Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, March 12, 1991 TAG: 9103120152
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: PETER MATHEWS/ NEW RIVER VALLEY BUREAU
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG/ LENGTH: Long
Paper or plastic?
Not long ago, a special-education student like 16-year-old Chris might not have cared about these things. But through a special program, Chris and some Christiansburg High School classmates are getting a chance to become productive, independent adults.
Chris works at the Christiansburg Harris-Teeter three mornings a week. His favorite job is bagging groceries, but he also cleans up, marks prices on items and retrieves the shopping carts.
Chris' devotion to his tasks is noteworthy. Once, when a spill in one of the aisles needed cleaning up, Chris balked: It wasn't on his list of job duties.
As Chris works, teacher Kim Eveline hustles down the aisles in an attempt to keep up with him. She makes an occasional suggestion. Eventually, her role will diminish as Chris gains experience and independence.
"The self-esteem in these kids has just shot up," Eveline said. And those who watch them work are impressed, too.
"That's the biggest thing we've overcome so far," she said, "the stigma that the handicapped had that they can't do anything."
Harris-Teeter employees praise Chris' enthusiasm and the program that brought him there.
"It's a good way to give Chris exposure to other people," store Manager Tim Wilson said. "And it gives other people exposure to Chris, which is just as important."
Teacher Gail Montuori said her class shows how far Montgomery County's special-education program has come.
Handicapped pupils once were isolated, first in a church basement, then in a building separate from other children. The emphasis was on sheltered workshops, not the real world.
"Many parents were told they would not be able to do anything - they wouldn't walk, they wouldn't talk, they wouldn't be able to take care of themselves," Montuori said. "They can all do something. Even the most severely handicapped can do something."
At the Copy Center in Christiansburg, Jo Beth Rogers collates, stuffs envelopes and runs the numbering machine, among other things. Owner Ernie Bentley says she requires little supervision and is good at catching errors.
Kim Lawson works in the laundry room at the Comfort Inn. Jeff Bourne and John Byrd help keep the food court clean at New River Valley Mall.
The 11 students in the class also learn about shopping, budgeting and other skills they need for independent living.
Jo Beth, 18, is the celebrity of the class. Last March, the Roanoke Times & World-News chronicled her trip backstage to meet her idols, the New Kids on the Block. WSLS-TV recently did a story about her participation in the school's Demon Dancers group.
"Beth's been very lucky," said her mother, Teresa Mullen. "She will be doing something when she gets out of school. She won't be sitting around."
Years ago, special-education students in Montgomery County sat at home after their school years ended. Not anymore.
The Montgomery County Transition Council helps see to it that they go on to productive lives.
The key word in that title is "transition." Educators identify and work with students likely to have difficulty making the transition from high school to adult living.
Besides the trainable mentally handicapped children Montuori and Eveline teach, the council helps children with a variety of physical and mental disabilities, according to Nancy Crawford, special education work-study coordinator for Montgomery County schools.
Mullen hopes the training Jo Beth and the others receive will actually result in full-time jobs. She noted that the students' part-time jobs don't cost businesses much, but in discussions of permanent jobs, "it's hard to pin them down."
Crawford said the recession can make providing transition services more difficult for two reasons: Budget cuts can hit agencies that support the program, such as the Virginia Employment Commission, and high unemployment rates mean more competition for low-skill jobs.
Montgomery County developed its transition program after being awarded a state grant in 1986. The state assistance has ended, but the county is considered to have a model program.
Last fall, educators and social-service workers throughout the New River Valley met to discuss common problems and to see whether the other localities could develop programs similar to Montgomery's.
Since that meeting, Radford has been developing its program, said Alice G. Anderson, transition coordinator for the Southwest Virginia Transition Center at Virginia Tech.
Anderson's agency, which has a branch at New River Community College, helps school systems develop and coordinate transition programs. It serves 41 Western Virginia systems.
For an outsider trying to evaluate transition services, the web of programs and centers and services can be bewildering.
On another level, it's simple.
Chris VanHoozier has used some of his pay to buy flowers for his mom and comics for himself. He likes cassette tapes and Frankenstein books.
"I'm happy here," he said during a brief break from bagging groceries. Besides, he added, "I need the money."
by CNB