Easter Seals Provides a Preferred Premises for Special Needs Children

BRADENTON – The brain contains over 100 billion neurons that carry messages to other nerve cells in the mind and body. But for children with developmental disabilities and autism, the cells that affect communication, emotions and senses never come to full fruition. Normal sounds are sometimes unbearable, being touched can be uncomfortable and fitting in with the rest of the world is a daunting task.

For 28 children with severe developmental disabilities, attending public schools in Manatee County was a sensory overload resulting in anxiety. Although they were placed in exceptional student education, or ESE classes, they were still  on a large campus, still had to access the bus loop, the cafeteria and the hallways – often surrounded by large populations of individuals.

”For this small population of students, just going into these large settings provokes anxiety, and leads to that feeling of being overwhelmed. Being overwhelmed disturbs the children’s learning,“ said Nancy Beal, Program Coordinator for Specific Learning Disabilities if the Manatee County School District. ”We wanted to create a smaller environment for this group so we started looking at some options.“

The district found the perfect solution, a five-classroom available space with its own amenities situated on the campus of Easter Seals Southwest Florida. Easter Seals is an organization offering help for children with disabilities and their families from birth through adulthood. The district plans to split the children up into five small classes where they will receive more attention from teachers in a less intrusive environment. The program will put a priority emphasis on behavior, language and communication acquisition. 

This collaboration will also include a sharing of support services.  Easter Seals may provide students with occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech/language therapy while the School Board provides nursing services and behavioral support.

Currently the two organizations work together with a vocational high-school program that teaches teenagers with autism and developmental disabilities how to improved their life skills in preparation to enter the workforce. The children receive high-school credit for the course.

”We made the decision to take my son Zachery out public school system and enroll him in the vocational program at Easter Seals,“ said Kevin Reuban. ”Learning the three R’s was something he struggled with and wasn’t in his best interest. He is more suited to learn life skills like cooking, cleaning and becoming employable one day. With the help of Easter Skills, Zachery has moved out and lives independently like a normal adult – something that we never thought was possible.“

While the idea of a specialized classroom for children with sensory sensitivity has provoked a wide variety of interest, Beal says the county does not anticipate expansion any time soon. In fact, they are hoping the children can be reintroduced into regular classrooms after they gain the therapy and education needed to cope with their developmental disabilities.

”We’re defiantly hoping to keep the program limited to a select few students,“ said Beal.

In the U.S., approximately 1.8 percent of children have a severe developmental disability, while the prevalence of autism is around 1 in 250 children.  Children with disabilities are twice as likely to suffer from physical abuse than average children. But Beal says that bullying was not the reason they wanted to separate the class.

”This decision was strictly related to better learning opportunities for the children,“ said Beal. ”We have had absolutely no concerns with bullying, in fact the children are readily accepted. We’ve had an overwhelmingly positive response from individuals with disabilities on our campuses, and I think there is a lot to be said about that.

The $100,000 annual lease agreement will enable the school board in collaboration with Easter Seals will provide students with significant with an appropriate educational, as well as employment exploration opportunities. 

”This collaboration and the expenditure of these funds supports the needs of students with disabilities as well as our motto that all individuals have value and can add value," said Superintendent McGonegal.