October Newsletter

Miniature Golf Outing

Sharing best practices and promoting inclusive opportunities for students with special needs    

Executive Director's

Message

Dear LABBB Community,

Hard to imagine that we are in October! LABBB is committed to improved experiences for all our learners, inclusive of continued and ongoing focus of students’ social emotional development and health. October is recognized as World Mental Health Month. The United Nations expresses, “Mental Health is a basic human right for all people.”  LABBB has continued its partnership with Dr. Alex Hirshberg, Psy. D. to assist in developing and implementing support and programming to ensure universal SEL (social emotional learning) is ongoing and implemented with efficacy throughout the collaborative programs. A shout out to the work being done by LABBB staff, but especially the BCBA and counseling departments, who continue to spearhead this initiative! LABBB remains committed to students, families and staff to ensure the development of lifelong practices supporting advocacy and accessible mental health support.

A reminder that the Program Directors and I are initiating ‘Dialogue with the Directors’. All are welcome! We will be hosting these as drop-in meetings to discuss what is on your mind - while we will not be answering specific student related questions, we hope to engage in dialogues with parents and/or community members about how to keep LABBB’s mission strong and vibrant for another 50 years! These meetings will be held at the LABBB Central Offices at 70 Blanchard Rd., Suite 206, Burlington, MA and will be held on October 23, 2024 from 1:30 - 2:30 pm; January 29, 2025 from 9:30- 10:30 am and April 1, 2025 from 9:30 - 10:30 am.  

We have rolled out our new website and are making revisions in real time! Please note that we have added a calendar feature and (hopefully) easier access to our school/program calendars. Additionally, we are/will be revising access to our Health/Nursing department site as well as the Recreation Department. Stay tuned!

Recreation opportunities continue for our middle and high school aged LABBB students. If you are interested in exploring any of these opportunities please contact your child’s teacher or program coordinator. I hope that everyone who attended the Reunion Dance had fun!

LABBB Evening Parent Meetings

LABBB Evening Parent Meetings will continue on the same evenings as our monthly dances (Thursday evenings). This allows parents of middle and high school students to drop off their daughter or son at the Lexington Community Center (39 Marrett Rd., Lexington, MA) then attend the meetings upstairs. We also encourage our parents of elementary school students to attend these parent nights. These informative meetings provide time to discuss and learn about a variety of topics related to programming, MCAS, special needs planning, recreation, transition, post -22 planning, supplemental security income (SSI), financial planning and many other important topics. Keep your eyes open for a survey regarding parent night topics that are of interest to you. We want to hear from you!

Parent meetings for 2024-25 will take place from 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on the following dates:

Our presenters and speakers are scheduled, but may change…

October 17, 2024- News and Updates from the Transition Department 

November 21, 2024- Guardianship

December 12, 2024 (NO Parent meeting)

January 9, 2025 - Basic Rights

February 6, 2025 - TBD

March 13, 2025 - Estate Planning

April 3, 2025 (NO Parent meeting)

May 15, 2025- Understanding Executive Functioning with Elise Wullf 

LABBB’s Transition Fair date - April 14, 2025

We look forward to seeing you!

Please do not hesitate to contact me directly at pgirouard@labbb.net with any questions or comments.

With appreciation,

Pam

Burlington High School LABBB Program gets a new kitchen!

By: Carol Chaisson HR 313 written with the help of students.

This year when coming back from the summer, one of our classrooms looked a little different…a new kitchen was built in HR 313! Students' families and staff have donated to the kitchen providing items such as pots, pans, utensils, silverware, pot holders, etc. Our students then helped to categorize and organize the cabinets and drawers in order to make our space more efficient. We are using the kitchen for weekly cooking classes where the students

are responsible for coming up with a plan. Students decide on the budget, menu, and necessary ingredients, then create a shopping list, decide on tasks for each student, and kitchen items needed for cooking. Bi-weekly students alternate between cooking or shopping and all participate in lessons surrounding planning and budgeting. We are looking forward to utilizing the kitchen for many more learning experiences!

Transition Department 

By: George Clement

The Transition Department is proud to announce that Paul O’Connell, a 27-year LABBB veteran, has joined our team.  Paul has served in various roles over the years and recently said, “I keep working here because I love working with the kids.”  Loyal, friendly, and insightful, Paul has become a great resource of care and skill development for many students and families.  On this team, Paul directs his talents toward building new community partnerships that provide a setting for our students to develop work readiness skills.

