Undoubtedly, the way in which higher education is funded has changed significantly in recent years. One study done by The Chronicle of Higher Education demonstrated a steady decrease from 1987 to 2014 in how much of a public university’s budget was provided by the state. Although only 25 years ago public funding often amounted to half or more of the funding at many state universities, that funding has now dropped to roughly one-fifth of the budget at these schools. Those figures confirm reports published by the American Council on Education and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (see links to data below).
The fastest-growing developmental disability is Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). There is an interesting debate about whether this growth is a product of increased autism incidence or what has been dubbed “diagnostic substitution” (i.e., moving people from one diagnostic category, such as “language impairment,” to the autism category). Regardless, the number of students arriving on college campuses with an ASD diagnosis is substantially higher now than it has ever been and will undoubtedly continue to grow over time. The disability accommodations process triggered by such a diagnosis is unique and will continue to present challenges to professors and administrators.
