Autistic Plano Student Inspires Crowd with Graduation Speech

Sef Scott doesn't speak much.

The 17-year-old has autism and a social communication disorder.

"He went years and years without speaking," his mother, Vicki Scott, said.

But last week at Plano Senior High School’s graduation at The Star in Frisco, Sef did the unexpected.

He captivated an audience with a nearly six-minute long speech.

"Unexpected is what I want you to remember… while I have a vocabulary like you do and the ability to physically produce spoken words, it is not a normal thing for me to electively speak," he started his speech.

His speech was a surprise for many of his classmates in the audience who had never heard him speak.

In his speech, Sef encouraged his classmates to also do the unexpected,  whether performing an act of kindness or leaving their comfort zones.

"Don't follow someone else's dreams. Don't waste time on something you never wanted. Do the unexpected," he said.

Sef's mom, brother and teaching aide helped him write and practice the speech. They kept it a surprise before he delivered it to hundreds at the ceremony.

"I wasn't expecting the impact that it was going to have on strangers," Vicki said.

His words left many standing in applause and some even in tears.

"I heard people around us starting to cry, and it surprised me because I started to too," Vicki said.

Vicki said in the fall, Sef plans to attend either My Possibilities or nonPareil Institute in Plano.