Special needs students proud to make important contribution to their school district

Placing a barcode label on a textbook with precision and accuracy is a fairly simple task for most of us.  However, for developmentally disabled students, labeling a textbook with a barcode represents a valuable achievement — not only for the students, but for their school district as well.  Florence Unified School District #1 is providing work training and an opportunity to develop entry level job skills for a group of Florence High School students with a variety of unique challenges.  “Our students are aware of the importance of the task we’ve given them, and they take their job very seriously,” says Donna Riffel, District Transition Specialist.  “Their energetic attitude toward the project has contributed to a level of success that has far exceeded everyone’s expectations.”

The need for textbook bar coding became a high priority this year, when the district upgraded its library circulation software to accommodate increased accountability for classroom and student resources.  Needing to create a system for tracking textbooks in the shortest possible time, Debbie Wilson, Coordinator of Science, K-6 Mathematics, Nurses, and Librarians teamed up with Donna Riffel and Lori Nelson, District Librarian, for a solution that would benefit both the district and its students.  Riffel and Nelson devised a plan that included transporting a carefully-selected team of students to and from a total of seven schools, where they collected books from classrooms, placed a bar code label on each book, and returned the books to classrooms—usually well before the books were even missed.  In less than six weeks, the student crew had placed more than 12,000 barcodes, and set a standard for hard work and dedication that ultimately shortened the project by several weeks.  “These students attacked the job with a joy and determination that was wonderful to see,” said Nelson.  “They turned a long, dull job into a learning adventure that was fun for everyone involved.”

The work crews’ supervisory team of teachers and paraprofessionals has been delighted to observe a marked increase in their students’ interpersonal skills, improved work quality, enhanced stamina, and production rate.  More difficult to teach, students have also shown stronger, more mature self-advocacy skills:  speaking up when tired, requesting work supplies when needed, encouraging their fellow students, and volunteering readily at every opportunity.  Debbie Wilson has been impressed with the results of this effort, and has communicated the success of the venture to district administration.  “I don’t know what the district would have done without these super students,” she has stated.  “It’s been a terrific way to benefit our young adults, our schools, and the district as a whole.”  District Superintendent Gary Nine is proud of these students, and looks forward to involving them in future projects.  “The mission of our district, ‘Kids First!,’ is clearly expressed in the effort of the team that created this opportunity.  It is truly Kids First! in action.”

In learning the importance of being a good worker, it is quite evident that these young people have achieved an awareness of their ability to contribute significantly to a goal that benefits the greater community.  The project has provided an understanding of transition:  from work to school, from being an individual to being part of a group—from childhood to adulthood.