#HILL ON PROLOQUO HOW TO#
How to include students with disabilities is an ever-present challenge, one that picks at some of Judaism's most sensitive issues. Technology gave me the tools to speak and Hillel gave me a reason. Statistically speaking, I shouldn’t be in college. While technology has given me a voice and allowed me to form real relationships - changing my life entirely - there are so many others who are still stuck in silence. Looking back on my accomplishments since arriving in college, I am filled with a mix of pride and concern.
#HILL ON PROLOQUO PROFESSIONAL#
Through collaboration with my peers, we made a plan, which I presented to a Hillel International professional via Google Hangout - something I couldn’t have done a few years ago. I have even been the lead on one of the working groups, primarily focusing on Shabbat engagement. Using technology, such as my iPad and Google Hangout, I’m able to actively participate in all of the Cabinet’s discussions. Joining the Hillel International Student Cabinet would give me a chance to connect with a wider and more diverse group of students, where I could also share knowledge and improve issues regarding diversity and inclusion. I also decided to take on an even greater challenge last August. After listening to her, I drew from my own experiences, and connected her with Student Accessibility Services and the Women’s Center. I met with an unengaged student who was going through a difficult time and didn’t feel connected to Jewish life on campus. I saw this during one of my first coffee dates as an intern. With Hillel’s encouragement, I applied for and became a student engagement intern on campus last year.īecause I went most of my life without a means to communicate, I know the power of conversation to build relationships. I had some difficult moments during my freshman year, but as I became more efficient with typing and communicating, I grew more confident. I soon found myself there every Friday night, engaged in extensive discussions on my iPad, surrounded by my peers in a song-filled service. She connected me to other Jewish students, who offered to meet me at my dorm and walk with me to Hillel. As we talked about my Jewish experiences, life on campus and student life at Hillel, I began to feel at home. Lauren, the assistant director at the time, texted me and asked to grab coffee. However, after I spent Rosh Hashanah alone, crying in my dorm, my mother called Hillel at Ohio University and asked for help on my behalf. The new environment proved to be overstimulating, and once again I fought to achieve my goals. I enrolled at Ohio University after years of being told I would never go to college. It took me a little longer, but I graduated at age 21. One of those was to finish high school - something only 65 percent of students with disabilities do.
![hill on proloquo hill on proloquo](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/5a/c2/0a/5ac20ae4228ac801cca2a72f65a69c98--social-skills-social-work.jpg)
After years of silently observing the world, I was ready to delve into it.Īs I began to type more, I started to share my hopes and dreams for the future. First through pictures on the Functional Communication System app, and then letter by letter using the communication app Proloquo2Go on my iPad, I began to converse with others for the first time.
![hill on proloquo hill on proloquo](https://cdn.securem2.com/commonimages/business/5378/2017/7/Comet-large-hill-display3.jpg)
Medical professionals ignored my strengths and failed to see my intellectual ability, telling my family that I would need continuous supervision and to be taught with simplified instruction.īut later, I proved everyone wrong. But I remained mostly non-speaking throughout childhood. Speech therapy helped me make minor progress, teaching me to repeat words and phrases. When I was 18, I found my voice - literally.ĭiagnosed with autism at a young age, I went without appropriate communication for years.