The Kinney Center for Autism Education and Support at St. Joe’s ranked among the top 30 best small colleges for students on the autism spectrum in 2020 by the Applied Behavior Analysis Programs Guide (ABA).
St Joe’s was one of seven Pennsylvania universities to be included on the first ranking of small autism friendly colleges and universities. The ABA’s compilation of the 30 colleges’ and universities’ autism programs was based on five factors: size, specialized programs, overall autism friendliness, scholarships and financial support and the “It” factor.
Nationally 20% of students with autism complete college, said Theresa Mc-
Falls, director of college support and of the ASPIRE program at the Kinney Center. ASPIRE offers students with autism spectrum disorder help navigating and transitioning to college life. ASPIRE will
be headed into its eighth academic year with 30 students enrolled in the program.
According to McFalls, Kinney students are graduating at an 85% success rate, which is a higher rate compared to the national average.
“This recognition is so fantastic and is really a testament to our students and the hard work they are putting in while they are here at St. Joe’s,” McFalls said. “They
are really defying the odds.”
According to Joseph McCleery, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychology and executive director of academic programs in the Kinney Center, the compilation of autism friendly colleges and universities aids students with autism where they might feel comfortable in continuing their education.
“This helps the country and potential students to recognize we are a more diverse campus and we are doing the things we need to be doing to make people with autism comfortable and successful on our
campus,” McCleery said.
For Dave Hummel ’20, the Kinney Center was one of the main reasons he was interested in applying to St. Joe’s. At the age of seven, Hummel was diagnosed with Asperger syndrome, a high-functioning version of autism spectrum disorder.
According to Hummel, it can be marked by fixed interests and a lack of important
social communication skills. Hummel, who is enrolled in ASPIRE, said the program provides students with tools for making better adjustments to situations on or off campus, working on
their time management and introducing different skill sets.
“The program pairs students with peer mentors and peer mentees. The mentors meet with students once a week in a classroom setting depending on the year and help them learn about skills either through special guest presentations from someone on campus or from a skills lesson from one of our TAs,” Hummel said.
ASPIRE has been both a challenging and rewarding part of Hummel’s time at St. Joe’s. The Kinney Center will be looking at how their efforts can impact students in the program transition from college and into the workplace.
Not all students on the autism spectrum are in the program, according to McCleery. There are 50% more students with autism at St. Joe’s than the 30 students enrolled in the ASPIRE program.
“A campus that is autism aware and adaptive to their needs and has other supports on campus means that some of these students do not even feel like they need to make their diagnosis known,” McCleery said. “Or if they do make their diagnosis known, that they don’t feel like they need to be a part of our program to succeed.”
Executive director of the Kinney Center, Angus Murray, M.S. NPL, said the ASPIRE program also focuses on helping students transition from college into the workforce.
“For us we should be looking at our juniors and seniors in the program and making sure they are getting work experience relative to their degree field,” Murray said. “SJU’s job is not just to give folks a degree but to prepare them for what’s next in life.”
Emily Ring ’20, an autism behavioral studies major, works at the Kinney Center
as a SCHOLAR and case manager.
“The fact that individuals with autism can go to college and live the life of anyone who doesn’t have autism, while still having that support they might need from centers like Kinney is awesome,” Ring said.
