Program Highlights

As part of Mercyhurst University's Learning Differences Program (LDP), students enrolled in the Asperger Initiative at Mercyhurst (AIM) will be provided access to a number of unique academic and social features. Students in the program pay an additional fee for these services.

Academic Support includes:

∙Participation as freshman in our Summer Program, August 5 - 24, 2012.

∙Individualized course planning.

∙Weekly meetings with program academic counselors to monitor academic progress and executive functioning.

∙Availability of assistive technology (such as the Kurzweil Personal Reader and Dragon Naturally Speaking).

∙Access to peer and graduate-level tutors, note takers and other accommodations provided by the Learning Differences Program.

∙Testing accommodations.

∙Collaboration with faculty to address special learning needs.

∙Priority registration to insure that class schedules fit personal-needs schedules.

∙Access to all of the accommodations that students qualify for under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

Social Support includes:

∙Priority for single room placement in the Living Learning Environment.

∙Program lounge that provides a welcoming, safe place for students to relax and unwind.

∙Optional meal gatherings to encourage socialization in dining hall.

∙Participation in Asperger support group meetings.

∙Group outings to on-campus events, in addition to occasional road trips to area attractions.

∙Development of student-centered individualized behavior plans.

∙Collaboration with faculty/staff to address specific behavioral needs.

∙Peer mentoring.

Counseling Support includes:

∙On-site social skills group.

∙Referral to Mercyhurst Counseling Center as needed.

∙Facilitation of working relationships with Erie area psychiatrists.