AUTISM AWARENESS
SFHS autism program only
one of its kind in County
By Kathy Ferniany
Sun Staff Writer
(Created: Friday, October 26, 2007 8:05 AM CDT)
SPANISH FORT, Ala. — Statistics show that there are 100 children a day diagnosed with autism in the United States even though what causes it is still a mystery.
Autism is a neurological disorder that involves the inability to communicate with others. Currently, Spanish Fort High School has 13 autistic students enrolled, and according to Principal Michael Lucci, the high school is the only school in Baldwin County that has a special program called “Project Reach,” which began last year by students as a service club project aimed at helping students diagnosed with autism.
The purpose of Project Reach is to help improve communication with children diagnosed with autism and connect autistic children with neurotypical children — otherwise known as nonautistic children.
The neurotypical students eat lunch and exercise with the autistic children — all to increase the level of communication. The autistic and special education students were also invited to a special prom hosted by the Project Reach students last year.
Lucci said the autistic students have responded well to the other kids.
“It helps the autistic children with speaking, word recognition and social skills,” he said.
Recently, an Alabama Autism Task Force was created by the Alabama Legislature to address the challenges of diagnosing and treating autism.
The Task Force will make recommendations for proposed reform legislation about a disorder that could affect the well-being of Alabama children. Members of the Task Force were chosen by state university presidents, the Medical Association of Alabama, the Alabama Autism Society and the governor.
On Oct. 9, a Task Force meeting was held at the Five Rivers Delta Resource Center on the Causeway. Lucci said the Task Force wants to raise awareness of autism and also provide initiatives to increase public support, so they have been holding hearings throughout the state.
Recently, 25 members of the Task Force came to Spanish Fort High School recently to study Project Reach.
Sherry Dewberry, a board member with the Spanish Fort Education and Enrichment Foundation, Lucci and Rep. Randy Davis, R-Alabama, met with the Task Force in hopes of establishing a sensory awareness room, called the “Snoezelen” room. Snoezelen is a contraction of Dutch words for “to seek out and explore” and “to relax.”
“The kids don’t communicate directly with individuals, but do react to sensory touch, light, sound and motion,” Lucci said.
When autistic children get upset, their level of agitation can be lessened by a sensory awareness room, he said.
“We hope to equip (the Snoezelen room) in our facility next year,” Lucci said.
The high school currently has two specially prepared classrooms set up for autistic children.
Each case of autism is challenging and intriguing, Lucci said. Children with autism may be mobile, but completely uncommunicative, so the challenge for the school is to be able to break through and communicate with them, he said.
Some cases of autism are completely debilitating, while others may be only mildly troublesome. Many of the autistic children at the school are nonverbal, he said.
Lucci described the most benign autistic condition as Asperger’s syndrome. Asperger’s syndrome has currently gained national network attention on the television show “America’s Next Top Model.” This is the first year a model with Asperger’s syndrome has appeared on the show, which is in its eighth cycle and airs on Wednesday nights on the CW.
He said children with this diagnosis appear to be normal and can relate well to others. But, because they have a very narrow view of how events are supposed to transpire, they can become frustrated and confused, he said.
Spanish Fort Education Enrichment Foundation has adopted the autistic program as one area of focus. First, the foundation recognized the needs of autistic students, and secondly, it will help the high school get what it needs for the students, Lucci said. According to Dewberry, this year’s platform for the foundation was autism.
SFEEF will be holding two fund-raisers this year — “Fiesta at the Five” and “Haulin’ Hooves” — and proceeds will go toward equipping autistic classrooms with Snoezelen, Dewberry said.
“We are helping children with a debilitating disability and improving their quality of life,” Lucci said.
The autistic program staff at SFHS has eight members and includes two teachers, Scott Parks and Sue bender, as well as aides and nurses for the autistic program. Lucci describes the staff as “particularly talented.”