Dual enrollment program helps high school students with autism thrive in college courses
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By Annie Costakis
When Owen first arrived as a freshman at Gateway Academy, a school for academically gifted students with autism, his parents wondered if he would even be able to graduate from high school, let alone attend college. Although Owen is gifted, he found it difficult to succeed in traditional school environments.
While students with autism have been enrolling in college at increasing rates in recent years, the postsecondary graduation rate for autistic students lags behind the national graduation rate by more than 20%.
After experiencing the nurturing environment at Gateway, things began to change for Owen. Noticing his potential, his teachers even encouraged him to try college-level courses for the first time.
Gateway partners with Accelerate ASU, a nationwide, university-based dual enrollment program, to offer students accessible yet rigorous college-level courses in students’ familiar school environment. Research from Helios Education Foundation shows that students in dual enrollment programs are twice as likely to attend college. Once they enroll, they are also more likely to complete their degree.
Owen, now a sophomore, is currently enrolled in six college-level courses through Accelerate ASU, including Biology 100: The Living World and Psychology 101. The opportunity has been life-changing for him.
“Between the supportive learning environment and the supportive social structure within the school, Owen started to see himself as college capable,” Owen’s parents said. “He decided that he wants to become a registered nurse, and has the confidence to pursue a bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) degree. That never would have happened 12 months ago.”
A right-fit model for early college credit
Accelerate ASU serves a wide array of more than 550 past and current partners, including large public school districts, private schools and schools offering International Baccalaureate programmes.
Gateway Academy joins a growing community of Accelerate ASU partner schools that primarily serve neurodivergent students, including Palmetto Bay Academy in Miami, Florida, and Autism Academy, a program with three campuses across Arizona.
Unlike many dual enrollment programs that take a one-size-fits-all approach, Accelerate ASU gives partner schools the flexibility to tailor the model to their specific needs.
Many schools choose to blend ASU’s Universal Learner Courses into the normal school day, allowing students to experience college-level coursework within the support structure of their day-to-day classroom community.
This familiarity and in-person support can be vital for students with autism trying college courses for the first time. To Owen’s parents, these features of ASU’s program were a game-changer.
“He works at his own pace, with support from the teachers, and is trying to take on extra courses because he loves to learn again,” they said. “Owen has had a few prior experiences with online education that did not go well. The partnership from Gateway teachers and staff is making a huge difference in his ability to complete the work effectively.”
The model has been such a good fit for the school’s students that Gateway has quickly become one of Accelerate ASU’s fastest-scaling partners. Across Gateway’s middle and high school, 75% of students are currently participating in dual enrollment courses.
Gateway’s dual enrollment students typically enroll in two or more ASU courses, with some students taking 10 or more — reflecting a higher dual enrollment participation rate than state and national averages. This pace of scale is notable, as neurodivergent students typically have lower participation levels in dual enrollment compared to other student populations.
“ASU really stood out above the rest, because they were really willing to work with us, work with our student population. There was no judging at all on ASU’s behalf,” said Robin Sweet, Gateway’s CEO and executive director. “Everybody made themselves accessible to us — which, in this day and age, that’s pretty special.”
Building confidence as college-ready students
ASU’s unique dual enrollment model has caught the interest of a growing number of schools specializing in serving the needs of neurodivergent students.
Maggie Eubanks is the owner and director of Palmetto Bay Academy, or PBA, where up to 90% of students are neurodivergent — most with ADHD, autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or twice-exceptionalityRefers to intellectually gifted children who have one or more learning disabilities such as dyslexia, ADHD or autism spectrum disorder. Source: Davidson Institute.
Eubanks says that traditional dual enrollment, which puts a large emphasis on one-time exams, “limits some of our neurodivergent student body who otherwise could do exceptional work.”
Through ASU’s model, PBA’s teachers can guide students through the soft skills needed for college preparation.
“A lot of the students are nervous at first,” Eubanks said, “but it’s also been really good teaching them to advocate for themselves so that when they get to college, office hours are not scary and seeking out support is not scary. It’s about scaffolding the success for them.”
PBA families have noticed the program’s positive impact on their children. One mother, who believed her son’s dyslexia would keep college out of reach, watched him earn an academic award by year’s end.
“(This student’s) grandfather came up to us with tears in his eyes, saying that they never thought he would do something like this, that he would even be willing to try,” Eubanks said. “These are just real, life-changing things that are happening — and (Accelerate ASU) is a big part now of how we're doing that for kids.”
To Audrey Moreno, senior director of Accelerate ASU, stories like these underscore the importance of meeting students where they are.
“What we’re seeing is that ability has never been the barrier — access and design have been,” Moreno said. “When we remove those barriers and create the right conditions, students rise to the opportunity in ways that can be truly life-changing. That’s why Accelerate ASU is growing so quickly, particularly among schools serving neurodivergent students — our flexibility allows partners to design programs that truly meet their students’ needs.”
Disrupting barriers, creating new futures
While Accelerate ASU is opening new doors to college for many neurodivergent students, it can also give students clarity about nontraditional postsecondary options.
At Arizona’s Autism Academy, school leaders see Accelerate ASU as a bridge, rather than a destination — a chance for students with autism to try out college courses and use the experience to decide on next steps after high school. In addition to college, some students may consider vocational skill building or a career certification.
“Some of our students are excited to pursue college. They just need some additional support building the executive functioning skills necessary for college-level rigor,” said Taylor Jacobs, director of curriculum and implementation at Autism Academy. “Accelerate ASU gives them a chance to see if they can truly access college coursework and be successful with it.”
In the future, Autism Academy hopes to incorporate Accelerate ASU’s career-focused credentials and certifications into its transition planning for students — one more way that Accelerate ASU is disrupting the traditional approach to dual enrollment.
“At Accelerate ASU, we’re creating models that enable students of all backgrounds to succeed,” said Scott Weatherford, associate vice president of Universal Pathways at ASU. “When we create the right conditions, college courses in high school can be a future-defining opportunity.”
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