Speaker 2 00:00:13 And good evening. Thank you for joining Disability and Progress, where we bring you insights into ideas about, and discussions on disability topics. My name is Sam, the host of this show. Thanks so much for tuning in. Charlene Dolls, my research woman. Hello, Charlene. Good, good evening and happy New Year to everybody. Happy New Year to everyone. I hope everyone had an excellent holiday, whatever they were celebrating. I'd like to start out by saying hello and welcome to our listeners who decided to join the K F A I Disability and Progress Listener Club. We are starting this, so we value your feedback, ideas, and listenership. We would like to say hello to the two newest members that have joined the club, Aaron, who actually listens from his cozy apartment in Hopkins, Minnesota, and he also happens to engineer our show to a podcast. Hi Aaron. And secondly, Fredo m Labrador, and Fredo is from, I hope I pronounced that right. My apologies if I didn't. Columbia, Missouri. Um, thank you for joining us, and if you wanna hear your name on the air, join the Listener Club, which is a great club. You can email me at Disability and
[email protected] and look forward to hearing your name on the air in the future weeks. But having said that, now we are going to get back to our show. And our show is, uh, tonight we have several different people that are joining us. And let's see, I think we have Karen, uh, Geri. Did I pronounce that right? Karen?
Speaker 3 00:01:59 Jre
Speaker 2 00:01:59 Jre. I am so sorry. Is it French?
Speaker 3 00:02:02 Yeah, it is
Speaker 2 00:02:04 <laugh>. I should know better. I should have implemented my French skills, which are lame, but hey. Um, and Karen is founding director of Voyager's Community School and c e o of Disrupt Education today. Also, Allison Keelan. Alison, hello.
Speaker 3 00:02:23 Hi.
Speaker 2 00:02:23 Alison is educational consultant of of Voyager Community School. Um, and last but certainly not least, we have Erin DeLuca. Hi, Erin. Hello. Hi. Erin is in structure slash researcher at Voyager Community School. So tonight we're, they're with us and they're talking about the free, innovative pilot program for adults, students from ages 18 to 24 with intellectual disabilities. So thank you all ladies for joining in.
Speaker 3 00:02:56 Thank you for having us, <laugh>.
Speaker 2 00:02:58 So let's start out, can you please, I want people to get kind of used to your voices. So can you give us, just go around and maybe I'll have you start, Karen, and give us some, a brief history about your background and how you got involved with this program.
Speaker 3 00:03:16 Sure. So, um, I founded Voyager's Community School in 2004. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, uh, it's quite a unique, um, space in the sense that all of our curriculum is driven by students interests, uh, and their engagement, um, in addition to direct instruction is hands-on, progressive, project-based, um, experiential learning, so much of what they learn, the, the traditional academics that we would expect they learn in non-traditional ways. Hmm. Uh, and we serve children from infancy all the way through high school.
Speaker 2 00:03:55 Excellent.
Speaker 3 00:03:56 Yeah. Um, I've always been particularly interested in tailoring and customizing education to meet the student differentiating instruction and, uh, supporting each individual, uh, from the place, from where they come to where they would like to go. And so, when, uh, I got involved with Brookdale Community College and their program, the initial program called Taz, uh, I was excited to help with this sort of adult transition. Um, and that, so initially we were teaching a class on Fridays, and that program grew to become, uh, this new innovative program called Sale, um, students achieving Independent Living.
Speaker 2 00:04:42 Okay.
Speaker 3 00:04:43 And so, it, you know, it's natural for me to be intrigued and to wanna be engaged in something where we were meeting students where they are and trying to take them where they wanna go, which generally is to be, you know, engaged, productive citizens with jobs and friends and so on and so forth.
Speaker 2 00:04:59 Right. Who wants to go next?
Speaker 4 00:05:05 Okay. <laugh>.
Speaker 2 00:05:07 Excellent.
Speaker 4 00:05:08 Uh, it's Alison. Um, I've been in the field of education for 30 plus years. I joined Voyagers Community School about five years ago. Um, I'm certified with the state of New Jersey as a K to 12 teacher of the handicap. Uh, an elementary school teacher, supervisor, principal, and school administrator. Uh, prior to joining Voyagers, I worked in the Hall Township Public school district, uh, as a teacher, a vice-principal, and a vi and a principal for my entire wow. Career.
Speaker 2 00:05:38 You've kind of done that a
Speaker 4 00:05:39 Lot. I've been, you know, during that time I worked with incredible educators and we won numerous awards mm-hmm. <affirmative>, um, and recognitions from Learning Forward, the New Jersey Department of Ed, New Jersey School Board's Innovations and Special Education Award, uh, and two $10,000 grants from Ocean First Bank. Excellent. I'm, you know, this is right up my alley. I've worked with students, um, of all ages and, and needs and, and I'm just really thrilled to be a part of this program.
Speaker 2 00:06:11 Erin, how about you?
Speaker 5 00:06:14 So, um, I'm a speech language pathologist by trade. I've been working in the field for 27 plus years. Um, and I love working with children with special needs. That's, um, primarily where, um, all my experience lies. Um, I, I got involved with Voyager and this wonderful sale program, um, through my mentor when I first started out, um, Karen Kaylene, DIA Moore. Um, and so the two of us decided that this would be a really great thing, um, because we do work so well together. And, um, if I'm also a, an assistive technology practitioner, so I do bring the technology piece to this, um, setting. Uh, and so I'm really excited to bring my skillset as well as Karen's into, um, into the picture.
