High school students with autism gain college mentors in NYC program

纽约市项目：自闭症高中生获大学导师助力

Dive Brief:

深度简报：

New York high school students with autism are building a sense of belonging and community while learning how to navigate college through a mentorship program that pairs them with college-aged peers with autism at New York University.

通过纽约大学（NYU）的一项导师计划，患有自闭症的纽约高中生在学习适应大学生活的同时，正逐步建立归属感与群体意识。该计划将他们与纽约大学患有自闭症的同龄大学生配对，搭建起 mentorship（导师制）关系。

Started as a pilot through the Nest Support Project at NYU — a partnership between the university and New York City Public Schools — the Making Mentors program is supported through a $1.29 million grant from the National Science Foundation and is in its second year.

作为纽约大学 Nest 支持项目（该校与纽约市公立学校的合作项目）的试点计划，“Making Mentors” 项目获美国国家科学基金会 129 万美元资助，目前已进入第二年。

The program’s current cohort consists of 20 mentors and 20 mentees. Each cohort begins in the fall, where selected college students receive extensive training on being good mentors before visiting the high schools to meet with their mentees.

该项目当前批次共有 20 名导师（mentors）和 20 名学员（mentees）。每批学员于秋季启动，入选的大学生会接受关于如何成为合格导师的系统培训，随后前往高中与学员见面。

Dive Insight:

深度解析：

“I really think that by having this opportunity for both the mentors and the mentees, we're changing a dynamic from the autistic student always needing help from someone that is not autistic, or gaining services from someone that's not autistic to an authentic relationship with someone who may see the world similar to the way they do,” said Kristie Patten, the principal investigator for the Nest Program at NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development.

“纽约大学斯坦哈特文化、教育与人类发展学院 Nest 项目首席研究员克里斯蒂・帕滕（Kristie Patten）表示：“我坚信，通过为导师和学员提供这样的机会，我们正在改变一种固有模式 —— 过去自闭症学生总是需要非自闭症人士的帮助，或从非自闭症人士那里获取服务，而现在他们能与世界观可能相似的人建立真实的关系。”

Patten added that most programs for students with autism attempt to help them “act less autistic.” Making Mentors, however, aims to shift from that mindset, she said, as it's not about changing behavior but about fostering and building upon students' interests.

帕滕补充道，大多数针对自闭症学生的项目试图帮助他们 “减少自闭症特征行为”，但 “Making Mentors” 旨在转变这一理念：“它不关乎行为改变，而是聚焦于培养和发展学生的兴趣。”

Mentor and mentee pairs are selected based on mutual interests or what mentees would like to learn. Throughout the year, the pair work on a project that culminates in an end-of-year showcase where they present to their peers.

导师与学员的配对基于共同兴趣或学员的学习需求。全年中，两人会合作完成一个项目，最终在年末成果展上向同伴展示。

The mentor serves as a guide to support the mentee with whatever their interest is and how they can bring the project to life.

导师的角色是引导者，支持学员实现兴趣，并协助其将项目落地。

The program collects qualitative and quantitative data before and after each cohort year. According to year one data provided by NYU Steinhardt Public Affairs Officer Jade McClain, mentors displayed a 50% increase in their awareness of the college experience, and 25% improved their ability to advocate for themselves.

项目每年会收集量化与质性数据。根据纽约大学斯坦哈特学院公共事务官员杰德・麦克莱恩（Jade McClain）提供的第一年数据，导师对大学生活的认知度提升了 50%，自我 advocacy（维权）能力提升了 25%。

“They are really taking ownership, especially in year two, of their leadership skills,” said Dora Onwumere, the primary research assistant on the project. “I've seen their ability to just articulate and advocate for what they want in the way that they feel is not making anybody feel bad or infringing on anybody, but that is their right.”

项目首席研究助理多拉・翁武梅雷（Dora Onwumere）表示：“尤其是在第二年，他们真正开始主动发挥自身的领导技能。我看到他们能够以一种既不让他人感到不适、也不侵犯他人权益的方式，清晰表达并争取自己的需求 —— 同时坚守这是他们的权利。”

According to Patten, a crucial part of the Making Mentors program’s success and positive impact was making sure to have an autistic input in all aspects of the planning process. She said the program had a consultant with autism who looked at the training to assess its effectiveness.

帕滕指出，“Making Mentors” 项目成功并产生积极影响的关键因素之一，是确保自闭症群体在规划过程的各个环节都能提供意见。她提到，项目聘请了一位自闭症顾问，专门评估培训内容的有效性。

“When you see it from their lens, you get it. But as a non-autistic individual, it's very hard to get it initially,” said Patten.

“从他们的视角出发，才能真正理解需求；而作为非自闭症人士，最初很难完全体会。” 她说。

For schools that may not have formalized mentorship programs like NYU, Patten recommends inviting college students with autism as speakers who can talk about what's helpful to know about applying for and attending college.

对于暂无类似纽约大学正式导师计划的学校，帕滕建议邀请自闭症大学生担任演讲者，分享申请和就读大学的实用经验。

Onwumere also recommends that schools are informed about what programs and assistance are available to universities and colleges to offer students with autism, and that they teach these students about such resources.

翁武梅雷还建议学校了解高校为自闭症学生提供的现有项目与援助，并向学生普及这些资源。

“What happens is, in K-12 everything is pretty much handed over to a lot of our students. Autistic students go into the IEP [individualized education program] meeting, and most of the time it's a passive experience,” Onwumere said. “Then you go to college, and guess what? There's no longer an IEP. All the things that you need as an accommodation are no longer there. You have to start it all over again.”

“问题在于，在 K-12 阶段，许多学生的需求几乎被全程包办。自闭症学生参加 IEP（个别化教育计划）会议时，大多处于被动接受状态，” 翁武梅雷指出，“但进入大学后，IEP 不复存在，所有需要的便利条件也不再自动提供，他们必须重新开始争取。”

The program is funded for another year, but Patten and Onwumere said efforts are under way to figure out how to make the project sustainable beyond its current grant.

该项目获资助至下一年，但帕滕与翁武梅雷表示，团队正在探索如何在现有资助结束后实现项目的可持续运营。