Linking Employment, Abilities and Potential

Our Stories

Headed Off to College, Confident and Prepared

Headed Off to College, Confident and Prepared

To celebrate the start of the academic year, LEAP features Lauren’s High School High Tech final presentation. Lauren graduated from Valley Forge High School last spring and is now enrolled in college. Following is her HSHT exit presentation.

I chose Wright State University in Dayton not only because it is a reputable college, but also because it offers the services that I need to be able to participate in classes and to live on campus.

The school offers classroom and laboratory accommodations and assistance, reader/writer services, and test proctoring services, as well as adaptive technologies and classroom materials in alternative formats. I can also utilize the career and vocational support services. In addition to the academic services, I will have access to accessible housing and to personal care assistant services. The school also has adaptive recreation opportunities, such as adapted fitness, swim team, bowling, and downhill skiing to name a few.

I intend to major in education because I have always loved the aspects of learning and would like to encourage and assist others in reaching their full potential. I plan to use my degree and become a teacher. I have researched ways in which I would be able utilize my disability. I plan on incorporating technology in my classroom. I will use power point presentations for my lectures. I will use a classroom response system where questions are asked via slides and students use a handheld clicker to answer. This will help engage students in learning. There are many opportunities now as well as future advancements that will allow me to follow my passion.

HSHT has helped me prepare for my post-secondary transition by aiding me in researching various colleges and scholarship information and in conducting informational interviews in the field I plan to pursue. I’ve also had opportunities to develop my employment and independence skills by participating in workshops, activities, and leadership events, and these helped prepare me for my college experience. I have received and learned about such technology as an iPad and other communication devices that will be very helpful.

The technology I plan to purchase or use during college is a laptop, iPad, smartphone, text-to-speech program, and Kurzweil 1000 (a reading tool), as well as some sort of communication device.