“We’re awfully excited for him,” Danny Holcombe told TODAY.com, though he added as parents, he and his wife Susan are “not real excited about him leaving home.” But they’re especially thrilled because they never expected their son would have this kind of opportunity. “When he was born, nothing like this was a possibility,” Danny said.

The program Rion will attend next fall is “designed for students with intellectual disabilities,” and aims to help young adults develop skills they can use to live independently. The campus is only about an hour and a half away from their home, but the Holcombes plan to let Rion get settled so he can get into the rhythm of the program. “They don’t really want us there,” Danny laughed. “We would go a lot, but the idea is to let them get on campus and let them be there.”