An expected 500,000 adults with autism are expected to begin seeking employment over the next decade as a tidal wave of young adults with autism age out of school and other programs.
A Danish father of an autistic son is leading an effort to create gainful employment opportunities for these gifted individuals. By helping employers to see an employee with autism as having unique personality strengths, especially in information technology settings, Thorkil Sonne is helping to address this growing demographic problem.
Sonne launched Specialisterne USA, a nonprofit, to "enable 100,000 jobs in the U.S." The organization assess, trains and employs individuals with autism in IT and other technically oriented sectors. They report that 80% of their employees are working at corporate partner locations.
According to a New York Times article, his work in the U.S. grew out of his success in Denmark. He created Specialisterne there after studying autism for several years as a father. He'd also observed his son's special abilities and recognized that people with autism can do some tasks better than those without.
On Tuesday, August 19, 2014 at noon Eastern, Sonne will join me for a live discussion about his new social venture, its impact and prospects. Tune in here to watch the interview live.
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More about Specialisterne USA:
Specialisterne USA is a non-profit organization with the goal to enable 100,000 jobs for people with autism and similar challenges in the US We are partnering with employers, states and non-profit training organizations to assess, train, employ and retain individuals with autism in work settings where they can excel.
Sonne's bio:
Thorkil Sonne is a social entrepreneur and founder of the Specialisterne concept. As part of his career he has worked many years in the IT/Telecommunication sector and chairing a branch of Autism Denmark. His youngest son has autism.
