This quarter VALTS (the ESU13 Alternative Education High School) science students have been investigating and learning about the different systems of the human body.  This week they began putting their knowledge of the human body to the test by conducting a fetal pig dissection.  This lab is offering the students one of the greatest educational experiences of their lives.

Each VALTS science student was assigned his or her own individual fetal pig.  Students began by identifying important external structures of the fetal pigs, and they continued the lab by identifying major structures associated with their fetal pigs’ digestive systems.  In the coming weeks students will identify structures of the respiratory, circulatory, urogenital, and nervous systems.  The unit enables each student to compare the functions of the fetal mammal organs with those of the human body.  VALTS science students will continue to work through the dissection lab until Christmas break.

VALTS Science instructor Stacey Meisner feels the fetal pig dissection unit is a great learning tool.  Meisner said, “Students are hesitant about the dissection at first, but they end up loving it and they learn so much.”   This is the second time VALTS science students have dissected fetal pigs (two years ago was the first). During both labs we have had 100% participation among our students.

		Photos by Martin Perales

LifeLink students assist SHS drama students in one act play

Photo and Story reprinted with permission from Roger Holsinger and the Scottsbluff Star Herald

Photo by Roger Holsinger

 Cast members of the Scottsbluff High School Drama Department production of, “The Boys Next Door,” visit with students in the LifeLink program at the Harms Center earlier during a pizza lunch. As part of the one act performance SHS students will recite speeches written by the LifeLink students about their disabilities.

LifeLink students assist SHS drama students in one act play

For 45 minutes on Tuesday, a group of high school-aged students sat around a classroom sharing stories and eating pizza. Both were there learning about each other.

But for the drama students at Scottsbluff High School it was also a way to learn more about the characters they are portraying in the one act play, “The Boys Next Door,” which tells the story of four mentally disabled men who live in a group home and who must not only face their own personal dilemmas, but come to gripes with saying goodbye to their caretaker who finds a different job.

SHS Drama Instructor Kara Rada said she when the play was chosen she approached the teaching staff at the LifeLink because she wanted those students to be involved in the production.

“The play is written so tastefully,” she said. “It doesn’t make fun of the men, but depicts them in real situations – situations many of us experience every day. And with the help of the LifeLink students, we’re able to share their experiences with the actors and audience,” she said.

The LifeLink Nebraska program is a five-year program for students 18-21 who operate from an IEP (Individualized Education Program) and is operated by Educational Service Unit #13 in partnership  with Western Nebraska Community College, school districts, families, and communities. It provides unique learning opportunities to students with disabilities.

LifeLink teachers Bill Moore and Teresa Halley along with Life Skills Instructor Peggy Coulter instruct the students in math, reading, writing and self-advocacy. In addition, many of the students have paying jobs and have the option to take college classes at WNCC.

In addition to writing about their disabilities, Moore had the students read their speeches and he videotaped the speeches, which were played during the lunch.

“Being able to talk about their disability has given them a lot of confidence and really has had an impact on others,” said Moore.

Amy Gomez spoke about being born with Cerebral palsy and the financial strain that put on her teen parents. “I wish I was born healthy,” she said adding that she knows she is lucky and that she is better off that other people.

Austin Lebsack said he likes being a student manager for the college women’s basketball team because he likes to help others.

“I feel that I am normal but living with Cerebral palsy can be hard, but I have lived with it for 21 years,” said Lebsack.

Another student, Dillon Beatty, talked about living with Aspergers syndrome saying that while some might see it as a disability, he sees it as a gift.

Meningitis caused Michael Richard’s intellectual disability and high school was not a pleasant experience for Richard who said his peers made life hard. He said he wasn’t treated like everyone else and that he does feel different.

Moore said the whole experience has been positive for his students and that they are looking forward to seeing the performance. “Not only did they gain more confidence but it helped them with their reading and writing skills. They also know that they are helping to educate others.

During scene changes, drama students read speeches written by the LifeLink students, and Rada said each of those students work hard to accurately portray the writer.

Rada said her students were excited to go and have lunch with the students that wrote the parts.

“One of the neat things is that many of the LifeLink students attended Scottsbluff High School, and my students never really had the opportunity to meet them. But now after reading about their disability they have gained a new respect for them.

“I also think the experience especially helped the drama students get into their character more. It puts a face to disabilities and enlightens all of us, because the production is not about people with disabilities, but the struggles all of us go through in life,” Rada said.