For several years, SUNY Delhi and The Arc of Delaware County
(Delarc) have partnered together to develop opportunities for both students at SUNY
Delhi and people with disabilities. Friendship, learning, and experience have
been the mutual rewards of this partnership.
Olivia Nicholson, a Liberal Arts student, completed a
Service Learning Project at Delarc’s Community Living Skills facility in Walton.
And Alexandra Rogers, an Early Childhood Education student participated in an
internship at Delarc’s Carousel Children’s Services (CCS) which is located at
the SUNY Delhi Campus Child Care Center (DC4).
During her Service Learning Project, Olivia developed a
strong bond with Tina Osadca.
Olivia shared, “I have a wonderful time with Tina. I am so glad I met her, she has honestly
become someone that I care about and think of often. It wasn't just a
relationship built because of a service learning project, it was a mutual
connection between two people because I can honestly say I enjoy every moment
with Tina and it is real. We talk, we smile we laugh a lot together.” “I never
would have thought I would bond with someone so strongly, and I bonded with a
lot of people at Delarc because everyone is all so cool in their own way.”
Olivia wrote
a letter to Tina illustrated with photos and pictures to commemorate their time
together and celebrate their friendship. You can view photos of her letter at
our Flickr site or click here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/delarc/sets/72157633496154811/
Alexandra Rogers has been an intern at CCS since October
2012. She shared her internship goals were to learn the basics of being a
teacher in a classroom with special needs children. She also wanted to learn more about autism
and how autistic children interact with non autistic children.
She shared: “I have learned how important it is to be a
positive and happy role model. I learned how to help children get out of their
tantrum mode and also how to prevent tantrums. Being positive 100% of the time
is a big thing I learned because your mood affects a child’s mood.
Reinforcement is also a huge part of what I learned. “ “I have also learned a
lot from the autistic children in the classroom. I learned that more enclosed
chairs help to keep them calm and still. Also the use of a weighted spoon helps
the child figure out his boundaries and put pressure on the weak bones. I
learned how important it is to make them feel important. Some children came in
the classroom in the morning in a bad mood. If you show them attention and love
such as giving hugs it can really go a long way.” You can view photos of
Alexandra working with the children at CCS on our Flickr site or click here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/delarc/sets/72157633512297914/
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