BHS houses one of the best special education programs in Oakland county, along with this our LINK program is exceptional. Today we dive into the class LINK, a program at BHS that creates a safe space for kids with special needs to create key friendships and explore life skills along the way.
LINK is sometimes perceived in a different way than it really is. Some view it as a program where your job is to “help” the students, almost acting like another teacher. However, that is entirely the opposite of what the students are there for. Those who are a part of LINK are expected to walk into their class everyday ready to be a productive role model and a good friend for their peers. LINK is an elective class that anyone is welcome to take. In LINK, along with working with peers every day, once a month all the LINKs meet together and learn about different disabilities.
Kim Sclafani, LINK program director and teacher at BHS walks us through what you’re signing up for when joining. “Students who take the class are paired up with a student with a disability.” Normally, students are paired up with their classmates in a GEN Ed classroom, a classroom with students who aren’t a part of the LINK program. The other setting is in a special education classroom, which is a classroom with 3-5 students paired with a paraprofessional helper. “But the whole idea is to build friendships and create bonds,” said Mrs. Sclafani, “and be a role model for positive academic and social behaviors.”
As well as making friends and learning how to be a better friend, LINK benefits students with disabilities in other ways as well. Mrs. Sclafani shares why she thinks LINK is beneficial to students at BHS, “I think it’s huge because they get the opportunity to spend time with all different types of students. They can get a better understanding of their needs.”
The LINK program have been very successful at making our peers more comfortable and seen at school, they are now more excited and motivated to go to school everyday because of their friends they make through this program.“They don’t exactly have the same needs as everyone else, they are all unique and are able to get to know more people and build relationships.”
Sadie Bancroft, a senior participating in LINK, explains the program’s purpose and benefits. Bancroft joined the LINK program last year. Every day she is excited for a new activity she can experience with her LINK friends. Her class is their gym class, in the gym they experience different games, sports, and ways to be active. Bancroft is there to make the students feel comfortable, and be someone they can look for when confused about a certain activity or game. Being in the LINK program, students who take the class have a different perspective than those who haven’t.
Bancroft dives into what LINK is like from a student’s perspective, “It’s a lot of fun to hang out with other people.” Many students’ social lives rely on school, as some of them don’t get to hangout with their friends outside of school. It’s hard for some of our peers to hangout with their friends outside of school, mostly because there aren’t a lot of events that house a comfortable environment for them, so they tend to rely on school to indulge in their social life. “I love how we get to see how important [our presence] is to them, and how much they look up to us,” said Bancroft.
Despite being so important the happenings in LINK are often misunderstood. Bancroft is prompted with the question, “How is it different from what people necessarily think of it?” adding, “We are there to help them if they need help, but we are mainly there just to be their friends, hang out with them, and help them be more comfortable trying new things.”
While this class includes the idea of creating a safer and more comfortable school environment for our peers with disabilities, those who take the class tend to benefit from it as well. Sadie contributes to that theme, “I think that being around kids that are all so different helps my social skills. It’s just as much fun for me as it is for them. They are so sweet and they look to us as their best friends and it makes me so happy that we make them so happy.”
In conclusion, LINK is such a special class for making new friends. You can wave at or high-five in the hallway and talk to them at BHS events. Taking this class includes learning about different disabilities to become more informed and knowledgeable about what these students go through day by day. BHS prioritizes feelings of safety and acceptance amongst students, and LINK is one of the important ways of doing so. When filling out your schedule for your classes next year, don’t hesitate to put down LINK if you are interested in supporting our peers.
