Callie Boik, College Supports Program Cordinator, left, sits with Tony Saylor, 22, in a classroom at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Mich., Thursday, Sept. 5, 2013. Often, his constant doodling features a 9-year-old character named Viper Girl who, with her pet fox Logan, frequently finds herself battling monsters. Saylor, 22, has even self-published three books of their adventures. For college students with autism and other learning disabilities, it’s the kind of balancing act that takes place every day - accommodating a disability versus pushing beyond it toward normalcy and a degree that, as for any student these days, is increasingly essential for finding a meaningful career.

九月五日星期二，學院支援計畫協調人凱莉‧博克與二十二歲的東尼‧塞樂坐在東密西根大學的教室裡。在東尼的塗鴉畫冊裡，不時出現一個叫「辣妹」的九歲女孩，這女孩常發現自己與她的寵物狐狸羅根一起大戰怪獸。東尼將他們的冒險故事畫下來，甚至已經自費出版了三本書。對於有自閉症和其他學習障礙的大學生而言，這是一種平衡行為，每天都會發生的：一方面要適應自己的障礙，但也要突破它，走向正常，並拿到一個學位。而對現今任何一個學生來說，學位都是找到一份正當職業愈來愈不可或缺的必要條件。