Development of a College Transition and Support Program for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Susan W White; Rebecca Elias; Nicole N Capriola-Hall; Isaac C Smith; Caitlin M Conner; Susan B Asselin; Patricia Howlin; Elizabeth E Getzel; Carla A Mazefsky

doi:10.1007/s10803-017-3236-8

Development of a College Transition and Support Program for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder

J Autism Dev Disord. 2017 Oct;47(10):3072-3078. doi: 10.1007/s10803-017-3236-8.

Authors

Susan W White¹, Rebecca Elias², Nicole N Capriola-Hall², Isaac C Smith², Caitlin M Conner², Susan B Asselin³, Patricia Howlin⁴, Elizabeth E Getzel⁵, Carla A Mazefsky⁶

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology, Child Study Center, Virginia Tech, 460 Turner St., Blacksburg, VA, 24060, USA. sww@vt.edu.
² Department of Psychology, Child Study Center, Virginia Tech, 460 Turner St., Blacksburg, VA, 24060, USA.
³ School of Education, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA.
⁴ Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney, Camperdown, Australia.
⁵ Center on Transition Innovations, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA.
⁶ Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.

Abstract

Empirically based, consumer-informed programming to support students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) transitioning to college is needed. Informed by theory and research, the Stepped Transition in Education Program for Students with ASD (STEPS) was developed to address this need. The first level (Step 1) supports high school students and the second level (Step 2) is for postsecondary students with ASD. Herein, we review the extant research on transition supports for emerging adults with ASD and describe the development of STEPS, including its theoretical basis and how it was informed by consumer input. The impact of STEPS on promotion of successful transition into college and positive outcomes for students during higher education is currently being evaluated in a randomized controlled trial.

Keywords: Adult; Autism; College; Transition.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Academic Success
Adolescent
Autism Spectrum Disorder / diagnosis
Autism Spectrum Disorder / psychology*
Autism Spectrum Disorder / therapy
Female
Humans
Male
Program Development / methods*
Psychosocial Support Systems*
Schools / trends*
Students / psychology*
Universities / trends*
Young Adult

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Grants and funding