Bronte Segura

Students circle around as junior Sarah Goldblum reads “The Berenstain Bears.”

Every day during third hour, junior Sarah Goldblum works with special education students as a cadet teacher in an alternate theatre class.

“Mrs. Gossett recommended me for my IEP [Individualized Education Plan],” Goldblum said. “It would be an add-on from my camp experience.”

Over the summer Goldblum attended a Jewish leadership camp called Kutz.

“I was able to choose different majors, I chose Mitzvah Corp which meant I learned about autism, and while I was learning, there was a side camp going on with teenagers that had autism,” Goldblum said.

The program’s mission was to honor the unique characteristics of every camper while providing access to Jewish camping. The “camp within a camp” model allowed Goldblum to serve as a peer-mentor, which allowed campers to participate fully in the Jewish camp experience in a safe and nurturing environment that fostered positive self-esteem and social skill development.

“She has such a caring heart,” theatre teacher Amy Gossett said. “She’s such a caring person and she’s a hard worker, and that’s exactly what you need in that class.”

Upon returning to school, Goldblum enrolled as a Cadet Teacher in Gossett’s Alternative Theater Arts class. Gossett and student teacher Ashley Gist work with the cadets to support and encourage the students in their class.

“You have to have a certain amount of patience, but you also have to be firm at the same time,” Gist said. “They really respond to people that have that kind of caring personality.”

In addition, Goldblum participated in Special Olympics, for the first time this year, and assisted freshman Kathryn Kerckhoff in giving the opening ceremony speech. 

“I asked Sarah if she would be willing to help Kathryn with that, and there was no hesitation, just ‘Sure what do I need to do?’” Gossett said.

While Goldblum was nervous, she and Kerckhoff practiced together the week before.

“She has actually expressed a lot of interest wanting to go into this as a career someday,” Gist said.

The time that Goldblum spends with the special education students also works towards A+ tutoring hours and cadet teaching.

“It’s a great way to earn the hours, but I’m not just doing this for some hours on my transcript,” Goldblum said.

Goldblum feels rewarded by the experience.

“The best has been when they smile,” Goldblum said. “Anyone can smile, but when someone who is not neurotypical does, it just means so much more. It’s like each smile that they give, they brighten the darkest room there is.”