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In virtually every school district in the state there are youngsters with
mental or physical traits that set them apart from others. In Sisters there are
more than 100 of these students, a little less than 10 percent. Keeping these
kids moving forward in their education is the job of a team comprised of
teachers, counselors and a cadre of experts in the field of special
education.
The district has no special classrooms in which to tailor classes for special
needs students. They are absorbed into regular classes and some may spend part
of the school day with specialists trained to deal with their specific
difficulties. Others may attend regular classes under the eye of an aide who
has had special training.
In Sisters there is a deaf boy who is helped by a full time translator in sign
language. An autistic girl is helped to keep her attention focused on class
work, to stay calm and to get along with others.
Special education in Sisters is headed by elementary school principal Tim
Comfort, who holds a degree in school psychology. He works with a special
education staff which includes the equivalent of 4.5 special education teachers
and a speech/language pathologist They are backed up by psychologists and other
specialists of the Central Oregon Regional Team in Bend.
Special education kids are not all the same. Each one of them has his or her
own unique qualities that set them apart from others. They are youngsters
stricken with a crippling disease such as multiple sclerosis. Some are blind,
or deaf. Others are permanently crippled. Then there are the kids with any of
an assortment of mental difficulties inhibiting their intellectual or emotional
growth.
Comfort said some of the special education youngsters are enrolled in school
with their parents saying nothing about a problem either because they simply
did not know, or because they have given up on getting real help. Observant
teachers, counselors and school nurses usually spot these young people and get
them started on their way toward help.
A young couple who moved to Sisters from the Oregon coast last year is an
example of how Sisters schools have succeeded where others have failed.
The couple, Jackie and Michael Kolb, knew something was wrong with two of their
daughters, both adopted, but they had grown frustrated when two schools before
Sisters did not come up with a satisfactory plan of education. Comfort said
teachers and counselors began tests soon after they were enrolled at Sisters.
Because the girls were adopted and the biological parents were unavailable, the
Kolbs knew very little about their medical history. When Sisters teachers said
they wanted to test the girls, Jackie was thrilled.
At Sisters there is a team, usually comprised of at least one parent, the
student's teacher and specialists that assesses the students needs and
prescribes a course of action.
After a series of tests at Sisters, followed by more with a regional team and
medical doctors in Bend, it was determined that the oldest girl had at one time
suffered a traumatic brain injury which left her with difficulties in grasping
some abstract concepts such as time and distance. The younger girl was more
difficult to diagnose, yet it was obvious she carries scars of mistreatment
early in her life before coming to the Kolbs.
The girls are now eight and 10 years of age. The oldest is beginning to show
significant progress, according to her adoptive mother. Comfort said both girls
are attending regular classes, but also receive special classes.
The older girl was given a list of relatively simple goals to achieve over a
period of time. She has achieved those goals and has moved to a more difficult
set of things to achieve. Comfort said the improvement in her self-esteem is
quite visible, and she now "walks with a bounce in her step" that wasn't there
before. Special education is working for her.
The youngest girl has not done as well. Jackie said she had shown improvement
and was returned to her regular class curriculum, but now she seems to be
slipping again. Because of the significant progress she did show, Jackie and
Michael are optimistic about her future progress.
Michael has been so impressed with what he has seen at Sisters that he has
returned to college with the specific goal of entering the field of special
education.
Comfort said that when special education youngsters are attending regular
classrooms they are helped only when it is needed. It is the school's goal to
teach them to be independent, not to increase their dependency, he said.
The girl with autism is attending regular classes and has shown very good
progress, thanks not only to educators and counselors, but to her parents as
well. The parents, Comfort said, involve her in normal family activities at
home and away from home. The girl has had difficulty in her association with
both teachers and other students. Comfort said she is learning to relate to
others and has shown real progress in her relations with adults.
Comfort said any disruptions from special education students are rare and can
actually become part of the education, bringing home the point that not all
people are the same. He said students usually are very understanding and at
times even overly attentive toward the special students. He said this is
especially true of the lower grades such as kindergarten through second. He
said older students sometimes become impatient with those who, for any reason,
cannot keep up.
Special education can be costly, Comfort said, but these costs are more than
offset by special support from the state. The basic school support supplied by
the state to Sisters is $4,300 per student. The rate for students enrolled in
special education is $8,600 -- twice the regular amount.
Comfort said when a student's problems exceed the resources of the district,
the school will help get the youngster enrolled at a special school. He said
special schools are a last resort. All effort is made to keep them in their
home school and community.
