Allow Us To Introduce You To THE COLE JAUMAN

A thriving example of finding comfort and encouragement through sports

By Andrea Hurr

Senior at Tuslaw High School, Cole Jauman is in most ways a typical 18-year-old young man. He loves pepperoni pizza, sports, playing video games, and the color blue. Typical, however, is not how his life is characterized and thanks to the support of his parents and various programs throughout his years at school, being considered typical is a great thing.

Cole was nonverbal until the age of 4, when his family finally received the diagnosis of high functioning autism (HFA). There is a wide range of how people on the autism spectrum handle how they do with school and work; some do very well, while others get overwhelmed and cannot concentrate. Cole struggled through school and had to learn how to overcome many obstacles and challenges, especially as the subject matter got harder and harder. Individuals with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) frequently struggle with social skills. In his senior year of school, Cole was the opposite of that while thriving socially. He was selected as team manager for his varsity basketball team and had much success on the football field with his teammates. He was even chosen as Homecoming King! While HFA can be considered mild, people with it can struggle significantly. Some individuals may appear neurotypical or not need the same level of support as people with more severe autism do; however it can still have a major impact on their daily lives.

Due to his HFA diagnosis, Cole had access to speech and occupational therapies through the eighth grade. He was also fortunate enough to receive the assistance of a paraprofessional aide at school through sixth grade. Once he got to high school, the obstacles and challenges of daily life at school became very difficult. He had great anxiety, being worried that he would not be able to pass his classes and move up to the next grade level with his friends. It was a lot for him to comprehend all his subjects all at once. Cole says that his resource teachers taught him how to compartmentalize and take one subject assignment at a time and then prioritize the subjects that needed to be done first. He would attend his resource/IEP class and learn how to itemize the subjects and assignments, and then he could do it on his own and stay in study halls with his peers and friends. He credits his success with that to his classmates and friends who “would always encourage me and talk positively to calm me down as well.” They would say, “Cole, you can do this!” or “you got this!” which helped him a lot. “Those phone calls and FaceTimes mean a lot to me,” he says. “Helped me to get through high school on bad days.”

Making strides in his schoolwork, Cole was also enjoying sports, with football being his favorite. He started playing in the eighth grade and said he has had the best experiences while playing. Cole says that his coaches and teammates have been amazing. “Football is like a huge family. From the Friday night atmosphere, all the fans, student section cheering, playing under the lights— it’s Friday night!” A couple of highlights for him during his football career were when he scored a two-point conversion in his freshman year and a touchdown in his junior year.

Cole started playing basketball his freshman year because of the encouragement from his friends, who pushed him to play. In his senior year, he was the team manager and really enjoyed that role. During senior night, he got to start with the other four seniors on the team, and he made the first two points of the game and the last two points by way of a layup “with a great assist from my friend Ty (senior), and we will have that memory for the rest of our lives.”

The comradery from sports and his coaches helped him with more than just sports. They have had a lasting impact on Cole, and he listed both his head football coach and basketball coach as someone he admires. He credits Coach Gulling (head football coach) for making him a great person on and off of the field. He said that his coach would always tell him to be a positive role model and good team leader. Cole says Coach Gulling was very supportive of him. Basketball coach Wolford taught Cole how to play basketball and was always there for him and the team no matter what. His motto was “Attitude in the Altitude”-”fight for the boards and finish it.”

Cole is also very thankful for great parents. He says they are very caring and encouraging throughout his life. They are always cheering him and his teammates on and always willing to help wherever it’s needed. Once Cole graduates, his plan is to go into a work program so he can find out what really interests him and then excel in that work field. His advice for others in the special needs community is to be positive, even when you’re having a rough day. “Positive thoughts will get you through those rough days.” He also says to be supportive of others: “We need to support each other. Without the support of my friends, family, and teachers, it would have made bad days even tougher. So if you see someone having a rough day, let them know you are there for them, and it will get better. That goes a long way; it did for me!” What great advice, Cole!

He wanted to end this article by saying, “Thanks for the opportunity to tell you about myself. Hopefully, this will help someone that is struggling through school. Just be positive and make a difference! You matter!” Thank you, Cole, and know that you have made a difference in more people’s lives than you will ever know.