Guest Blogs by Ron Benham and Tiffany Gundler.

Ron Benham

Ron Benham

When asked to tell a Part C story, I immediately thought it needed to be a story in which I have been an active participant, but more importantly it needed to be framed as a collective response.

I have had the experience of working with early intervention services in Massachusetts prior to P.L. 99‑457, and the journey has never been dull! While, Massachusetts had a well-articulated early intervention system prior to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) legislation, its passage and ultimate creation of a system of care without waiting lists created unique opportunities for very young children and their families.

Reflecting over time, it is humbling to acknowledge the numerous parties that have continuously moved this system forward. This includes the Office of Special Education Programs, governors, legislative supporters, public health commissioners, budget staff, provider organizations, the pediatric medical community, health plans, higher education, state Part C staff, and most importantly the voices of families. Without the combined commitment of these individuals and organizations it is highly doubtful that the current system in Massachusetts, in its scope and scale, would exist.

As we know from research and grandmotherly wisdom, it’s all about relationships. With young children and their families, and all those mentioned above, the journey of Part C has been about a collective vision of inclusion, positive developmental outcomes for young children and a commitment to full participation of families in the development of policies of how services are delivered.

I am pleased to have been a part of this evolution and salute all those whose commitment and voices have continuously moved this system forward. It has not always been easy but it reflects a system that has tried to always keep the eye on the prize, assisting families in caring for their children and allowing all to have dreams of a brighter future. If we continue to share an inclusive vision with our other Early Childhood partners and act in the best interests of families, we can continue building a comprehensive, broad based system of early education and care.

In closing, I will paraphrase a Beatles lyric and simply say it’s been fun, challenging, exhilarating, and extremely meaningful to be on “the long and winding road” with families, sharing in their lives.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!

Ron Benham

Tiffany Gundler

Tiffany Gundler

Thanks to early intervention, I have flourished in ways I never could have imagined or thought possible. I was diagnosed at 10 days old with a profound hearing loss and my parents felt lost about how they were going to raise me. Early intervention stepped in and provided them with the assistance, knowledge, and resources they needed to help me grow and succeed. Although I do not remember those days, I relive those moments through my family’s memories. The resources early intervention provided my parents gave them a map for our family, but they still had to choose which path was best for me. They chose the path less traveled, and it led to places I’m sure they never imagined for their baby.

Without early intervention, I may have not had all of the opportunities I was fortunate to have growing up. A huge part of my success comes from the aid my parents received when I was a baby. Early intervention taught my parents and my brother how to help me grow and learn. In addition to all of the support my family received, the staff also worked with me by coming to my house and helping me improve my developmental skills until the age of 3. After early intervention, I went to Clarke School in Northampton, Mass., for 10 years then transitioned to a public high school. From there I went on to college and graduated with a biomedical engineering degree. I now work for a medial orthopedic company designing customized knee replacements.

Another huge benefit that we all received from the early intervention program was the Part C early intervention also provided my family incredible access to support groups that we were able to join. The journey certainly was not an easy one but being able to relate with other parents who were going through the same challenges made things seem a little easier along the way for my parents. I just want to thank the program for not only leading me onto the best path I could have ever imagined, but for also assisting my family along the way as well. They would have never known where to start in helping me grow into the person I am today. In turn, I have been able to pay it forward and help improve the lives of others.

Thank you early intervention for the amazing support and resources you provide families like mine every single day!

Tiffany Gundler

Guest Blog Posts by Cecilia Lee and by Debbie Miller

Cecilia Lee

Alex

Alex sang an aria in Italian recently in front of 600 people. He had a really nice introduction by the Pennsylvania Secretary of Education. A lot of people think he is a superstar. He has modeled for a toy company, done some TV work, has his own poster and appeared on the big screen in Times Square 8 times. He just turned 9. I often wonder if he would still be able to do all that he does if he didn’t have early intervention services pretty much as soon as he was born.

Alex was diagnosed with Down syndrome at birth. I, like many other new parents, didn’t know what to expect. I was informed of lots of struggles and obstacles that would come our way. I felt as if my family’s life was thrown into the land of doom. Then came early intervention! Our early intervention therapists started coming over to our house. Immediately, they started telling us all the things that Alex was capable of doing; and more importantly different strategies to try so that he COULD do those things he wasn’t yet doing. They were the bright ray of sunshine that came to chase away the dark cloud that I thought was hanging over us. Each week, they came over and worked with all of us to make everything possible. They always made sure that Alex’s sister, Isabelle, was part of the session. Now at age 11, she is the queen of modifications! Many of us know that over 90% of the brain development happens before the kids turn five, so what a great life-changing opportunity this was not only for Alex but also for Isabelle.

One of the struggles we had in the beginning was language development. We live in a bilingual household and when Alex was first diagnosed, many people told us that it’d be better to stick to one language because he would be too confused and have difficulty learning how to communicate. Fortunately, our early intervention therapists told us that we should just do whatever we were doing with our daughter so we continued to communicate in two different languages. Exposure to two different languages increased Alex’s awareness of different sounds and the way the letters/characters looked. He started recognizing sight words in both English and Korean before he turned two. At age 9, he speaks, reads and writes in English and Korean. He is learning Italian because he just loves Mozart operas and Japanese because he’s so into Anime. He loves singing Mozart arias in Italian and Anime theme songs in Japanese.

As I was getting teary-eyed watching Alex sing ‘La Cidarem la Mano’ in Italian in front of such a big crowd, I couldn’t help but think how none of this would’ve been possible without early intervention.

Cecilia Lee

Debbie Miller

Debbie Miller

I had always wondered what I would do when I grew up. When I thought about my professional career, I never envisioned myself working with young children with disabilities. However at the age of 42 when the opportunity arose for me to work in this field, my passion found me. For 24 years, I have worked with children from birth through five years of age … And they have taught me so much.

I have worked in Part B special education preschool and Part C early intervention jobs separately and for 13 years simultaneously. I’ve laughed and cried with parents and had both challenging and rewarding home visits. Through it all I’ve seen progress unique to each child and family and felt an overwhelming relief that these wonderful children are receiving the educational and family support necessary to have a happy life and life-long friendships.

People who don’t teach special education always say, “It takes a special person to teach special education.” They are wrong; it is an honor and a privilege to teach young children with disabilities and their families.

Deborah Miller