Spread the word on awareness

I read a great news article in the 06/15/08 Star Ledger. The inspiring story contained some great news, the kind of news that makes me want to Share Some Good Stuff.

A group of student mentors with Pathways for Exceptional Children in Morris County, New Jersey, are lobbying legislators in the state to write law requiring disability awareness to be included in the curriculum of all New Jersey public school from grade K to grade twelve. The states of West Virginia, Florida, North Carolina, Idaho and Washington already require disability awareness be included in the curriculum. New York and Illinois are already in the process of considering similar legislation. With statistics from the US Census Bureau showing 49.7 million people as having a disabilities it’s easy to see why there is such a need for law such as this.

What the teens are proposing is two weeks per school year dedicating to educating all public school students about disability history, disability rights and awareness. One of the goals of the program would be to instill empathy and problem-solving skills so that other students would better relate to and accept children with disabilities. One eighteen year old student, Allegra Stout, is quoted as saying “There’s so much lack of acceptance. A lot of that stems from lack of information. Children don’t understand about kids with disabilities.”

The State Department of Education is familiar with the proposal and does find it to have merit. Department spokesman Richard Vespucci is quoted as saying “We agree there should be more … specific language on disability awareness and the history of the disability rights movement”.

As many of you know I have a special need child. My younger son CJ has Down Syndrome. Anyone that knows me is aware of how strongly I feel about disability awareness. Understanding and acceptance should be the norm in today’s society. This legislation and education truly has the power to shape the future. If all states put legislature such as this on the books it would help build character in the general student population, as well as help contribute to the confidence, self esteem and self worth of children with disabilities. New relationships would be formed that would carry all children forward. And by educating the students perhaps the cycle of parents ignorant to the disabled would finally be broken, and positive examples would be set for future generations.

Mandatory disability awareness. Now that’s good stuff.