Youtube crashes, and all of a sudden my mom and I look at each other in a panic.

As she waits for YouTube to get up and running again, I sit with my brother and recite “Dora the Explorer” as many times as he wants.

Our normal day-to-day life consists of my mom and I eating dinner at the table as my brother eats comfortably on his beanbag in his room.

It’s not asking my brother, “how was your day,” because that’s not something he understands.

Instead, it’s reciting some of his favorite cartoons a thousand times in a row as he giggles uncontrollably.

Since he is non-verbal, our communication consists of him pointing for me to sit next to him or nodding his head when he wants more juice.

Having grown up with a younger sibling that has special needs, I’ve seen the immense importance for programs that assist adults with disabilities.

My younger brother was diagnosed with autism in 2009 at the age of two and immediately after his diagnosis, my parents began researching every program under the sun that might help him progress in all aspects, including his behavioral and motor skills.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health’s website, autism is, “a developmental disorder that affects communication and behavior.”

Generally, most people may notice symptoms within the first two years of life.

Often, when people hear about autism, they hear words like, “high-functioning” or “on the spectrum.”

Children and adults that are declared to be “high-functioning” according Healthline’s website, “[can] read, write, speak, and manage life skills without much assistance.”

Depending on the severity, some children and/or adults may need more hands-on assistance or therapy than others.

Luckily, there are a variety of options for children.

For example my brother currently receives behavioral therapy five times a week at our home.

However, once I started college, I began to think about what will happen to him once he’s an adult.

My parents and I have researched and found that there are a number of programs that help special needs adults with learning disabilities make that transition.

There are programs that will help them find jobs and make them apart of society.

Once I came to El Camino, I wondered if they had programs that assisted adults with special needs, because, according to the 2016-17 El Camino College Factbook, nine percent of students are on the autism spectrum.

El Camino College does offer a number of programs that assist students with special needs, including those that are physically disabled, visually impaired, have learning or psychological disabilities.

Director of the Special Resources Center, Gary Greco, said that they offer 15 educational development courses along with success strategy coaching.

In addition, they are also community partners with the Department of Rehabilitation Services and regional centers.

It’s important that we assist these adults because once they age out of the system, sometimes it can be difficult to get them the proper assistance that they need to be successful and not make them feel like they’re being forced into a world that they’re not prepared for.

For my brother, he will age out at 21 with the company that he’s currently with.

As his big sister, it’s worrisome for me because I’ve often discussed with my parents about what will happen when they’re gone.

It’s important that I have a career of my own but it’s also important that my brother gets the assistance he needs in the future.