What Janet's written about is amazing!! She's definitely gone above and beyond and has done some very in-depth research and has gotten information that could help so many children.
Please, please take a minute to read her blog/article and pass it on to ANYONE who may benefit from this info.
Thanks Janet!!! We love you guys so much :)
First, her email to me:
Hi Katie,
I've been following your blog this month (I even have it as a bookmark app on my phone!) and have been working on an entry, if you'd like to use it. I had wanted to write something last year, but found myself swamped and never put it all together. I decided this year I would finish what I started last year.
I could easily have written about how much Dan and I love your family and have been challenged and changed by knowing Logan, but I thought that I could possibly do even more good if I tried a little "professional soul searching." In school counseling, one of our largest roles both in the school and in the community is that of advocate. As a college counselor, I asked myself last year, "What can I do to advocate?" So I started doing a little research and this year was able to polish an entry that I had started about college access for students with DS (and other cognitive disabilities, but inspired by Logan and others with DS). I hope this isn't too "clinical" for your blog, but I know I'll keep learning about this and wanted to get the word out there about it. I think that too many people discount the ability of those with DS to attend college -- we shouldn't be doing that! The information that I found also further supports the importance of inclusion (I mention it in here).
Now, the article:
It’s October 1 and I’m sitting in my office across from a young woman who has moments ago collapsed into a puddle of tears. She struggles with math. Her Mathematics portion of the SAT was too low for her first choice college, and she is devastated. “I won’t get in anywhere!” she moans. Her grades in the subject are no better, and if I’m being honest, it’s not just math. US History and Spanish are flagging as well. I ask, “What have you been doing to try to work through the tough concepts? Have you seen your teachers for help?”
“No. I haven’t had the chance.”
“No free periods or after school hours?”
“No. I’ve been too busy.”
“What if we went together to make an appointment for you to see the teacher, say, next week? That way you could plan in advance to use that time for extra help.”
“She doesn’t like me.”
“I’m sure that’s not true – teachers really want to help. I promise. Really, they do. What evidence do you have that she doesn’t like you?”
“Well…”
And so it begins. College Counseling really is counseling, in case any of you doubted! But as I mentioned, this is October 1, and I know that Katie has started her month-long blog to help raise awareness about DS. So, as I am working through the stages of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy with this tearful self-diagnosed dysgraphic teenager, I am also thinking somewhat bitterly about how good she has it. “Bad at math.” I was bad at math, too, I think. I turned out pretty much okay. Try having challenges that you can’t overcome by simply going to see the teacher for extra help.
I have a hard time, sometimes, with privilege as it relates to my job. In my field, we talk often about learning disabilities and access issues, equity in higher education and colleges that open doors. I have a listserv communiqué saved in a resources folder on my computer that lists colleges for the underachiever, colleges for the “B” student, colleges for the kid who needs a second chance, and a list of colleges where students ADHD will find resources. Where would I counsel a student with Down Syndrome to look for college, I think to myself, handing my weeping young friend a tissue.
I have never doubted that Logan can attend college if he chooses, and I’ve always hoped that Katie and Sam will allow me to help advocate for him when the time comes. At present, fewer than a quarter of these students earn post-secondary degrees, but as recently as this past summer, new initiatives were begun to address this issue and there is a lot of reason to hope. There are only around 150 known programs of post-secondary study – with differing rigor and structure – currently in place (compare that with over 2500 four-year traditional undergraduate programs and 1700 two-year certificate or associate programs). Congress reauthorized the Higher Education Opportunity Act in 2008 (it was implemented this past July), however, which has provisions for improving the quantity and quality of post-secondary programs for students like Logan. In addition, the HEOA allows students with intellectual disabilities the opportunity to apply for and earn Pell Grants, Supplementary Educational Opportunity Grants (SEOGs), and Federal Work Study Program.
But policy work can only get us half of the way there. The other half has to do with the student’s own readiness for college, and that piece of the puzzle relates back to one of Katie’s earlier posts about inclusion. Advocates are loudly acknowledging the role that inclusion plays in keeping students with intellectual disabilities motivated, prepared, and challenged to the level that they will pursue higher education. In a February 2009 article in U.S. News and World Report (See? They do have valuable information about college if you ignore that odious rankings list!) featured an interview with Stephanie Smith Lee, senior policy advisor for the National Down Syndrome Society, who extolled the virtues of inclusion in helping students with DS achieve college readiness. A quote from the article:
“Inclusion helps young adults with intellectual disabilities expand their independence, their ability to earn competitive wages, and their ability to be part of a community, Lee says, adding that these are the same skills any college student gains by attending an institution of higher education. Whether students audit one class a semester, challenge themselves to take a few courses for credit, or spend an entire semester simply learning how to take public transportation to and from campus independently, Lee says the benefits of these experiences are evident.”
Lee’s own daughter has DS and dreamed of attending a four-year college. At the time, there were no programs of post-secondary education that would support her in the Washington, D.C. area where the family lived. So, Lee worked with George Mason University to form one that is now recognized as one of the best in the country. Other such programs exist at Mount Aloysius College in Pennsylvania and Becker College in Massachusetts. At the certificate/associate’s level, the Inclusive Concurrent Enrollment Program at Massachusetts Bay Community College is recognized as a leading model. And the numbers are growing. Since the HEOA monies began being distributed at least 54 new programs have been identified or started.
There’s a lot more to learn about HEOA, IDEA, ADA and other policies that support the effort to provide access and equity to students with cognitive disabilities. I plan to study up and use my area of expertise to advocate as best I can. My inspiration to do so is that sweet, funny, kind, stubborn, one-of-a-kind towhead that we all love, and also:
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