Contact: Zack Plair

STARKVILLE, Miss.—A student with autism trekked around Mississippi State’s campus holding his books in his hands. He kept dropping his books and had already lost a rather expensive supply for one of his courses. 

Frustrated with his situation, he finally asked Molly Butts, one of two autism liaisons at MSU, what he should do. She encouraged him to buy a backpack, something that hadn’t occurred to the student but made all the sense in the world once Butts brought it to his attention.

That’s one example, albeit a small one, of how Butts—a Natchez native pursuing her doctorate of philosophy with a concentration in school psychology—makes a difference in the lives of MSU’s growing population of high-functioning students diagnosed with some form of autism. And stories like this student’s emphasize the purpose of Autism Awareness Month in April.

“These students have some really cool interests and offer a lot to Mississippi State,” she said. “They are admitted to college under the same process and meet the same standards as everyone else. They just need a little more support in navigating the college atmosphere.”

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a pervasive developmental disorder that causes social communication and interaction deficits. ASD varies in severity, but many students with the disorder engage in restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior, interests and activities, according to officials at MSU Student Support Services.

Mayor Parker Wiseman has proclaimed April as Autism Awareness Month in Starkville, and MSU has kicked off its Autism Speaks campaign with Light It Up Blue, by shining a blue light from the tower of Colvard Student Union for autism awareness. The Maroon Volunteer Center is leading a social media campaign throughout the month to encourage participation in the Autism Speaks campaign, which will conclude with Bully’s Dash for Autism on April 23. Blue stickers also will be displayed throughout Starkville this month as part of the effort.

The campaign opens a prime opportunity to promote MSU’s array of autism support services, said Julie Capella, assistant dean and director for Student Support Services, including the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Clinic on campus which serves individuals from childhood through early adulthood. The autism liaison program, which is a partnership between the clinic and Student Support Services, began in 2014 as a free service for students with ASD who receive disability support services.

Butts and Hallie Smith, a Lutz, Florida, native who also is pursuing a doctorate of philosophy in school psychology, were the first liaisons associated with the program. Smith served one year before yielding her spot to Hailey Ripple, a Jacksonville, Illinois, native pursuing the same degree. Both Butts and Smith have secured internships with Johns Hopkins University after they complete their course work in May.

Focused mainly on working on the students’ social skills, classroom etiquette and effectively communicating with professors, Butts said the help students identify areas they need to work on, then try to empower them to be more independent.

“Once we bring awareness to something they need to work on, they are usually very receptive because they know we’re here to help them,” Butts said. “The biggest thing is establishing mutual respect because they know we like them and we care about them.

“They also establish a sense of independence through this where they know we’re here if they need us, but they are learning to handle a lot of things themselves,” she added.

Liaisons also provide faculty workshops to help professors and instructors understand the challenges students with autism face, as well as support their efforts to educate them.

Dan Gadke, assistant professor for school psychology and director for the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Clinic, said the liaison program has made a noticeable impact in its short tenure. In fact, he said the number of students utilizing the autism liaison program doubled in just one year primarily due to awareness.

“We have had high achieving high school students with 3.5 GPAs or higher and great test scores, whose parents were never going to send them to college for fear of them not receiving the support they need. They’re now majoring in architecture, engineering, Japanese, international business, psychology and so on,” Gadke said. “If it was not for the dedication of Julie Capella and her staff at Student Support Services, this would not be happening. They really have created a movement.”

Butts and Smith had both worked with children with autism for a few years before transitioning to support roles for young adults. Smith said they discovered quickly how little research was available related to adults with autism, but they embraced the challenges of being on the field’s frontier.

“Moving forward, especially with the increase of children being diagnosed with autism, there is going to be an influx of students who can do college academically, but they need additional support socially,” Smith said. “Without that support, these students might not be able to come to college or stay in college. I’d say MSU is way ahead of the game.”

For more information on Student Support Services at MSU, visit http://www.sss.msstate.edu/. For information about the clinic, visit http://www.addc.msstate.edu/.

MSU is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.