)

Presentation Title:

How Autistic College Students Define Success

Presentation Description:

The Spectrum Support Program (SSP) helps autistic students make connections at RIT for academic, social and career success. To be effective allies, we must look past the “ends” of their success, which are usually quantitative – retention, graduation, employment – to focus on the “means” of their success, which are more qualitative: staying healthy, making friends, building a supportive campus network. This presentation will look at action-research data collected throughout 2022/23 from almost 100 SSP members as they reflect on their progress toward these three goals, and on the successes and failures of the academic year.