Speaker 2 00:07:10 Great. Thank you so much. Hopefully, um, the listeners will be able to identify your voices now, but if you could say, like, this is whoever, when you start talking, that would be great. So Sure. We're talking about the free, innovative, um, pilot program for adults, you know, from ages 18 to 24 with intellectual disabilities. Can you talk a little bit about how this got start?
Speaker 3 00:07:40 Sure. Uh, this is Karen Jre. So we have two Karen. So, although Karen, the other Karen's not here, I wanna make a clarification in that sense. Um, as I had mentioned, Voyager's Community School had, uh, placed, we had placed a teacher at Brookdale Community College teaching a class on Friday mornings that was for a similar population. Um, although we also served older individuals in that program. Uh, and we were quite successful in identifying what each individual was trying to gain in being there and designing programs around their interests. Uh, and, and through that, we, uh, forged a relationship with Brookdale. So when the opportunity came for this grant, um, which is, uh, comes from the state of New Jersey, uh, it was a natural progression for us to write the educational portion of the grant. And so I did that and, and, uh, we submitted it and we were fortunate to be awarded, um, uh, this, the grant, which is $250,000 mm-hmm. <affirmative>, uh, to serve this population with the focus on job and career. Uh, but the additional focus on communications, social emotional development, um, and, and all the other sorts of skill sets that an individual needs to participate in the world around them.
Speaker 2 00:09:12 And if, if we haven't already, we should clarify that this is, this particular program is based outta New Jersey. Yes.
Speaker 3 00:09:20 Yes. It's based outta New Jersey. And our, uh, we are on the campus of Brookdale Community College in Lincroft, New Jersey, and they are our partners in this program.
Speaker 2 00:09:32 What do you consider is an intellectual disability?
Speaker 3 00:09:37 I'm gonna hand it over to you, Erin
Speaker 5 00:09:39 <laugh>. Hi, it's Erin. Um, I would consider an intellectual disability, um, anything which impairs somebody's ability to, um, communicate effectively. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> cognitively respond, um, appropriately to different environments socially, interact with other people, anything that is n neuro atypical that, um, you know, we could, we could help with their skillset to help get them more, um, integrated into society as a whole.
Speaker 2 00:10:18 So, I wanted to jump to, so then, does one have to, how do you, does one have to prove they have an intellectual disability, or how does that work?
Speaker 5 00:10:31 Um, <laugh>, <laugh>, go ahead. So
Speaker 4 00:10:35 We, we collaborated, um, with Brookdale Community College. We reached out to, um, originally to ARC of New Jersey of Mama County. And we started to kind of look at what students were in the task program and how could we extend and expand that program to develop those career skills. So that was our starting point. So as far as proving it, um, we had a, um, we created, um, some marketing, uh, materials where, uh, parents or practitioners could, um, or,
Speaker 3 00:11:12 Or in, or individuals who would desire to participate
Speaker 4 00:11:14 Absolutely. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, um, they could reach out to us and, and contact us, and then we would do the follow up with them. Yeah.
Speaker 5 00:11:21 Great. And we also, sorry, this is Erin. Yeah. We also reached out to, um, school districts in the area mm-hmm. To talk to their, um, child spec child study teams and to their guidance counselors and things like that to identify, uh, students that they thought would be appropriate for the program.
Speaker 2 00:11:38 Thank you. You were gonna say something else?
Speaker 3 00:11:41 We, we've spent considerable amount of time speaking to, um, parents to, uh, potential participants and to practitioners to, uh, also assist in, in, uh, it, it's a bit of self-identification if you Right. You know, we put forth what the program includes and the types of experiences that the individual will have, the short term and long term goals. And, uh, we're finding that there's also some, some self self placement, you know, whether it works or doesn't work, uh, seems to be, uh, defined more by the, within those conversations.
Speaker 2 00:12:16 Gotcha. Um, let's see. Karen, you're the CEO of the Disrupt education today. Yes. What is that?
Speaker 3 00:12:28 So that, so that's a company that, um, I've created that really tries to, um, address learning with young people, um, outside of the traditional academic setting mm-hmm. <affirmative>. So, for instance, that organ, that company is involved in, um, the expansion of eSports, um, with, uh, with a focus on education. So rather than just playing video games, it's you, if you're gonna play video games, you're gonna play with a team, and you're gonna have collaborative experiences, and you're gonna learn good sportsmanship, and you're gonna learn how to take care of yourself, ah, emotionally, mentally, socially. Um, so that's just one program, <laugh>, um,
Speaker 2 00:13:15 I think the general public could benefit from that <laugh>. Yeah.
Speaker 3 00:13:19 Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah. So, so I'm really trying to, um, hit education from different angles, but all with the idea that, um, mm-hmm. <affirmative>, the current school system, the current systems of education are not preparing our young people for the world that they're going into. And so, disrupted today thinks about, um, collaboration, creative, and critical thinking, problem solving, communication, and community involvement. And so we take those Cs and we try and get involved or create and innovate programs that reach children, uh, generally outside of school,
Speaker 5 00:14:00 Thinking outside the box. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>.
