Spectrum Fusion

Spectrum Fusion Community: The services provided by the Spectrum Fusion Community Program include social groups that offer opportunities for social connection and relationship building, foster a sense of belonging, and develop common interests. Four groups are provided to our community members. Writing Fusion: Bringing together creative adults to share their passions in scriptwriting, storytelling, short story writing, and animation.Fitness Fusion: Participants come together to exercise and develop coordination and other physical skills. (See Schedule O for continuation)Healthy Fusion: A group that teaches participants healthy eating and positive lifestyle changes while preparing a new recipe each week. Celebrations and Social Outings: The participants and their families celebrate important milestones, including graduations and birthdays. The number of persons who benefited from the Spectrum Fusion Community is sixty (60). It is well-documented that adults on the autism spectrum report feelings of loneliness and isolation. Moreover, the suicide rate for autistic adults is five times greater than adults without autism. Published research in mental health indicates that individuals who report having a sense of belonging show greater long-term success in their outcomes than those individuals who are isolated or merely have social support. The Spectrum Fusion community fosters a sense of belonging, and these outcomes are measured through its collaboration with Rice University. Spectrum Fusion collected and analyzed data, including measures of psychological well-being. Findings showed statistically significant improvement in outcomes of depression, hopelessness, and sense of belonging as measured in the Beck Depression Inventory, the Beck Hopelessness Scale, and the Sense of Belonging Scale.

Neurodiversity: Spectrum Fusion is creating social impact enterprises as a platform for participants in the program with skills in writing, graphic art, photography, videography, filmmaking, editing, and product development. The enterprises will provide the resources, mentoring, and support for these individuals to develop intellectual properties. Participants will retain intellectual property rights for their inventions and productions.

Neurodiversity in the Workplace: The services provided by Spectrum Fusion for the Neurodiversity in the Global Workplace program include the development of Spectrum Fusion Studios. Spectrum Fusion Studios provides a platform for creative adults on the spectrum who have the desire to work in the creative media industry but lack experience. The program advances their skills to build their media portfolios, so they have relevant experience when applying for jobs in their field. In addition, Spectrum Fusion Studios produce creative content, including videos, commercials, voiceover recording, and graphic design, for external clients. The number of persons to benefit from the program's first phase is ten (10).Published studies in the US, UK, Australia, and Canada all report high unemployment rates for adults on the autism spectrum compared to those with other disabilities. Estimates suggest that the unemployment rate is as high as 85% for autistic adults. The estimated yearly costs of individuals on the autism spectrum in the US is estimated to be $236 billion. Meaningful employment is one way of alleviating this unnecessary financial burden on society.