Yes I Can

By Tiana Kennell

Two grinning young men greet their principal during their daily half-mile walk through the school’s hallways. They pass a physical therapist encouraging another student in a walker to take a step on his own. Meanwhile, students in tiny classrooms listen attentively as teachers praise them for mastering tasks like eating a sandwich or tying a shoe.

It’s all part of a typical day at the Moses Field Center, a special Detroit Public School that focuses on the needs of mentally handicapped children.

The school, established in 1983, teaches verbal and non-verbal communication and other essential life skills to cognitively impaired children between the ages of 3 to 13. Principal Steven Artt says the school is one of five local public educational facilities and two elementary schools that focus on the needs of children with learning challenges. (Keidan Elementary is the Westside equivalent of Moses Field, which is located on the Eastside of Detroit.)

Artt says that Moses Field is special because its curriculum is designed to meet the children’s needs. Whether a student needs a physical therapist, a nurse or someone who cares, they can get it all the school. “We’re able to offer the children every service they need on staff,” he says.

Moses Field classrooms are separated into four levels for the Severely Multiply Impaired, the Severely Cognitive Impaired, the Moderately Cognitive Impaired, and the Autistic Impaired. Artt says that a teacher and two paraprofessionals are placed inside the classrooms of 12 or fewer students to guarantee that each child gets equal amounts of personal attention. Classrooms are equipped to handle the needs of each child. In some cases that means tube-feeding devices for the children who cannot orally ingest their meals. And since many of the students use wheelchairs, everything from the buses to the swings in the gym is wheelchair-compatible.

“I call it a full service station,” says Elaine Kosloski, a special education teacher for more than 30 years. “It has everything!”

Everything includes activities such as making strawberry jam, preparing meals, creating scrapbooks, and going on field trips. The students have visited malls, parks, petting farms, swimming pools and the Michigan State Fair. Kosloski says the lesson students learn is, “We can go out and do it too!”

John is one example.

A 12-year-old severely multiply impaired child, John (not his real name) was stoic and noncommunicative when he started attending the school two years ago. Gary Peppler, John’s special education teacher, says he rarely attended school and seldom interacted with other students. The school contacted Child Protective Services of Michigan and requested an investigation. The agency determined that John was living in filth with an aunt who was physically and emotionally unable to care for him. After being removed from his home and placed with a foster family, John began to attend school regularly. Since then, he has learned how to speak and has formed relationships with the other children and teachers.

“He’s talking all the time in full sentences,” Peppler says. “When we’re in the hallways, he knows everyone’s names.”

That message of hope floods the school hallways every day as the children become more independent. They are taking their first steps, forming their first complete sentences, and defying the limitations. Artt says students many of the students at Moses Field eventually advance to traditional schools and transition centers where they learn job skills and work-related academics. Former students have obtained jobs at stores and car washes, and some have learned to live alone or with another student.

“The goal is to have as many students who are capable to get a job,” says Artt, who has been principal at Moses Field for the last two years. “Our goal is to have the children integrated with the community and not be isolated.”

The school also provides support to the parents and guardians. Artt says the Moses Field’s Local School Community Organization (LSCO) invites guest speakers to their meetings to educate parents and answer questions. The group also hosts annual potlucks and picnics to encourage the families to meet and share with one another. Kosloski says when the parents and siblings interact and network with each other they realize that they are not alone.

The school has not only benefited the students and families, but also the Moses Field staff.

“I really enjoy the children because they are loving and caring,” Artt says. “I enjoy coming in talking to them and seeing what progress they have made. It’s almost like a family.”

For more information about the Moses Field Center, call (313) 866-5790.

(African American Family Magazine, October 2007)