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by Claire Bible
“What do you want to be when you grow up?” A question that is timeless through the ages. When I was little, growing up in Wisconsin, the response was simple, automatic: I wanted to be a writer. When asked the same question in middle school my response was, “To go to college.”
I daydreamed about college. In the realm of daydreams I would minor in one or two areas of study, double-major graduate with a Bachelor of Arts, go on to graduate school to get my Masters. These daydreams were fueled by the fact that my oldest cousin was at the time going off to college. I was inspired by it all. I wanted to go myself. I even thought occasionally of stuffing myself into a duffle bag so that he would have to take me with him. Unfortunately for me there wasn’t a duffle bag that I could fit into.
I’ve always loved to learn; I was a curious kid. Learning didn’t always come easy to me (I have a learning disability in math). Despite that, I loved school. This love of learning and my childhood curiosity helped me in high school. I saw homework as recreation and I loved it, I thrived on it. Many evenings were spent reading books and cuddling with Domino or Stella (whichever cat preferred me at that moment) while listening to music.
I can’t remember a time from 12 on up when I didn’t think about going to college. I kept daydreaming about it even in high school. In high school I took the ACTs, and applied to colleges. Since I have a learning disability in math I didn’t take the regular set of math classes (this wasn’t for lack of trying). I took both pre-algebra and algebra 1 my freshmen and sophomore years, and after that I took life skill math classes. Because of this not many colleges were open to me. I even got two rejection letters from the same school.
Then I found the Threshold Program at Lesley University in Boston. Threshold is an independent living curriculum that shares the Lesley campus and facilities. I moved to Boston and began college in the Threshold Program in 2006 and was there for two years. They had their own dorms for us, their own agenda of what was important, and a curriculum that had us hopping from nine in the morning to seven, sometimes eight or nine, at night. After a time I began to get steadily frustrated. I wasn’t getting anywhere in the arts (my main area of interest); they offered only three extra-curricular classes in the arts. I picked one of the two available majors, Early Childhood, kept up with my classes, and began to look for that small talking doorknob out of Alice in Wonderland that could lead me somewhere different. In the meantime, I involved myself on my campus. I went to every event, cause or otherwise. I saw fantastic plays, many comedians, and heard and saw so many bands that way. I would spend weekend nights, or any time when I didn’t have anything else pressing, at the student center, sometimes to the witching hour of five in the morning, working on my novels. And my poetry found a voice at the open mike.
It was around Christmas that I learned of the Cutting Edge program at Edgewood College in Madison, Wisconsin. When I flew home for the holiday I took a meeting with the program. I had found the door with the talking doorknob at long last! In 2008, I graduated from Threshold with a certificate in early childhood, a few transferable credits, and moved home to an opportunity that I felt lucky to have.
The differences between the two programs hit me right away. While I respect the Threshold Program, it’s an older model. Threshold gives you the fundamental education, which is important; it gives you a solid foundation. Where it is lacking is in giving you the wings to fly. While the goal of living independently is well and good, your 20s should be the time of pursuing your dreams, making mistakes, finding out who you are. In Threshold, “our 20s” are your mid-40s.
Cutting Edge puts the student in the college classroom with the motto that everyone that wants a postsecondary education can get one. Instead of focusing on independent living, Cutting Edge spends only five hours a week on independent living, and the rest is made up of the classes you’re taking, studying, and living life. No college is ever a breeze to get through, and Cutting Edge is no exception. But, if you work hard you’ll find that Cutting Edge is that fairy godmother that you dreamed of as a child, along with Tinkerbell who holds the fairy dust that if shaken liberally can give you the wings to fly.
I’ve benefited greatly from being within the Cutting Edge environment. Now I don’t feel unrealistic in what I’m shooting for. I’ve been able to take fantastically challenging classes with amazing professors. I have found another stage for my poetry; in the past year I took second in the talent show. I also took second out of the entire English department with one of my poems that I had submitted to the writing contest. I have also have been living on campus in the dorms going on three years.
My advice for kids with disabilities is to keep dreaming. Never let anyone tell you that you can’t; anything can happen – it’s a long life. Keep fighting for what you want, speak up, let the world hear your voice, even if it’s the tiniest of roars keep roaring, working hard, and just being you. Advocating as loudly as you can is a large part of it. My advice for teachers is to inspire and challenge all your students, those with disabilities and without. When you ask that question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” really listen; don’t say it’s an unrealistic dream, and dream big with them. You could be the teacher that student remembers forever for saying “yes you can.” Every child wants to be believed in. Use your resources, make lists, and help them begin to achieve their dreams even if it might take years. The time you take will make a difference. Attend IEP meetings with good listening skills; listen with an open heart to the parents, and the student. For people wanting to provide an opportunity for postsecondary education for students with disabilities, my advice is to not make promises you can’t keep. Don’t hawk an opportunity if it’s not something you can actually provide. Fundraising for the program is important; the money has to come from somewhere. Apply for grants, think creatively: yard sales, lemonade stands, food drives, book drives, clothing drives, the list is endless. Sit down and start listing ways. Decide on what kind of opportunity you want to give; do you have goals for it? Come up with a philosophy. If you’re applying for bank loans, they’re going to want, and most likely need to see, a business plan and how you plan to apply it as well.
Oh, and always keep asking that question that is timeless through the ages: “What do you want to be when you grow up?” I guarantee the answers you’ll get will always surprise you.
Claire Bible is a student in the Cutting Edge program at Edgewood College, Madison, Wisconsin.
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Retrieved from the Web site of the Institute on Community Integration, University of Minnesota (http://ici.umn.edu/products/impact/233). Citation: Weir, C., Fialka, J., Timmons, J., Nord, D., & Gaylord, V. (Eds.). (Autumn/Winter 2010/2011). Impact: Feature Issue on Postsecondary Education and Students with Intellectual, Developmental and Other Disabilities, 23(3). [Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, Institute on Community Integration].
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