Speaker 3 00:14:02 Yes, very much so.
Speaker 2 00:14:04 And very much what, what was the deciding factor for the age range from 18 to 24?
Speaker 3 00:14:10 That was just, that was truly dictated by the grant. So that was, that was, that was a parameter that was given to us within the, uh, grant.
Speaker 2 00:14:18 Ah, okay.
Speaker 5 00:14:19 And in New Jersey, there's a, a big population of that age group, uh, coming out into the world now. Um, it's like the influx of children with autism and, uh, other developmental disabilities, uh, that are aging out of the typical school program mm-hmm. <affirmative>, you know, at 21. So by hitting them now before they're, you know, uh, when they're still used to school <laugh> Yeah. Uh, but before they, you know, get out of it, we're trying to grab them before that.
Speaker 2 00:14:54 Right.
Speaker 4 00:14:55 And I just wanna add too, that, um, you know, one of the things that really moved me, um, it's Alison, by the way, <laugh> mm-hmm. <affirmative>, um, was that, you know, kids going from 18 to 24, you know, they're going off to college. Right. And, you know, students with, um, you know, intellectual disabilities, they want that same experience. So the fact that this is, um, based on at Brookdale Community College, they are getting some of that campus experience. And, um, Brookdale is, is really excited and thrilled to be working with us, and, and they're gonna be collaborating with us in some of the projects that we do.
Speaker 2 00:15:33 Can you touch base again on who funds this?
Speaker 4 00:15:39 The state of New Jersey? Yes. Yeah.
Speaker 2 00:15:40 Yeah. Okay. So let's talk a little bit about, um, oh, sorry. I guess the, um, huh, I just lost my, lost my train of thought. Sorry.
Speaker 5 00:15:59 The actual sale program.
Speaker 2 00:16:01 Yeah. Um, so let's talk about what that is. The sale. Yeah, go ahead. Yeah, you wanna dive
Speaker 5 00:16:09 In and, we'll, so it, so this is Aaron. Um, so it's like, it's mentioned, it's for 18 to 24 year olds. Um, it's gonna offer a robust and well-balanced learning experience, uh, in the areas of life skills, computer commute, consumer skills, sorry. Uh, self-advocacy, health habits, understanding money and using technology, um, specifically focused on career readiness with, uh, specific emphasis on the communication and the social skills that are necessary in order to, um, you know, uh, uh, do all of those things and become functioning members of society. Um, basically within that, the four areas of skillset concentration are gonna be on the language and communication needed for the individual themselves, as well as, um, engaging in friendships, holding jobs, and contributing to the community. Like I said, um, the way that we are going to, um, approach it in the beginning, this first year in the Pilot Pro, or this first semester, I should say, in the pilot program, is that it's going to be broken down into a, it's a three hour program mm-hmm. <affirmative>,
Speaker 5 00:17:22 Um, and each hour is gonna be a different, um, environment, let's say. Um, so one of the environments will be a classroom meeting. One of the environments will be a job workshop, and one of the environments will be a mealtime, um, you know, uh, mealtime. So in the classroom meeting the student, it's gonna be completely student run. So each student will have, um, a job that they will have to, um, lead the group for, let's say. So, for example, we're, and all of our technology is infused to, through, out, um, all of this. So like, the student will get a QR code that they're going to have to scan, and on that, it'll tell them what their job is for that day. Um, job might be they're in charge of asking, uh, a question, like a poll, a survey kind of thing, and then asking each student what they think or what their answer is, and then responding appropriately to it, instead of just being like, okay, I'm moving on.
Speaker 5 00:18:25 So all the skills that they would need, uh, make, making eye contact, listening to what they said, making a relevant comment, uh, in return to that, um, all of those things would be addressed for that particular job. And each of the jobs would have different skillsets that they're working on. So, um, the technology, again, uh, you know, the, somebody's gonna be a newscaster and be in charge of going online and finding the what day of the week, you know, the date and time and everything like that. And then the weather for the day and what would be appropriate to wear in that situation. Um, and then reporting it back to the group. Um, and it, you know, eventually getting it so that they're gonna make a movie, you know, with a green screen behind them and learning how to actually make the movie to, uh, present that information. So that's the idea behind the, the meeting aspect is basically, as opposed to a classroom where a teacher runs everything, the students are going to run everything and, um, focus on all of those communication skills that are so integral for life.
Speaker 2 00:19:36 Excellent. How much of this do you consider, like soft and career skills? That's a list of what mm-hmm. <affirmative>, what some of the things you'll go through.
Speaker 5 00:19:45 Uh, I'm sorry, what was the question?
Speaker 2 00:19:47 Soft and career skills.
Speaker 5 00:19:49 Yes. What about it?
Speaker 2 00:19:50 What would be considered, how much of it a soft skill
Speaker 5 00:19:54 In this? Um, there's a lot of it. <laugh>, <laugh>, uh, there's a lot of soft skills and, um, again, we haven't, um, met the, our population yet. So I think, um, you know, it's going to depend a lot on what we're seeing with where the deficits lie and what they need to to work on. Um, but some of the, you know, they're gonna need to learn how to navigate the computer on their own, and they're gonna need to learn all of these things in order to be able to then find a question online to then ask, if that makes sense.
