April is Autism Awareness and Acceptance Month as it comes to a close, a big win for the autism community in the Bowling Green area.

This legislative session, the General Assembly awarded Life Works at Care You $4.4 million.

A special ceremony and check presentation was held this morning to celebrate Life works as a two year living and learning program for young adults on the autism spectrum.

It helps them learn independent living skills and find good jobs.

Life Works says the national employment rate for autistic adults is just 15%, but for their program participants, it's 90%.

You find that as they're working with these folks, they're incredibly brilliant.

And so as they gain the skills, I think you're going to find more companies reaching out to them, supporting the program, wanting to have graduates from the program working in their company.

We've got more than 100,000 children and adults on the autism spectrum in Kentucky alone with a 1 to 36 ratio.

We have an epidemic, and programs like this create an opportunity for those who have the ability and the interest and the drive and the intention to learn and do more, to be more productive, not to necessarily be at home, not to necessarily stay and have to play video games or live in the apartments with their families for the rest of life.

They can be independent.

They can decide on where they live.

They can find jobs that are going to be exciting to them and productive for them.

The funding will support operating costs and scholarships and the development of a day program that will help more people on the autism spectrum prepare for a successful career.