Barbara Kennedy, Ed.D., LMHC serves as the Dean of Students at Eastern Florida State College (EFSC). Prior to holding several positions in administration, she was a full-time faculty member for ten years, she developed curriculum for an AS Degree in Social and Human Services with concentrations in Aging and Domestic Violence, including developing the statewide framework. She also developed a study abroad program for students to travel to China as part of an internship in the Social & Human Services, Nursing, and Business disciplines.She partnered with the University of Central Florida to get the colleges first Fulbright Scholar from Turkey. Dr. Kennedy has been instrumental in establishing domestic abuse prevention training on all campuses at EFSC, and as a trained Licensed Mental Health Counselor she routinely uses critical thinking skills to assess people, programs, and outcomes. She currently teaches on-line courses in Psychology and Social and Human Services in addition to her administrative responsibilities. She is a licensed mental health counselor, and a certified autism spectrum disorder clinical specialist with a private practice that focuses on adults with autism. Her most recent research at the University of Florida led to the development of the college’s transition program for students on the autism spectrum. She is passionate about empowering others to help themselves.

Eastern Florida State College (EFCS) has created a free five-week transition program for students on the autism spectrum (ASD) that utilizes data from a University of Florida study conducted by Dean of Students, Barbara Kennedy. The study highlights the narratives of successful community college students (those that have transferred from community college to a top-ranked research university), and their perceptions of the internal and external factors that led to their success. An appreciative inquiry approach was utilized in this study with a focus on strengths-based program development. The program focuses on specific areas such as social excellence, adaptation & regulation, time management & goal setting, career planning, and classroom and campus exploration.

Some statistics following the pilot:

•	100% of the students stated the program was helpful.
•	89% reported a decrease in anxiety about attending college.
•	88% of the students who were registered for the Fall semester, returned for the following Spring.

Dr. Kennedy is eager to share our findings and strategies so that more students can lower their anxiety about attending college and increase their self-efficacy regarding what they have to offer. There is a special emphasis on challenges for this unique and extraordinary population that originates from the thoughts and feelings of those students who have overcome those barriers.