Speaker 2 00:20:25 Is this local for local students only
Speaker 5 00:20:29 Right now? Yes. Um, but, you know, we see great potential in the, in the idea
Speaker 2 00:20:36 <laugh> and,
Speaker 3 00:20:36 Yeah. Mom, Monmouth, this is Karen Monmouth County, sir. I mean, uh, Brookdale Community College serves Monmouth County. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. So we expect that our population will be in Monmouth County. But it is our hope that as we pilot this program and we solidify, uh, the curriculum, the approach, the content that we will be able to reach out to, um, other counties, other community colleges, and, and in a sense influence their, their programs as well. And, and, and even expand our enrollment. So our initial enrollment is probably 12 to 14 students, but as we, um, as we solidify the program, we hope to expand and receive more and more, uh, participants.
Speaker 2 00:21:26 And is this both online or, and in person? Or just in person?
Speaker 3 00:21:31 It is in person. It's, uh, a three hour program on a Thursday morning, starting at nine 30. Um, and it ends, uh, we, there's two hours of instruction and interaction, uh, and potentially work. And then there's an hour of socialization in the sense that we will be doing lunch together and, uh, enjoying each other's company in a more social, uh, ex uh, environment.
Speaker 2 00:22:01 So, just so I understand that there's a TAZ program, and you're kind of an a long arm off of that.
Speaker 3 00:22:08 So we were, we were, um, initially drawn to, to, um, Brookdale because of the TAAZ program. I see. But the taaz program is not focused specifically on careers and employment. Ah.
Speaker 2 00:22:22 Uh, and
Speaker 3 00:22:22 Okay. So we wanted to, uh, and, and, and this grant allowed for us to focus on careers and employment. So now we're looking at it from a different angle, right? So now we're looking at it from the angle of careers and employment mm-hmm. <affirmative>, what does a person need in order to get to that, that placement, that job placement, uh, what, what does it take? And so we've kind of reversed reverse built the program with that lens.
Speaker 2 00:22:50 And, um, so is it really a free program or will the students have any fees?
Speaker 3 00:22:57 So, uh, it is, we, the fees are covered in the sense of the enrollment. The only thing that the student might have cost for is transportation to and from the college, you know, from their home. And, uh, the lunch itself. So we'll be eating in the cafeteria, Brookdale Community College. And so, you know, they'll need some lunch money,
Speaker 2 00:23:20 <laugh>. Gotcha. So,
Speaker 5 00:23:22 Do you want me to talk about the, uh, the vocational lab part?
Speaker 2 00:23:25 Yes, I do. Yes. Absolutely. That
Speaker 3 00:23:27 Would be great. Yeah.
Speaker 5 00:23:27 So the second hour that, um, we're gonna be in this program, w we are gonna be focusing on developing a functional business, um, and using, at first using simple voca vocational tasks mm-hmm. <affirmative> so that they can focus on the language and the communication more so than the, the actual act of putting things together or assembling things. We, a lot of the programs, um, focus on the actual, um, task themselves. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, and we wanna make that a basic, so that we can delve into, where they usually break down on a job site is usually the social and the communication aspect of it. So what we, um, right now we're starting out small, so we're gonna do like candy grams and things like that. And then, um, we're gonna do, um, um, bag lunch, uh, preparation for, um, people who are food insecure, and that way they can donate that to the community.
Speaker 5 00:24:29 But things that they're gonna work on, you know, are, you know, planning the menu and actually deciding how much money they can spend and shopping and things like that in order, and then making the actual lunch, calling up to see, you know, what time they can deliver it, those sorts of things. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. Um, and then from there, hopefully develop the skills that then, you know, the next semester we can, you know, start an actual business that we can, uh, incorporate at Brookdale or someplace else. But, um, that's kind of like the, the, the cross of what we're thinking. But, you know, and to work on things that these students, um, you know, need to work on to be able to advocate if they need more supplies, if something's broken. Right. A lot of times, you know, they don't advocate for themselves or seek help, uh, in an appropriate way. And even just the interview skills and filling out resumes and, uh, or filling out applications and having a resume and things like that are all skills that, um, sometimes, you know, we just wanna fix anything that's fallen through the cracks or, um, you know, and highlight, um, things that they can do to make a, maybe get a better job. Now they're a bagger or a stock shelf, and maybe we can give them the language and the communication that they need in order to take somebody's order at a restaurant or
Speaker 3 00:25:53 It, it is our long-term, this is Karen, it is our long-term hope that, uh, we will find employment in our community for these young people so that we can introduce them to potential employers, and they have the skillset to present themselves and, uh, acquire jobs. I mean, that's, that's the long-term piece.
Speaker 2 00:26:15 So, and it looks like this runs for 13 weeks, correct?
Speaker 3 00:26:20 Yes, it does. It,
Speaker 2 00:26:21 It feels like that's a lot to do in 13 weeks. So if they don't complete, can they keep going? Or is it you're done after 13?