For 50 years, LABBB has taken pride in integrating students into the world of work.  Hands-on work within the community is the best place for students to practice their “soft skills,” experience new situations in their own locales, and learn some specific work skills.  Our Community Partners vary from volunteer organizations like Cradles to Crayons, to businesses like Cafe Services.

The major components of the LABBB model are: 1) a student ready for off-campus work activities, 2) a Transition Counselor, 3) a Community Instructor, 4) a Transition Program Coordinator, and 5) a Community Partner.  After a Team recommends a student for a work experience, a Transition Counselor, in consultation with the Transition Program Coordinator, works to place the student at a worksite.  The Counselor advises the Community Instructor on the student’s goals, strengths, and needs.  All professional staff bear some responsibility for maintaining a positive relationship with Community Partners.    

Finding viable Community Partners has become more challenging because of many forces, such as advanced technology, new regulations, or reduction in force.  The LABBB model blazed the trail, and many other student organizations have copied the model, leading to increased competition for community partnerships.  

To help LABBB maintain a strong program, Paul has canvassed retail, restaurant, and civic organizations, looking for volunteer opportunities, unpaid internships, and paid positions.  As a result, both the Lexington and Arlington Police Departments have opened their doors to our students for some volunteer experiences.  Momentum is building.

The key to Paul’s endeavors is building a network of contacts.  Cold-calling a business can lead to an opportunity, but often knowing an “inside person” accelerates the relationship building process.  The network is expanding, but we need the whole LABBB Family’s help to find meaningful and supportive partnerships.

If you know a manager, a business owner, or leading official at any organization that might want to realize their equity goals by working with LABBB’s neurodiverse student population, please reach out to Paul O’Connell and/or Transition Coordinator George Clement.

Paul O’Connell’s email:  poconnell@labbb.net 

George Clement’s email: gclement@labbb.net

Alone v. Lonely

By Christine Carr, LICSW

In a society that emphasizes connectivity, the concepts of being alone and being lonely can get confused. Yet, they are separate states with both positive and negative implications.

Being alone is merely being by oneself. We can choose to be alone or it can be the result of circumstances. Many find peace when alone to reflect, restore energy and rejuvenate. Raise your hands fellow introverts! Time alone can represent independence and comfort in one’s own presence.

Loneliness is an emotion relative to feeling disconnected, isolated or misunderstood. We can feel lonely in a crowded classroom if we are experiencing barriers to connections. At LABBB, we focus on eliminating those barriers in our social emotional learning (SEL) groups. We discuss the nature of relationships and the SEL skills to build those connections. We identify our strengths and how to use those strengths to overcome insecurities.

If you notice someone alone, don’t always assume they are lonely. Acknowledge and praise their self-care and confidence, and see if they want or are ready to make a connection. If you are lonely, seek connection from a trusted family member or friend, and ask for help from the LABBB counseling staff, we are here to help.

LABBB Adapted Physical Education, Recreation

REMINDER: The LABBB Recreation Brochure and monthly trips/dances flyers will ONLY be in our emailed LABBB newsletter and on our website (www.labbb.com). LABBB Recreation mailings will no longer be sent to LABBB family homes.  

September started off very well. All our afterschool activities are full and students are enjoying being back with their friends.

The Reunion dance was a huge success! We had about 230 people attend with alumni that graduated as far back as 1986. The Rock Star Graduates (band) played live for the beginning of the dance and then DJ Conor took over as alumni and some current students danced the night away.

The Annual LABBB Craft Fair was held on 10/5. Over 25 crafters assembled in the Lexington High School Field House where over 200 shoppers bought handmade gifts. It was wonderful to see so many families interacting together. Mrs. Claus even showed up from the North Pole to read stories and take photos. All proceeds will go to the LABBB Best Buddies. Make sure to join us next year (first Saturday in October). 

Dates to remember:

• October 17 - LABBB Halloween Dance
• November 21 - LABBB Harvest Dance

Remember to follow @LABBBREC on Twitter

LABBB Collaborative

70 Blanchard Rd, Suite 206, Burlington MA. 01803| LABBB.com