With a little help, students can win victories over disabilities

Multi-VE program is way more than baby-sitting

By Hazel Sanders Sparrow
SPECIAL TO THE BEACON

posted Dec 19, 2008 - 5:45:29pm

How many times have you heard one child say to another, “You retard!” How about, “He’s a cripple. He can’t play!”

Do you avoid or feel sorry for people in wheelchairs? Each day on school campuses across the state and nation, thousands of children are put down, laughed at and criticized because they have some kind of physical, mental, or emotional disability.

The Florida Legislature is trying to change the negative image, perception and treatment of people with disabilities. Toward that goal, the Legislature established the first half of October as Disability History and Awareness Weeks.

At Deltona High School and other schools in the Volusia County system, however, teachers and administrators work throughout the year to improve the image of children with disabilities. One way is by providing instruction for students with moderate and severe disabilities through the Multi-VE program.

VE stands for varying exceptionalities. Multi-VE students' disabilities and challenges include hearing or language impairments, mental handicaps, emotional and behavioral disorders, multiple physical handicaps and disorders all across the autism spectrum.

Located in Building Z on the 92-acre campus, Deltona High School’s Multi-VE program serves more than 50 students, ages 14 through 21. They attend classes to learn to function independently and to acquire skills to help them gain employment after graduation.

Victories in the community

At Deltona High School, “VE” really means “victories everywhere,” because students with disabilities are showing they can be successful in and out of the classroom — that they have abilities!

For example, Gail Borland and Karen Hook teach a Career Experience course for the older high-school students. Students work at CiCi’s Pizza, Florida Hospital-Fish Memorial, Stacey’s Buffet, Boston Gourmet Coffeehouse, and the Bus Depot.

Nineteen students work off-campus four days a week. Students make boxes, fill condiment containers and clean tables. Borland said the students are proud of their work.

“It boosts their self-esteem because they’re doing something for the campus and the community,” she said.

Borland’s students also operate the Working Wolves Recycling Program. During the 2007-08 school year, students collected 670 pounds of aluminum and 41,771 pounds of newspaper for recycling.

“Students learn teamwork, to follow directions and to be responsible,” Borland said.

The younger students have victories, as well. Each week, Ray Davis takes a group to local supermarkets to learn basic employment skills. As part of their community-based vocational education, students visit two Winn-Dixie locations and the Volusia/Flagler Hospice resale store. They volunteer their time, in exchange for a chance at training and work experience.

“Employers are much more willing to hire students with disabilities after they’ve had a chance to see them work," Davis said. "The community appreciates the work of the students.”

Victories in the classroom

In addition to work preparation, students learn academics, life skills, and social and personal skills. Lisa Rodler has been a Multi-VE teacher for 17 years.

“Our program gives students variety," she said. "They change classes and learn to work with different personalities — just like in a general-education setting.”

Rodler uses lots of communication devices to help students express their thoughts, answer questions and make requests. She also uses picture symbols to help students understand concepts.

“The most rewarding moment is when you’ve worked with a child for a couple of years and they finally get it. It’s great,” she said.

Rodler said the biggest misconception about the Multi-VE program is that not much learning is really going on.

“Many people believe we do nothing all day, that we are here as baby sitters," she said. "But we are committed to helping our students learn to become independent.”

Mary Tilford, who has taught in Multi-VE for 15 years, teaches preparation for adult living after graduation. Her students learn cooking, cleaning, hygiene, safety, and functioning in the community.

“People are deathly afraid of our kids because they don’t know them," Tilford said. "Sometimes they shun them or avoid them. Our students need to be treated with respect, like everyone else.”

While many high-school teachers seldom see appreciation from their students, that's not the case for Multi-VE teachers, Tilford said.

“Little things make them happy," she said. "They’re easily satisfied, and they know so much more than people think.”

Tilford praised the addition of teaching assistants in Multi-VE classrooms. The assistants help provide one-on-one instruction and take care of students’ physical needs.

Teaching assistant Patty Marro says, “Seeing growth in the children is really fulfilling.”

Titimary Santiago, who has been a teaching assistant for 11 years, said, “It is exciting when students see you years later, and remember your name. You know you’ve made a difference.”

Cindy Flowers, mother of Cody Flowers, is pleased with Multi-VE.

“It’s helped my son with his socialization and behavior," she said. "He interacts with his peers and his brothers' friends really well.”

Cody's father, a firefighter in Casselberry, has been a guest speaker at the school.

Skills for recreation and leisure are also important to these students.

Brenda Eads, who has taught at Deltona High School for 11 years, teaches bowling and arts and crafts, and shows an occasional movie in her Multi-VE classes.

“We play basketball, watch exercise videos, and walk around the track. The students get a lot of exercises that help build their physical strength and have fun at the same time,” she said.

Helping with the victory

Meeting the students' variety of special needs requires a team that extends beyond the school. Classrooms with hearing-impaired students have the assistance of an interpreter for the deaf. VATT, the Volusia Adaptive Assistive Technology Team, provides visual aids and communication devices. Easter Seals physical therapists visit the campus to make sure mobility devices, like wheelchairs, are working properly.

Toward greater understanding

For centuries, students with disabilities were hidden away in special schools. However, since 1975, with the passage of the federal Education for All Handicapped Children Act, many children with disabilities have had the opportunity to attend public schools and participate in the general school population. There are more than 400,000 students with disabilities in kindergarten through 12th grade in Florida’s education system.

The biggest obstacle people with disabilities face is negative attitudes based on lack of knowledge and misunderstanding. On June 13, 2008, Gov. Charlie Crist signed the Disability History and Awareness Weeks legislation.

The purpose of the bill is to generate interest in and understanding of disabilities. The bill encourages schools to “provide instruction on disability history, people with disabilities, and the disability-rights movement.”

Deltona High School is proud to say, “Students with disabilities are able!”

RESOURCES

• To learn more about educational services for students with disabilities, go to Florida Department of Education Bureau of Exceptional Education and Student Services.

• Teachers can go to Center on Human Policy Disabilities studies for teachersto obtain lessons and materials to integrate disability studies into their core curriculum.

• Students can visit the Kids as Self Advocates (KASA) Web site to learn to make choices for themselves. Information is available in Spanish.

• For information on the disability-rights movement, go to National Museum of American History disability rights movement

— Hazel Sanders Sparrow is a former Deltona High School reading teacher who is new to the Multi-VE program.

— info@beacononlinenews.com

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