Paraprofessional Donna Kobacs holds the box steady as students Allison Richey
and Kellie Petruy finish their project.
ents to send her to Cranbrook, a
highly competitive private school
in Bloomfield Hills.
"As I got into the high level
classes like chemistry when I was
a sophomore, I realized I would
be really limited without CASA.
It offers me classes that the good
private schools offer but Berkley
can't on their own," Melissa said.
Sheri Loeb, Melissa's mother,
said Melissa had exhausted the
challenging classes she wished to
take at her high school and the
family would have considered
other options for her education.
"Would we have sent her to pri-
vate school? Probably. Would we
have moved? Possibly," Ms. Loeb
said. "I wouldn't be happy if
ther."
"But it appears to work out for
the best when they can do this,"
he said. "It is something we need
to do more."
In Wyandotte, Doug Keller-
man continues to seek better
ways to facilitate inclusion of his
mentally-, physically- and emo-
tionally-impaired students into
society.
"Ten years ago, I would never
have dreamed that my students
would see the level of inclusion
they see today. I think it makes
for a better society," Mr. Keller-
man said.
As the director of the
Josephine Brighton Skills Cen-
ter in Wyandotte, his best tool is
the program he has shaped
through his 21 years at the helm.
Although not a new concept,
the center, a vocational training
program for the mentally and
physically impaired, was one of
the first of its kind in the state.
CASA did not exist."
Not everyone is as jazzed about
CASA as the Loebs. Bickering
about the program — between
district administrators, depart-
ment heads and other school of-
ficials — has gone on since the
program's inception.
Dr. Robert Schiller, state su-
perintendent of schools, said
some school districts are still in
a competitive mode, making col-
laboration more difficult.
"Sometimes the process is dif-
ficult to work through when it Michigan set up its regional vo-
comes to sharing costs and other cational training programs more
aspects," Dr. Schiller said. "Some than two decades ago, but this
districts do not want to share program continues to be a na-
their best students or their best tional and international model.
The students come from 17 dis-
teachers with other districts ei-
tricts, including all of the schools
downriver, plus Dearborn and
Dearborn Heights. The age range
is 16 to 26, the state's limit on
public education for the impaired.
Most of the students have severe
special needs — autism, Down's
syndrome, physical and emo-
tional impairments — which pre-
vent them from attending regular
school. But 30 percent of the
school's 225 students attend pub-
lic high schools during the day
and catch a bus in the afternoon
to learn a basic yet marketable
skill.
"People see them as simply an
impairment until they put on a
uniform. Then they are seen as
workers," said Mr. Kellerman,
who lives in Huntington Woods.
The impaired students, like
their gifted counterparts, have
relatively low numbers in the
general population, Mr. Keller-
man said.
"There simply is not enough of
a population with these special
needs for each district to have a
program of its own," he said.
Superintendent Schiller
agreed. "So few students call for
such programs, but it is so
important to provide them," he
said. "The more the districts can
diversify and consolidate, like
these programs, the more they
can serve the needs of the stu-
Doug Kellerman, director of the Josephine Brighton Skills Center.
dents." El
Consolidation may
be the key to
survival of public
schools.
JEWISH
I1A11011AL
FUI1D
THE WOMEN OF
JEWISH NATIONAL FUND
invite you to attend their
65th
ANNUAL DONOR EVENT
Please support the Women of JNF in their campaign to
undertake Two Pillars at Neve Ur Reservoir near Lake Kinneret
Join us at 12:00 Noon
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 1994
CONGREGATION SHAAREY ZEDEK
27375 BELL ROAD, SOUTHFIELD
Enjoy a Musical Program featuring
Vocalist, Eda Kogan
Pianist, Rose Morgan
For reservations call:
JEWISH NATIONAL FUND
17100 W. TEN MILE RD.
SOUTHFIELD, MI 48075
(810) 557 6644
-
Reservations must be
received by November 14
Luncheon tickets will be
at the door
Sandy (Mrs. Henry) Schore,
President
Bea (Mrs. Julius) Feigelman,
Chairperson of Fund Raising
Bess (Mrs. Jacob) Axelrod,
Chairperson of Programming
Ruth (Mrs. Morris) Kimmel,
Blue Box Chairperson
ISRAEL NEEDS YOU NOW!
103