Speaker 3 00:26:29 Yeah, no, it's our hope to continue this program going and keep our, keep our members involved and even have various levels. So somebody may move on to, you know, the sale, uh, two course, right? Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, um, it is, is definitely our, our desire to keep this going. And we, we believe that, uh, that the governor's intention is to keep this going. We hope we are right and that this money would continue to flow in, but if not, then we will search for other forms of, uh, funding. We, we like to keep it going. You know, I wanna mention that we have, I believe, at least one person in your waiting room. Oh. Um, Noreen Kane, who represents Brookdale Community College. I don't know if you're able to bring her on to this conversation.
Speaker 2 00:27:10 I, I can probably do that. Give me a couple minutes, but let me ask you this. Um, so I wanna ask if, um, you, you have 12 to 14 students, and is this, do you generally get that, or is it, um, you know, does it sometimes a lot less?
Speaker 3 00:27:34 We believe by, by the, um, again, this is Karen. We believe by the inquiries that we've had that we are going to get, that we, people are very excited about it. We have an open house coming on Tuesday. You wanna give the date and time and location? Uh,
Speaker 4 00:27:51 Tuesday, I think
Speaker 3 00:27:52 It is, right? The 17th at
Speaker 5 00:27:54 Six 30,
Speaker 3 00:27:56 Um, on the Brookdale Community College campus. Um, and we have already had a considerable number of signups. Okay. Um, but, but, uh, we're inviting, you know, parents, practitioners and participants, potential participants all to come, uh, and spend an hour with us and meet us and hear more about the program and have some experiences when they, when they're there. We're, we're setting up some interactive experiences for, for individuals as well.
Speaker 4 00:28:25 And, and I think that it also gives us a chance to kind of really talk with them and, and get, to get a little taste of maybe some of the things that they need that maybe we can kind of tailor some things. So, um, you know, it's a, it's a, for us to listen to and hear, hear their voices and what they need. Yeah.
Speaker 5 00:28:43 And this is Erin. What's exciting for me is to be able to include the technology, because, you know, that's where our world is, and that's where this age group is specifically. And so, you know, in addition to iPads and the computers and all of the, um, assistive technology things that are embedded within those, you know, like text to speech and speech to text and stuff like that, we're going to, um, incorporate other things like, uh, virtual reality headsets where, um, they're immersed in a metaverse to teach them skills that are tailored specifically for children or for people with, um, disabilities. And so this way they'll get practice, repeated practice in a safe environment, and, you know, they love it cuz it's so engaging when you engage in vr. Um, and so they can do things like, um, practice crossing the street and practice, um, you know, uh, how to interact with somebody who gives them a friendly greeting in the hallway mm-hmm. <affirmative> versus somebody who gives them a negative greeting in the hallway. Right. They can practice going to a doctor and or getting a haircut or, um, you know, things like that, that, how to interact with the police. That's a big one too. Oh,
Speaker 2 00:30:03 Yeah. I bet.
Speaker 5 00:30:04 Yeah. So there's a lot with, with this floo program that's part of virtual reality headsets that we're using. Um, we can give them realtime, realtime practice, even though it's not real. But the closest thing we can get without actually getting a police officer there to, to ask them questions. Um, we're also gonna be using like, smart glasses that will allow, like, job coaches to be able to see what the student sees. Oh. But that way they're, they don't have to be right on top of the student as they're completing their job. Right. Um, yeah. So we're really excited to bring all this technology in and, you know, again, and even in the mealtime, the last hour is the mealtime. So they're gonna order food through DoorDash or online, you know, actually have to make a phone call to order food for, for it, um, and practice taking orders from each other and, and fulfilling those orders. And, and then practice like the social skill of having a conversation. And what do you do if these, these are all people that you just met at school today. You know, so what are you going to say? How are you gonna start a conversation? Or, and then the next week we could do, you know, these are all people that you know very well, things like that. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. So we're really excited for, um, all the potential that we see with, um, with the communication and the social interaction and infusing the technology into it.
Speaker 2 00:31:28 We, I need to just take a break to let the listeners know you are tuned to K ffi I 90.3 fm, Minneapolis, and K ffi i.org G. My name is Sam, and we're speaking with a whole bunch of people, <laugh> from Voyager, um, Voyager's Community School. Uh, we're talking about their new program that they have going, um, the innovative program for students with intellectual disabilities. And a couple more people entered in the room, or at least one, um, maybe two. One, uh, could you identify yourself please? I and what you do?
Speaker 6 00:32:05 Hi. I believe it's just me. Hi, I'm, my name is Noreen Kane. I am the program manager of Brookdale Community College. Okay. Um, full, full lifelong learning. So, and my apologies, I was having computer and connection issues and power issues and all kinds of things. So I'm very happy to be here and excited about the program. And, um, just jumping in now. So
Speaker 2 00:32:28 <laugh>, so ca um, Noreen Yes.
Speaker 7 00:32:31 Right. Karen
Speaker 2 00:32:31 Di Noreen.
Speaker 7 00:32:32 Yes. Hi, I'm Karen Dior. Okay. And I will be one of the instructors for the sale program. Okay. And I'm just very excited to be, uh, be a part of this new program based on the things that, um, I used to do when I was working full-time.
Speaker 2 00:32:48 Thank you. Um, Nore, give me an idea of what you do, you know, how does your Brookdale, how do you integrate with these guys then?
