Classes Cater to Autistic Students

Both a company and an academy, Coding Autism trains autistic individuals to find jobs in the technology industry. The online program, which is self-paced, runs three to six months. As the startup’s name implies, the curriculum focuses on writing computer code. From an office at 31416 Agoura Road in Westlake Village, Coding Autism has developed the first autism specialized coding academy, pairing online coding education with an autism-savvy support team to help transition autistic talent into the workforce. “We provide project-based and in-demand coding curriculum, experienced mentors and career counselors, and on-call tutoring and soft skills support to help provide autistic students an alternative form of education that is catered to their strengths,” said Coding Autism Founding President Oliver Thornton, who by day works at real estate brokerage Compass in Beverly Hills. Thornton hatched the idea for his endeavor while attending California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks. About one out of every 68 children has Autism Spectrum Disorder, according to estimates from the Centers for Disease Control’s Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network. Thornton decided to cater to the 80 percent unemployed and underemployed among Autistic adults, especially because when only 40 percent occupy the severe end of the spectrum where they can’t work. “From high-functioning to low-functioning individuals, there’s a very broad range,” he said. “So, there’s a huge population of individuals who could satisfy these opportunities that exist in the work force.” Specialized staff Two years ago while at Cal Lutheran, Thornton won first place at the university’s 2016 New Venture Competition but Coding Autism launched six months ago. “Our mission is to help empower autistics to reach their maximum potential in their careers, studies and lives,” said Thornton. He was moved to create his online academy for the autistic because the condition looms large in the Thornton household. In addition to Thornton, who was diagnosed at age 2 with Asperger’s Syndrome, his older brother is autistic and his younger brother also has Asperger’s. “Three out of five of us (siblings) were somewhere on the autism spectrum,” Thornton said. The process of launching a company while working as a real estate broker represented “a major side hustle” in his life, but he was galvanized by the idea that tech companies seek talent abroad because they mistakenly feel that they can’t find enough candidates in the U.S. “Whoa, there’s a crazy opportunity here where we can pair adults with employers,” he realized. Coding Autism’s executive staff includes Director of Soft Skills Mellissa Toler and Director of Career Counseling and Technical Mentorship Ian Earley. “Mellissa and Ian came on board in May and June,” Thornton recalled. Toler met Thornton in Seattle at the Autism at Work Conference. Toler’s expertise helps candidates in “communicating with managers, working with co-workers,” Thornton said. As with Thornton, Toler’s connection with autism is also personal: her youngest brother was diagnosed with Asperger’s when she was 16 years old, and, as a teen, she guided him through school and helped him navigate socially. “Oliver has created a safe place where adults with ASD can bring their unique talents and learn how to turn those talents into a rewarding career,” Toler said. Prior to Coding Autism, Earley, a coding bootcamp graduate of Bottega coding school who undertook a mentorship role within the bootcamp to help dozens of other students successfully complete their programs, was hired as a software developer for Nikola Motor Inc., where he has worked on various projects. So far, Thornton has financed the company through a crowdfunding campaign on Startsomegood.com that raised more than $52,800 and the sale of debt-to-equity convertible notes to accredited investors that yielded about $46,200. First graduate Since its May 29 launch, the school has already produced its first coding boot camp graduate, and that individual is already gainfully employed. Peter Souza landed a tech position at Auticon, a European company with offices in Culver City and Santa Monica. “The detail-oriented nature of individuals with autism serves them so well in this field,” Earley said. “In my work with our students, I’m always amazed at the progress I see them make and the precision that they work with.” Souza, who works out of both of Auticon’s West L.A. offices, “depending on where they need me,” told the Business Journal that he learned about the job through Thornton himself. Their friendship precedes Coding Autism’s existence, dating back to 2012 when they frequented the same Santa Monica gym. “I was programming, learning code on my own,” Souza, 34, recalled when Thornton spotted him hand-writing his algorithms. Souza landed his job soon after completing the 12-week curriculum. “It’s extremely well organized,” he said. “There’s a lot of communication. Anytime, I can talk to anyone. Even now, I have access to all the chatting channels. “I learned so much. It was everything I would need to impress an employer for a mid-level or low-level position,” continued Souza, who works for the company as an automated quality assurance engineer Coding Autism also made Souza feel less lonely, he said. “Previously, I didn’t have any friends and colleagues who knew coding,” he said. “I didn’t know anyone who had a job for that. I had no one I had to compare myself to.” Souza added that the cost of completing Coding Autism is less than comparable boot camp rates and there are also financial aid packages. Earley, based in Lehi, Utah, pointed to Souza as an example of the market’s hidden talent. “It’s unfortunate that there are so many capable individuals out there that are overlooked for good jobs just due to autism,” Earley said. For the future, Thornton plans to seek another fundraising round, between $300,000 and $400,000, to expand the program. He will also use a $10,000 grant his academy received from Autism Speaks toward easing tuition for four worthy students in the form of $2,500 scholarships. Thornton hopes to see hundreds of students enroll in Coding Autism by 2020. He also wants to debunk commonly held misunderstandings about the condition. “A lot of people think of the Rain Man type of persona where it might be someone ingenious but not really social or able to work in a corporate setting,” he said. “But companies trying to embrace diversity, beyond gender and race, should also open to intellectual and neuro diversity.” Both Toler and Earley whole-heartedly believe in Thornton’s mission. “Coding Autism is positioned to become the leading source of technology industry vocational instruction for individuals with Autism all over the country,” Toler said. “The fact that the program is entirely delivered remotely will allow Coding Autism to be reached by anyone with Autism who wants to learn about coding and the tech industry.” Despite Coding Autism’s newness, interest levels and feedback among parents and students have been positive, Earley added. “I want to see this company grow into the organization I know it can be,” the software expert said. “Something global, an organization that ensures that any individual with autism has an equal opportunity to learn these highly sought-after skills and really show themselves that there isn’t anything that can hold them back from working in a great job that lets them realize their full potential.”