Junior Macey Sherry, right, always feels comfortable in Michelle DeGrez’s classroom.
By: Maria Allard | Warren Weekly | Published November 26, 2024
WARREN — In past years, students with special needs whose families wanted their daughters to attend Regina High School for a Catholic education didn’t always have the opportunity because the school didn’t have the necessary resources.
That has changed, and in 2020, the school launched its official academic support program with one special education teacher on campus to accommodate a small group of students with disabilities.
Since then, the program has grown to having two special education teachers serving over 10% of the student population, all with varied disabilities. There are about 300 students at the all-girls Catholic school, with 40 students in the program.
The student must be diagnosed with a disability for access into the program. The most common are students with ADHD, anxiety and depression. There are students, too, who have a learning disability or cognitive impairment. All in the program have a student accommodation plan. The goal is to have the students mainstreamed, but sometimes they need some extra support outside the regular classroom. There could be several girls in the program classrooms at one time or just one or two.
Michelle DeGrez, an instructional specialist at Regina, works with the freshmen and sophomores, and instructional specialist Laura MeLampy works with the juniors and seniors. Both are certified special education teachers and have their own classrooms set up for students to come in when they need one-on-one help or an instructor to reteach or modify a lesson they don’t understand.
Sometimes students utilize the academic support program when they are working on a large project. DeGrez, for instance, will have the student break down the project and work on it in chunks. DeGrez said that some students will come to her classroom every day while others only stop by once a week.
“It’s almost like a little sense of community,” DeGrez said.
“There is a lot of flexibility. No two days are the same,” Regina Principal Ann Diamond said. “We’re doing everything we can so they are mainstreamed.”
Sometimes the students, too, just need some space and leave the regular classroom to study in a quieter atmosphere. DeGrez and MeLampy often attend other classes throughout the day to learn the curriculum so they can help students who need extra assistance in certain subjects. The classrooms have different furniture that helps create a more relaxed environment. DeGrez’s classroom has a futon and tables and chairs while MeLampy’s lamps provide an ambiance.
“They are at ease,” MeLampy said of students when they work in her class. “They are serious students. A lot of them ask for what they need. It helps them with their independence.”
MeLampy also will stay after school 30 minutes a day for students who want to spend more time working in her class. Regina funds the program on its own through its academic budget. Because it’s a private school that charges tuition, there is no state funding.
Sophomore Noor Shaaya comes down to DeGrez’s room occasionally to work on math assignments.
“It’s a safe space where I can get my work done and not have distractions around me. I get my assignments turned in faster,” Shaaya said. “I use the whiteboard tables to do math. I can get focused.”
“Sometimes you come in and say, ‘Ms. DeGrez, I need help,’” DeGrez said.
Shaaya also likes it when some staff members bring their dogs to school including Diamond’s cavapoo.
“It just brings another level of comfort to the girls,” Diamond said.
Sophomore Emma Rosenzweig visits DeGrez’s classroom almost daily as a place for her to prioritize her assignments.
“It’s a little bit darker and quieter and there are blankets,” she said. “I can work pretty independently. Sometimes sitting quietly helps.”
Rosenzweig sometimes has trouble with history class.
“I have to put myself in someone else’s shoes,” she said. “I wasn’t there. I don’t know what they were thinking.”
One place where Rosenzweig excels is in her honors America literature class. She is currently earning a 4.25 GPA overall.
“That’s something to be proud of,” DeGrez told her.
“I definitely want to go to college,” Rosenzweig said. “I want to do biomedical engineering, psychology or social work. Possibly theater.”
Junior Macey Sherry visits both academic support program classrooms when she feels she needs it.
“It depends on the day. In class it’s hard for me to focus. I’m worried about others around me and how fast they’re working,” she said. “Ms. DeGrez helps me with my emotions if I’m having a bad day. I like to sit on the couch or in the pod, but if I really need to get work done, I sit at a table.”
“If Macey is having a rough day, we’ll say a quick prayer,” DeGrez said.
According to DeGrez, there also are plans to bring the Mundi inclusion program to the school for students with more significant disabilities including mild and moderate cognitive impairments, Down syndrome, and traumatic brain injuries. Training has begun with classroom teachers. Staff is putting together a peer mentor program, implementing a certificate of completion graduation track and more.