Speaker 6 00:33:00 Okay, so, um, Brookdale Community College is the recipient of the grant. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, um, I run all the lifelong programs, so this fits in beautifully with that because we're always, you know, lifelong learning. Um, that's, that's the whole, that's a whole mission here mm-hmm. <affirmative>. So, um, the grant came through the state and, um, we were one of the colleges that received it, and I was very lucky to already be in a working relationship with the folks from Voyager. So we had a program in place that was serving this population, and this just gave us the opportunity to expand it with, um, more funds and more ideas. So the people on here, they're the rock stars <laugh>, I'm just kinda the administrator and I'm the person who gets to go along for the ride <laugh> and, uh, watch this evolve and just grow and yeah, that, that, that's my part in it. So I have the Easy Pot <laugh>. But, um, yeah, it's been a pleasure. And like I said, it's just so exciting. So that's what we, you know, it will be housed on campus, which is what makes it really special for the students that they get to come to a campus environment and experience, you know, being a student. And it gives us the tools to just, um, provide many, many different types of learning experiences.
Speaker 2 00:34:19 And this is for New Jersey, in the specific county in New Jersey, but are there any thoughts of like, connecting with other programs throughout different states so you can kind of share curriculums and things like that?
Speaker 6 00:34:35 Well, I believe that that is Karen's vision and the rest of the folks of Voyager right now, the grant came through, so it's all community colleges in New Jersey. But I think as we're successful, we move forward and we bring in more elements to it. I mean, I'll let Karen speak to this. I think there'll be a lot of room for, um, growth and for collaborating with, um, you know, with, with other institutions and colleges nationwide. We'll go big <laugh>. So Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker 3 00:35:02 I mean, we do, this is Karen. We do expect that, uh, this will be a, will be an innovative and unusual, uh, program, and that the data will show that this sort of approach, um, really does significantly benefit the participants. And once we have that data in place, it is certainly our hope to publish it, to put it out in the world, to work with any other organization, whether it be in the state of New Jersey or anywhere else, uh, to implement the program there as well. I believe we're gonna have a, a fabulous model for, for individuals to participate in. And, and, uh, you know, Norena is humble in, in her presentation in a sense that without Brookdale we wouldn't be able to do it. And the fact that we're bringing individuals onto a college campus who might not otherwise even imagine themselves on a college campus is huge. It's a huge component of this program.
Speaker 2 00:35:58 It sounds like you have dedicated staff to teaching these, um, students mm-hmm. <affirmative>, do the staff that teach the students teach other things as well? Or are they just kind of dedicated to this program?
Speaker 3 00:36:11 So the staff has been identified specifically for this program, but I have to tell you, when I sit in the room with this team, I am inspired in so many ways. And, uh, being an out-of-the-box thinker, I can take the ideas and the innovative, uh, um, things that they bring to the table and imagine them and share them with my broader staff at the school and with the people that I work with through Disrupted today. So in teachers, great teachers are always great to be with. And this team is, is remarkable magical. Yes. <laugh>
Speaker 2 00:36:49 <laugh>. And this grant, is it, will it renew or is it something you have to keep applying for? How long will it last?
Speaker 6 00:36:59 Um, we are not sure, but I mean, I, I would say that the outlook looks really, really bright. Um, governor Murphy is, uh, very, very much committed to this. Um, I think that this was in place even before Governor Christie, and then it kind of went away for a while, and now it is back. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, um, there already are more funds that they are looking to allocate to schools. So I think it is one of those things that is just going to become the norm. Uh, hopefully politics will not get in the way somewhere down the
Speaker 2 00:37:31 Road. I know.
Speaker 6 00:37:32 Geez. But for now, I, it looks, it looks really good. There is a commitment to this population. There's a commitment to new and innovative approaches. And I think the one thing that is behind this is to give the students the opportunity for something that would include some kind of workforce, some kind of life skills that would really enhance their future and change the way that they can even look forward as to where they'll be, uh, two years from now or down the road. So I think it's really a life changing, and I do see the commitment, so I think the money will follow the commitment. So, um, I, I'm extremely optimistic that, that this is something that's here to stay. We have other grants on college that have been there as long as I have, and it's been almost 20 years. So I'm, I'm hoping that this will be in that family, and I, I, I don't see any reason why not. So,
Speaker 2 00:38:22 So I'm thinking that a person with an intellectual disability, of course, can have a wide variety of abilities across the board, different students. So you may have some of the very high end of intellectual disabilities and somewhat much lower end. Um, how do you deal with that when a cluster of students come in and getting 'em to work together?
Speaker 7 00:38:45 Well, okay. Um, basically what you're going to do is some of the higher functioning students are going to be role models for the lower communication students. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. And another, um, area that's gonna be important is we're going to be assessing them when they first come in to see where their levels are so that we can match them so that they can interact with higher models. And the higher models get confidence building by working with students that, um, are having more difficulty communicating.
