Donations given by April 30 will be doubled by a $20,000 Matching Gift.

** Thank you for all of your  support so far this April. We have set an additional stretch goal of getting to $30,000 so we can continue to support even more graduate students in the college of education. Help us hit our new goal before time runs out** 

April is World Autism Awareness Month, and we’re inviting the Longhorn Nation to take part in a special campaign to fund scholarships for College of Education graduate students working with autistic children and their families.

Illustrated by Matt Lynaugh

By taking part in this campaign, you’ll help support an outstanding student like Nataly Lim.

Nataly’s work primarily focuses on adapting treatments and interventions for culturally and linguistically diverse families with autistic children and providing training to individuals who work with autistic people. Nataly’s research is trying to answer questions like…

●       How do we train immigrant parents of autistic children?

●       How do we work through any language barriers they might have?

●       How do we make sure that the services we’re providing them are equitable? 

These are such important questions to answer. And thankfully, Nataly has received scholarship funds that enable her to fully focus her time and attention on working with autistic children and their families without having to worry about her own finances.

Yet there are many other graduate students like Nataly who are in need of scholarship funds. That’s why we’re asking you to donate now.

Supporting UT grad students working with autistic children is even more critical in the wake of COVID-19. In the coming year, as students return to in-person learning, autistic children and their families will encounter their own set of unique challenges:

1. All students have faced tremendous adversity during the pandemic, including disruption to learning, COVID illness and death, long-term stress, declining family resources and increased stress. Autistic children, whose social and emotional losses are heightened, will need customized strategies. 
2. The transitions ahead will be particularly challenging for autistic children who rely on routine and often require extra time and skilled support to manage the stress and anxiety associated with change. 
3. Our graduate students and the educators they work with will need to further differentiate and individualize interventions and instruction based on a broader range of needs to ensure autistic students have the tools and resources needed to thrive through this transition.

Scholarships provide support for graduate students in the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Program so they can focus on the work that will change the lives of autistic children and their families.

So please give now. Your gift by April 30 will be doubled by the $20,000 Matching Gift, and will make a world of difference for grad students and the autistic children they serve.

Thank you for your generosity!