Migration is a nonprofit transition and vocational program serving adults on the autism spectrum. Our goal is to prepare and transition our members to positions with local business, and create a space where the IDD community can connect. The Mercantile is a cafe and gift store in Austin’s North Loop, owned and operated by our program. Here, behavioral therapists trained specifically in autism support work alongside our community members and neurotypical staff throughout the day, with therapy goals woven into everything that happens on the floor.
Migration is a launching pad, not a permanent home. In addition to having licensed and certified therapists provide the job skills training, what sets Migration apart is the depth and duration of support behind it. Community members build transferable skills in a full-time setting that reflects the real demands of employment, surrounded by peers and supported by professionals who know them well. The work is real, the environment is social, and the goals are specific to each person. There is no arbitrary cutoff date, and no moment when we step back and consider our job done. When a community member is ready to transition to outside employment, we stay involved, collaborating directly with their employer and remaining invested in making that job and the life it builds last.
Migration isn’t just a metaphor for leaving home. It’s the long, brave trip toward independence and a fulfilling adulthood. A migration is a similarly long flight in which birds learn, experience new things, and always navigate back home. Our community members are capable of that journey, and we exist to help make it happen. We firmly believe that with enough tenacity and support, everyone is capable of changing the trajectory of their lives.
Our mission is to provide evidence-based therapy and vocational training to adults on the autism spectrum, decreasing unemployment, building independence, and increasing meaningful inclusion in our community.
Our vision is a world where autistic adults are accepted, employed, and connected, with access to support across their lifetimes.
The vast majority of autistic adults are not successfully employed. That number reflects something specific about how the system is structured, not about what people on the spectrum are capable of. The therapeutic support that helps children with autism reach developmental milestones largely disappears in adulthood. It disappears at the exact moment when a new and equally demanding set of skills is required in a new environment with different expectations. Navigating independence, the workplace, and the community they live in requires just as much support as childhood development did. That support simply does not exist.
For most families, adulthood does not arrive gradually. Support ends, often abruptly, around age 22, and what waits on the other side is not a different system or a reduced level of care. It is very little. This reality does not land on one person. Rather, it reshapes the lives and futures of everyone around them.
Migration was founded by people who have worked alongside autistic individuals and their families for nearly two decades and watched this play out time after time. They have seen firsthand what it costs when the right support does not exist, and are convinced that the unemployment crisis in the autism community is not unavoidable. It requires investment, expertise, and something the field has not yet prioritized: a program specifically designed to carry people through adulthood, not abandon them as it begins. Migration is that program.
Migration is designed for adults 18 and older with autism or other IDDs who are working toward employment and greater independence.
Our program is best suited for individuals who:
We want to be thoughtful about fit. Families who are unsure whether the program is the right match are welcome to reach out. We’re happy to talk through it.