Speaker 3 00:39:23 Yeah. And I'm sorry, Sam, across the board, you know, the philosophy is that we are all, we are all teachers and we're all learners mm-hmm. <affirmative>. And, uh, either role is a beneficial role in an environment where ideas are welcome. And that is very much the influence. Uh, and, and the philosophy that we're going to apply here,
Speaker 5 00:39:46 And this is Erin and I, I also would input that, um, you know, because we are, um, starting smaller, we are able to assign jobs to different people. And for example, I, the, I had given you an example before about, um, you know, somebody doing an interview mm-hmm. <affirmative> question or whatever. If that person has higher skills, their interview can be a lot more detailed. Right. Or, you know, the person who's giving directions can, instead of just saying, you are the newscaster today can say, oh, you're the newscaster and you have to go on Google and look up the, the day and the week and the, the weather and things like that. So I think it, it's all going to depend on what each individual, um, presents with. And, um, we'll tailor it based on that, if that makes sense.
Speaker 7 00:40:39 Sure. And we can also, um, provide supports for students that are not as communi communication able. Um, we can have script written scripts for them, picture cues written, uh, picture cues for them so that they can increase that, their ability to use those skills.
Speaker 2 00:40:58 I wanna add on to this a little bit as, because I'm a, I teach students with visual disabilities, I contract for the state of Minnesota mm-hmm. <affirmative>. And, um, I'm well aware now that the idea of somebody just having a pure disability, meaning just a visual disability, is, um, sometimes long past and it's more rare and it's, it's more common that you have multiple disabilities. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. So do you guys, how do you deal with that if there are physical disabilities, other disabilities that they have on top of the, um, other of the disabilities that you are looking at?
Speaker 7 00:41:36 Well, I would think that's where technology comes in, Erin. Um, in terms of any adaptions that we might need to use.
Speaker 5 00:41:45 Yeah. So any, anybody who is coming in to this program mm-hmm. <affirmative>, um, any adaptive equipment that they need for mobility and things like that, they will already have in place. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. Um, so we're just going to use, uh, our enhancements basically and figure out what they need for, specifically for the tasks that we're asking them to do. Um, you know, somebody with a visual impairment would have, wouldn't be able to do the, the, you know, the VR headsets, let's say. Right. But we would then use, um, you know, they could use the text to, uh, no, the speak to speak, no text to speak so that they could read something and then, um, you know, go from there. We also are gonna use like, um, orca pens, so if it's not on the com, if it's not on the computer, they can, you know, use the pen to read whatever it is. So, um, I think it all depends on what we're presented with. Um, but yes, tech between technology and using, um, all of the, we have a wealth of, um, options audits cuz most of our children will not just have one thing going on. Most of these students will have multiple things going on.
Speaker 3 00:42:57 I want to point out in Nore, maybe you can speak to this as well, that the Brook, the Brookdale Community College campus is well adapted for mobility and access, and it's therefore a great environment to bring the, these people too, our participants too.
Speaker 6 00:43:14 Right? Yeah. That's one of the perfect things about being on a college campus, especially a, um, county college. Um, everything are already in place as far as mobility issues go. Um, we have a disability services, uh, department already set up that we can always tap into them if it's something that we're, we kind of get stuck on and we need more support, or we need maybe other ideas that we didn't think about because, you know, I'm not always dealing with this population and people have these kind of issues. So I think, and the community itself is extremely open to that po to that population and want to make it work. So, you know, on top of me, in an environment that will work physically, I think there's also an element of, um, understanding and the desire of everyone to include this population in the college community and, um, bring them in and whatever, and give them anything that we can to make it a, you know, a better experience and a more accessible one.
Speaker 4 00:44:17 And Sam, it's Alison, I also feel like amongst this group, this team is really creative out of the box thinkers who problem solve and work together and collaborate. And when you had that trust between each other, um, and examining, you know, what the student needs from a variety of perspectives, there's no limits to the possibilities. It really is. And it's, it's such an exciting thing to be in the room when you know, well, why don't, let's try this. Or what, you know, how can we help this? The creativity of everyone here is so strong. There's any obstacle, any obstacle we can come through.
Speaker 2 00:44:55 Excellent. You talk about, um, that you have approximately 12 to 14 students that can apply per quarter or 13 weeks semester, whatever that would be. Um, how do you decide if you get an, uh, over amount of who is going to be able to get in and also please tell how one can apply?
Speaker 3 00:45:19 Sure. Um, it's a great question. You know, how are we going to decide? I, um, I'm, you know, one of the things that we are struggling with is like, is that we would like to take more participants, but, uh, in consideration of the fact that it's a new program, we wanna also, um, not overpromise or overextend, right? Mm-hmm. <affirmative> because we're, we are planting seeds for a much bigger program. So, um, I, I believe that through conversations, through meeting individuals, hearing what their goals are and how those goals match our goals, um, and also thinking about the, uh, in a sense the gel of a combination of 12 or 14 individuals. Uh, those are all gonna be things that are kind of come in, going to come into play in this situation, but our expectation, and already we've spoken to some individuals who either are not old enough yet, or, or maybe, um, they have self-defined as not being ready yet, but they're all on a list and we're gonna keep rowing this program. We're gonna keep inviting people. So, uh, I, I hope that that answers it as best as possible. I, um, you may, anyone else on the scene may have some interaction as well, but,
Speaker 2 00:46:38 And how do they apply?
