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Manhattanville College, Class of 1997:
BA Sociology
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St. Joseph College, Class of 2004, MA
Counseling
I have worked with special needs children
since I was 17. As a junior in high school I volunteered during the school
year to help out in a Special Education classroom. I loved working with
the kids. They inspired me to look for a profession helping out kids
whether it was social work or teaching.
When I
graduated from college I worked as a paraprofessional in the West Hartford
School system in a Special Education classroom. This was my first
experience working with kids who had autism. I then moved on to
Connecticut Children's Medical Center (CCMC) School working with
socially and emotionally disturbed adolescents. It was at CCMC that I
realized I wanted to be a counselor rather than a teacher. I was able to
talk to them on an individual basis and help them more with their
emotional needs. A job opportunity opened at The Gengras Center, a Special
Education school located at St. Joseph College. I began taking classes to
earn my master's degree in counseling. I loved being with the kids at
the Gengras Center in the Life Unit where we could work on their social
and emotional needs as well as being out in the community. It was a unique
place to work and I learned a great deal from all of my mentors there.
As I started looking for places to do my
internship for counseling, it was difficult to find the right place and
one that would fit in with my schedule at Gengras.
FOCUS Alternative Learning Center popped out at me from the list. I
remembered driving by and always thought it looked like a fun place, with
all of the decorations on the windows.
Donna, the Executive Director, called me from her house, where she
had just walked in the door when her five Irish Wolfhounds began to
serenade me on the phone. I knew that FOCUS was the right fit! My husband and I have two dogs and we are huge animal lovers.
The day that I went for my interview, I
walked through the doors and into a scavenger hunt in Girls' Group. It
was an amazing experience seeing such a close-knit group and staff
members. I went home that night and told my husband I found the perfect
match for my internship. I also knew where I wanted to work after I
graduated. Luckily for me, everything worked out and I was hired in March
of this year as the Clinical Coordinator. I love being a part of the Focus
Family and everyone works together as a team, especially the kids. It has
been a unique opportunity and its one that I look forward to being a part
of everyday!
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