Christopher Coard, College-Bound
Christopher Coard is 17 years old and the recipient of the Ed Casey Youth of the Year Awards from the Boys and Girls Club of Annapolis and Anne Arundel County, Maryland. For winning the award, Coard received an engraved plaque, scholarship for $1,800 per year for four years of college and a calculator. Coard has Asperger’s syndrome: According to today’s Capital (Annapolis):
Not expected to ever speak without the aide of a computer or even receive a high school diploma, Christopher knows he beat the odds with the help of the Bywater Boys and Girls Club and the love and support of his mother - Michelle Richardson. He even fits in a job at Ledo’s Pizza while handling his school activities and making time for the club.
“It’s not about my disability,” he said. “It’s about being prepared to set goals; to have a game plan. There have been so many challenges in my life and life is not easy, but I take school so seriously. My destiny is to go to college.”
Coard is an honors student with a “B” average and has applied to Bowie State, the University of Maryland, College Park, Liberty University and the University of Tulsa. He hopes to major in political science and work for the U.S. Government someday.
Kudos to Christoper Coard and hope that we’ll be hearing more about him in time to come.
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POSTED IN: Asperger's Syndrome, College
5 opinions for Christopher Coard, College-Bound
Club 166
Mar 15, 2007 at 5:43 pm
While we still have a long ways to go in delivering better support to children in grammar school and high school, I think that the frontiers that will really expand in the next 10 years are in services to adults and students in higher education.
In many ways college, with the possibility of there being less of a “cookie cutter” approach to education, is more suited to the needs of people on the autism spectrum.
Kristina Chew, PhD
Mar 15, 2007 at 8:29 pm
I’ve been reading some of the accounts of being AS and in college on Spectrum University.
Kathy
Mar 15, 2007 at 9:04 pm
” Not expected to ever speak without the aide of a computer or even receive a high school diploma, Christopher knows he beat the odds with the help of the Bywater Boys and Girls Club and the love and support of his mother”
Never say never..I say!
And….A loving and supportive family is certainly the primary ingredient for positive progress for an autistic child, I believe.
Kristina Chew, PhD
Mar 15, 2007 at 9:48 pm
And the family feeling seems to have been extended through the community too.
Moi ;)
Mar 15, 2007 at 10:38 pm
I want to send that to my son’s principal…..
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