Extended school year helps students maintain skills

Students get in the spirit of the Olympics with shirts, posters and activities.

The Bucks County Intermediate Unit recently completed its 53rd annual Extended School Year (ESY) initiative for students with disabilities who are served by the educational agency during the regular school year.

“The organization takes pride in its ability to provide flexible and individualized educational programming and services for students requiring skill maintenance during the summer break,” said Kelly Housman, the Bucks IU Extended School Year Coordinator.

The Bucks IU served more than 1,100 students with autism, emotional needs and multiple disabilities during the five-week ESY programs, Housman said. That’s roughly 15% of the student population served by the Bucks IU during the school year.

The ESY programs were held at Benjamin Rush Elementary School and Cecelia Snyder Elementary School in Bensalem, Bucks IU at Samuel Everitt in Levittown, Fallsington Elementary School in the Pennsbury School District and Strayer Middle School in Quakertown.

Each of the summer programs had at least one Head Teacher to oversee their respective site’s operation. The Head Teachers typically work during the school year as a Bucks IU special education teacher.

“ESY is a great way to maintain student skills, address deficits, and build upon social and community skills,” said Kalene Mitchell, who served as a Head Teacher at Everitt along with Jonathan Schmidt and Emily McCrea.

Approximately 500 staff members worked at the five ESY sites, Housman said, including roughly 250 IU staff members and 250 employees of contracting agencies. The staff members included teachers, paraeducators, job coaches, guidance counselors, behavioral analysts and therapists.

The ESY students, aged kindergarten through 21, are residents of Bucks, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties. During the ESY program, the students work on their individualized goal work, receive related services including speech and occupational therapy as needed and participate in theme-related activities.

The activities varied by site. Everitt focused on different aspects of the Olympics, including relay races and water play activities.

Strayer students participated in differently themed activities each week, said Head Teacher Karen Keller. The first week focused on “Red, White & Blue” and culminated with a parade in advance of the Fourth of July holiday, Keller said. The other weekly ESY themes at Strayer were “Community Helpers” that included a visit from local firefighters, “Camping and Outdoor Fun,” “Sports” that was based on the Olympics and “Water Safety.”

“There are so many wonderful things that happen during ESY,” Keller said. “Some of the favorites are having our older students in charge of organizing and running weekly activities.”

The ESY students at Fallsington had a chance to demonstrate their abilities during a talent show in front of their peers. “It was great seeing the students break out of their shells and perform their favorite acts,” Head Teacher Courtney Bird said. The ESY staff at Fallsington was amazing, she said. “Everyone was willing to help each other and made learning fun and engaging for the students,” Bird said. “We held weekly breakfasts during our staff meetings which promoted great team bonding.”

The ESY programs are a great way for employees, ranging from college students to people with decades of work experience in other professions, to “try on” the Bucks IU, Housman said.

“It is a great networking opportunity and chance to see firsthand all the different professionals that work to help our students each day,” she said. “No matter what career someone is pursuing, working one summer at ESY is going to have many lifelong career benefits.  Working with our students will teach tolerance, patience, understanding and how much the little things matter.”