For sophomore Cora Lammers, Best Buddies is an important organization which she was inspired to join from her own life experience.

“I have a younger sister with Down syndrome and have had friends with special needs ever since I was little,” Lammers said. “There have been so many people with IDDs (intellectual and developmental disabilities) in my life who have made such an impact on who I am, that I knew freshman year I would immediately join the club.”

Autism Awareness Month was established in April, 1970, by psychologist Bernard Rimland. The month is dedicated to fostering understanding and acceptance of individuals with autism, who often face unique challenges in communication, social interactions and sensory processing. Best Buddies is an organization dedicated to ending the social isolation of those with IDDs.

Lammers said she has enjoyed being the president of this school’s Best Buddies chapter.

“I became president this semester at Carmel High School and it has been so much fun. I care deeply about the cause of Best Buddies, inclusion of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and it has been amazing to help lead and plan for the people in the club,” Lammers said.

Sophomore Purvi Ghosh has a brother with autism. She said having a sibling with autism has made her more adaptable.

“I think it’s definitely made me more patient and accommodating towards other people and has helped me with being more understanding,” Ghosh said.

Autumn Henderson, special services department chair, is responsible for planning the curriculum for students with disabilities. She said she was motivated to go into special education because of her aunt, who was diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury. Henderson said individuals with autism tend to have a harder time picking up social cues than those without.

“It’s really because of their social deficits and how to interact with the community and how to do things you know differently and I think that is a big misconception,” Henderson said. “I wish people would approach all people with, kind of an open mind and open heart, understanding they may be coming from a place which is a disability. It’s not necessarily a place of hurtfulness.”

Henderson added that autistic individuals can become overstimulated due to their surroundings.

“If they are stimulated, they can go into sensory overload, and they may have a behavior that looks very off-putting, which can be angry or mean, but they are dealing with a sensory overload,” Henderson said.

Lammers said there can be issues with communication, but students work past them.

“Occasionally there could be communication barriers where at first people struggle to connect or communicate, but realizing everyone is more alike than different and finding those similarities and connection points through events and buddy hangouts always helps to form stronger friendships,” Lammers said.

Lammers also said the mission of Best Buddies is to include as many people as possible.

“Best Buddies helps to foster friendships between people with and without autism that have made such an impact on each person in the friendship,” Lammers said. “We strive for inclusion as the main goal of the club through events where people with autism are included.”

Henderson said there are ways in which the school assists autistic students with forming friendships.

“We have a peers program which explicitly teaches social skills, putting kids in scenarios and saying, ‘How would you respond in this situation?’ or ‘What would you do in this situation?’ They’re like, ‘How do kids just become friends?’ ‘How do they know to just walk up to somebody in the hallway and just start talking to them?” Henderson said. “Those social things that are very normal for you and I.”

Adding on to this, Henderson said the school curriculum is individualized for each student’s needs. 

“For a lot of our students that are on the autism spectrum, some of the basic kind of accommodations that we have for them can be, providing a visual schedule of some kind so that they can visually see what’s coming next,” Henderson said. “That’s probably the biggest anxiety inducer for them is just not knowing what’s next that you want to prepare for them or front load them on, what we’re going to be doing next, and in the classroom itself, depending on the students needs.”

Lammers said acceptance is necessary for forming successful relationships.

“I think any experience with the buddy pairs that have people with and without autism or other IDDs show that acceptance is crucial,” Lammers said. “People create valuable friendships and connections through events like bowling and friendsgiving, along with buddy pair hangouts, that show how important it is to accept and include people with autism because of the joy that these friendships bring.”

Ghosh said she feels having a sibling with autism is not an inherently negative thing.

“I think people need to understand that it’s not something to pity or look down upon, we’re like any other family,” she said.

Lammers said she feels fostering inclusivity is fundamental to bringing together different types of people.

“Spreading not only awareness, but acceptance is key,” Lammers said. “We did a disability acceptance spirit week a few weeks ago along with Champions Together, which also helps bring acceptance and inclusion for people with intellectual disabilities. Overall, spreading more awareness about people with IDDs and the clubs and organizations within CHS that foster inclusion and where students can become close with peers with IDDs is very important.”