Autistry Newsletter – June 16, 2018
Janet Lawson, MFT | June 16, 2018
Summer is here! Before I tell you about the great summer program at Autistry I want to celebrate and congratulate our students who have successfully found employment. This is a tough job market where even entry level positions often require college degrees. Though Autistry does not formally provide job placement we have found that good work habits lead to good jobs. Both the Core Workshops and the Autistry Comprehensive Adult Program focus on essential workplace skills – critical thinking and problem solving, effective communication, self-regulation, initiative, follow-through, basic academic skills, and teamwork.
Alan, Mike, and Ian G. are all on staff next door at Renew Computers. They will greet you when you come in, help unload your recyclable goods, build you a new computer, and do it all with a smile. Other Autistry students test and clean keyboards and mice helping to keep electronic devices in working order and out of the landfill. We are proud of our Autistry workers and our partnership with Michael Reynolds and Renew Computers.
Sprouts Farmers Market has welcomed three Autistry students onto their staff: Steven, Chris, and Sawyer (not pictured). You’ll find Steven at the check-out counter ringing up your purchases. Sawyer is working in the deli section and Chris is everywhere – stocking shelves, cleaning up, and helping customers take their groceries to the car. Sprouts is a short walk from Autistry so we like to shop and check in on our friends.
Congratulations to Danny! He landed two summer positions in local restaurants. Danny is currently enrolled in the Culinary Arts Program at Santa Rosa Junior College. Restaurant positions are very competitive but Danny persevered sending out several rounds of applications, doing interviews, and kitchen ‘try-outs’. He will be working two part-time jobs as an intern line cook gaining crucial experience in his chosen career. Bon Appetit!
And Corey – our media star! For years Corey has dreamed of working on Hollywood movies and this year he finally got his foot in the door as an extra on several productions filmed locally. You can see him in 13 Reasons Why, The OA, and A Taiwanese Tale of Two Cities. Years ago, I was an extra in Sergio Leone’s Once Upon a Time in America. This seems like an easy job but I can tell you it is very demanding. Long hours of boredom interspersed with high-energy activity. Focus, self-regulation, following complex directions, and trying to be social when you are exhausted are all important skills for this job. Corey continues to get call backs from production companies and that shows he has mastered these skills. And he just had a very good 3-month job review from P-Town Books. Bravo Corey!
Autistry Summer Programs: ACAP (Autistry Comprehensive Adult Program) and the Core Workshops are going full force this summer. With college classes on summer break the ACAP curriculum has expanded to include twice weekly workouts at the Conlan Center of Dominican University. With the help of four DU Occupational Therapy Level II interns, we are creating individualized fitness programs for each student.
Matt has developed a summer vocational program to produce the art boxes, snowflake ornaments, and iPad screen guards so the workshop is humming. Gabrielle is working with the students to create menus based on student family favorite and traditional dishes for the Wednesday Cooking Class. Just because it’s summer doesn’t mean we stop learning – throughout the week we will have Academic Review Sessions to prepare for college courses in the Fall.
And, it wouldn’t be ACAP without Sara’s Excursion Fridays! They have already gone kayaking, hiking, and to the theater to see Incredibles 2!
The Core Workshop is busy with new projects and lots of new materials. Dan has gone crazy purchasing Arduino micro-controllers and electronic components to make all sorts of cool gadgets. And the trains are back! We’re adding home-made DCC (digital command control) systems to remotely control the trains as they speed along the tracks and will be experimenting with dead-rail (battery powered) systems. We are working on the layout adding new buildings and rebuilding the tunnels. The Friday College Support group has been developing tabletop games and some students are working on writing and 3D design projects. Lots of fun!
