All parents have dreams for their children, even those with disabilities. At P.S. 176X in the Bronx, the families of teens with autism are celebrating a day many never imagined would arrive: high school graduation.
"When I came here, I couldn't talk. I talked gibberish," the now-voluble Vicki recalls. "I didn't do my class work; I'd go like this," and she proceeds to flap her hands -- a common symptom of autism known as stereotypy or, self-stimulation.
On graduation day, Vicki beamed from the high school stage as she collected three awards along with a special education diploma, and wowed the hundreds in the audience by singing "Besame Mucho" with the school's Latin band.
P.S. 176X is the largest school for children with autism in New York City and very likely the largest in the country, if not the world. Because it is so big, explains principal Rima Ritholtz, it can offer an extraordinary range of services: chorus, band, arts, life skills and cooking classes, vocational training at school and in the community, as well as a wide range of academic programs aligned to the wide-ranging abilities and disabilities of the students.
Below is the video highlight of Vicki singing at her graduation:
More at this story at link: http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/07/02/autism.high.school/index.html#cnnSTCText
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