Speaker 3 00:46:40 How do they apply? So, uh, we have an inquiry. We have an inquiry application. Um, say that again,
Speaker 4 00:46:48 Noreen, you've kind of, uh, reached out to the community, right? And I know, um, a couple of ways. Some of the school districts, their transition coordinators have that information and have reached out, um, and can apply. But Noreen, I know you sent out, uh, a flyer recently and it's on the, um, you know, Brookdale, uh, website, so I don't know where that's listed.
Speaker 6 00:47:08 Yes. So, so like I said, we are, you know, we're just getting STAR started. We were putting it out there in assessing students and, and because this group is the group, they are, we're pushing ourselves and we're looking down to February 2nd start. So at some point we're having an open house on Tuesday. And then I think at that point, the students who were interested have met, met all the criteria. Um, they would just hit a button and register. I mean, we would, we would just register them. The beauty of this is there are no applications or fees involved mm-hmm. <affirmative>, um, once we, you know, talk to the student or talk to their provider or practitioner, parent, guardian, whoever is making those decisions, we are just going to have a very, very easy, uh, registration system. Is is that, does that answer the question? Were we looking? Sure. Could you have the register?
Speaker 2 00:47:58 Give me
Speaker 3 00:47:59 A, I'm also gonna put a link in. I just put a link in the chat to our form, our inquiry form. So anyone who's following along, and maybe Sam, you can share this, um, people can go to that link and fill out a form and just say, I'm interested, or I know somebody who would be interested. Can
Speaker 2 00:48:17 You give us a
Speaker 3 00:48:17 Website? And then we will contact them immediately.
Speaker 6 00:48:20 Right. We we're just getting the people of interest and seeing how many we have as we make decisions. And then we will just set up a really easy registration process that it could be, you know, you know, we can't put a link out on the website because we need to speak to people first to make sure that they fit into the program. It's right for them at the time. But, um,
Speaker 2 00:48:40 All
Speaker 6 00:48:41 Right. I hope that answers the question. Yes,
Speaker 2 00:48:43 <laugh>. Well, are there any other comments before we close?
Speaker 3 00:48:49 Just appreciate you, um, and the work that you are doing, uh, with this program, uh, and allowing us to, to share this, what we are doing. Um, and we encourage everybody who has a thought that this might be a possible, um, opportunity to, to, you know, reach out to us, reach out to us, and if it, if for some reason it doesn't work, this time, everybody will be on a list and we'll be communicating as we go forward and, and help the program grow.
Speaker 4 00:49:19 And we'd love to talk to you again at the end of the program and, and share some of the insights, the obstacles, and Yes. How it's growing, if that's a
Speaker 2 00:49:28 Possibility. Yes, absolutely. So you guys, yes.
Speaker 6 00:49:30 We need, we need to share our success and
Speaker 2 00:49:33 Share our, you have, my email will always open, so you can give us a shout when you're ready to come back and share the results. Great. Um, we're gonna close, but I wanna, since we have so many <laugh>, hope, if you don't mind, but if I verbally tap you and say, Karen, and please give your name and your title so people will know who we've been talking to all night. This has been Disability and Progress. The's expressed on the show are not necessarily those of K ffi I or it's board of directors tonight. We've been speaking with Karen Gire. Did I get that right finally?
Speaker 3 00:50:06 Yep. Yep.
Speaker 2 00:50:07 <laugh>, I told you by the end of the show. Go ahead and give your title.
Speaker 3 00:50:10 Yes. So I'm founding Director of Voyagers Community School and, uh, uh, chief Executive Officer of Disrupt Education today. And, and I thought maybe it would be worth sharing a phone number. I'm, I'm happy to take phone calls. So, (732) 842-1660.
Speaker 2 00:50:28 Give that once more please.
Speaker 3 00:50:30 7 3 2 8 4 2 1 6 6 0.
Speaker 2 00:50:34 Thank you. Alison Keelen.
Speaker 4 00:50:37 Um, Alison Keelen. I am the educational consultant for, uh, Voyagers Community School
Speaker 2 00:50:43 And Erin DeLuca.
Speaker 5 00:50:45 I Stewart DeLuca. I'm a speech language pathologist and assistant technology practitioner and an instructor for the Voyager School Sale Program.
Speaker 2 00:50:54 And Noreen Kane.
Speaker 6 00:50:56 I'm Noreen Kane and I am the program manager for Lifelong Learning at Brookdale Community College.
Speaker 2 00:51:01 And the other, Karen, I apologize, I didn't have your name written down. <laugh>
Speaker 7 00:51:05 <laugh>. That's fine. I'm a speech language pathologist and will also be an instructor for the sale program.
Speaker 2 00:51:13 Excellent. We have been speaking tonight about the free innovative pilot program for adults, students from ages 1824 with intellectual disabilities. Good luck with this program, ladies and I, um, I know imp how important these things are, so please feel free to come back and let us know how this goes.
Speaker 6 00:51:35 Okay. We appreciate the opportunity and your time and getting the word out there.
Speaker 2 00:51:40 Goodnight.
Speaker 5 00:51:42 Good night.
Speaker 2 00:51:44 And this is K FFA I 90.3 fm, Minneapolis and K ffa i.org g. This is Van Disability and Progress. If you wanna be on our listener, um, club, please email me at the disability and progress, sam jasmine.com email address, and we will get you on the list to announce for next coming weeks. Thanks for listening.
