Congratulations! You ve Been Accepted.. Jamie Burke, Syracuse University, 2013

Transcription

1 Congratulations! You ve Been Accepted.. Jamie Burke, Syracuse University, 2013

2 Good morning I am so pleased to be here, and to be able to share some of my thoughts and college experiences with you. It s great to be here with Justin and Lydia. I know I feel we share different experiences, but important to know, we each value personhood and the desire to be a part of the world where contribution, learning, and having fun in life can be experienced. I wanted simply no less than my brothers even though my journey seemed to have variously more bumps in the road and stronger struggles.

3 My brothers Brian and Sean

4 I m Jamie Burke, I m 27 years old and I live here in Syracuse. I graduated from Syracuse University in May, 2013, with a Bachelor of Arts degree. I majored in Religion and Society, and my minor was Native American studies. I d like you to know, in my tender years, I was a boy with no voice, and no way to express my vital thoughts and extensive opinions until I was 5 years old and learned to type to communicate. I was not able to speak until I was 12 years old.

5 There is little presumption of competence if you have no way to communicate. Many assumptions are made that are incorrect. I am a big fan of vintage films. Do you know The Invisible Man? That s how I felt. In order to see a future with potential, decisions must be considered about who will support your dreams and be certain you are visible.

6 We are communities of people who may struggle with communication, motor dysfunction, or sensory regulation. I believe we must investigate how we learn, and with that knowledge, let others know how you process learning, and what supports that. You must do that in order to not be swept into the vast bin of education. I believe I have learned to grow into my autism, meaning I am comfortable talking about it.

7 I recall how exciting it was to receive the letter from Syracuse University saying, you have been accepted. I was also fearful, for I was not sure how they would accept my method of communication or if they knew correct knowledge regarding it. My autism and it s strong anxiety, riled up so many thoughts and I observed my family thinking and saying, now what?

8 In sharing this, I am desiring you to know I did wonder if I was what many would consider a college student, but now I feel I have helped to move forward the ideas of what a college student truly can be. My advice to you is to think of your future in early years. Make certain that your desire to be included in decisions that will help develop your path is deeply engaged. For me, I needed to think about a choice of which college within Syracuse University would be best. I chose Health and Human Services.

9 My thought, as I looked over potential service jobs and knowing that I have worked on my own health improvement, my developing ability to speak to others about that, and how vastly critical a solid inclusive education is, the descriptor then of Public Health Advocate seemed excellent for me. Interestingly, I changed my thoughts on that the following year.

10 I had overcome many challenges. However, the issue of needing to spend time at health clinics where at times the language might be different, caused me much anxiety. I decided to reconsider and moved to the College of Arts and Sciences, and chose a different major. Reflecting, I was feeling less than successful, but I became incredibly pleased with the new venture. I suggest to you, understand that your beginning plan may change, and then change again.

11 In the beginning, I took too many course credits, and the need to remember that the processing time and amounts of information made getting stressed out too easy. I had difficulty with writing quickly in the writing courses, so taking the writing courses alone in the summer session was helpful. This was accommodated and gave me full time status.

12 When starting college, make sure that you connect with the office that will be supporting any accommodations you need to utilize. Here at Syracuse, the Office of Disability Support Services was extremely helpful. Start early in that connection and be truthful in how you express what you believe you will need to be successful. Know that there are times you will not do well. Seeking help from the Disability Service Office was vitally important to creative changes for me.

13 The Disability Office would send a letter to my professors ahead of the class, but I also wanted to send my own, and explain to them what I might need to do in class in order to sit through their class. I understand that at times I can look tuned out, but I wanted to let them know I was totally tuned in. Because of motor planning difficulties, I require a communication support person with me. If you need that, it is helpful to meet with your professors before the start of classes, if possible.

14 Almost all professors responded to me and expressed interest, and some, curiosity. It was helpful for them to know I would do all the required work for classes. Ask them to speak directly to you, if you need a support person, they often speak only to them for some odd reason. I welcomed engagement in discourse about my autism and communication if done with respectful honesty. I discovered that copies of notes obtained through SU s online notes was important. For me, my support person could not

15 support my communication in addition to taking notes. Utilizing other s notes could be problematic, because I could not read their handwriting, so if a professor was willing, a copy of their PowerPoint was important and the colored slides were better for me to process information visually. Think strongly about your class scheduling. For me, too many classes without a break was exhausting.

16 There are professors who feel it odd to have a support person in the class, and also, if your class has little space, they must plan in advance for an additional chair to be filled in your class. I felt many times, the Teaching Assistants there, were some of the strongest allies. I believe it is worth your time and effort to create connections with them.

17 Biology Lab The teaching assistant always gave good advice on completing labs

18 Speaking to how we are read, my advisor suggested taking a fitness class or weight-training class when they understood I was struggling. It is something I had to develop comfort in revealing. Through all of this, one of the difficulties for me was to engage in social activities on campus. I attended those I could, but I wanted to do more. It s difficult to make choices of completing course work or going out. A continual struggle of balance for me since typing everything takes wads of time.

19 I d like to say to you, I have learned so many things, and while anxiety was a partner in my journey, I believe you can do this as well. I know the journey was long, but I love learning and the feeling of contributing and being involved and being seen as capable of learning, and sharing commentary. And now I am back to this inquisitive question that holds less anxiety for me at this time..

20 Now What? (asked now with joyous expectation)