Newark High School program prepares students for careers helping people with disabilities

NEWARK – Emma Halderman has been supporting fellow students with disabilities since the fifth grade.

Playing with others at recess motivated her to find other ways to help her friends feel included without feeling overwhelmed.

This year, she’s worked one-on-one with a fellow student in Newark High School’s Unified Physical Education class, helping him complete his warmups and learn new games.

With her senior year approaching, Halderman is thinking about college and a career as an intervention specialist. So when she found out about a new program, designed to give students hands-on experience in the developmental disabilities field while still in high school, she was excited to sign up.

On April 22, Halderman and six of her classmates took the first steps toward completing NHS’s new DSP-U program. After completing an introductory session, she’ll continue training when she returns from summer break.

"My end goal is to be able to help people," she said. "This can help me with my future employment."

In the developmental disabilities field, a direct support professional, or DSP, is paid to provide direct care and support to people with disabilities. Their responsibilities look different, based on what each person needs — ranging from helping someone get up in the morning and start their day to coaching someone on job tasks to helping them make friends or explore a hobby.

The role has some similarities to a paraprofessional, who provides care and academic support for children in school settings.

Both jobs are critical for people with disabilities to stay safe, healthy and as independent as possible. And both are significantly in demand throughout Ohio and beyond.

Regan Eveland, chief executive officer of Center for Disability Services — one of Licking County’s oldest DD providers — sees the need for direct care firsthand.

The agency has struggled to find enough staff to meet the needs of the people they support. Young people often have the energy and passion to help others, but many high school students don’t even realize it’s an available career path, Eveland said.

"We know there are students who are interested in this kind of role, but they don’t know it’s a possibility for them," she said. "Before they end up learning more, they take their career in a different direction, not realizing they are great for this."

That’s where DSP-U comes in. Operated by the Ohio Alliance of Direct Support Professionals, the program partners with Ohio high schools to prepare students for careers in direct support, said Becky Watson, the Alliance’s engagement director.

Offered through in-person, virtual and hybrid formats, DSP-U guides students through 20 modules that provide information about developmental disabilities as well as needed skills — including professionalism, de-escalation and alternative ways to communicate. They also gain hands-on experience at an internship site.

Students who complete the program earn both state and national credentials as well as points toward their graduation requirements.

Although the goal is to prepare students to be immediately hirable as a DSP or paraprofessional, many participants see the program as the first step on their professional path.

Students who are interested in careers in health care, education, social work or other human services have found value in the class materials and the whole program as a great foundation toward their long-term professional goals, Watson said.

"I believe this program makes people better in every aspect of their lives," she said. "They are better siblings, friends, family members and overall better community members. They truly learn good life skills."

When Lori Mye, workforce development coordinator at Newark High School, heard about the DSP-U program, she saw it as another offering to start students on a career path with many possibilities.

"This is valuable training for anyone who wants to work with other humans," she said. "This is an opportunity that our students can train for right now, while still in school."

The combination of earning credentials and experiencing an internship made it especially appealing, she said.

"It’s one thing to go through training but to have an internship opportunity to actually try it will be beneficial," she said.

Mye began working with the Licking County Board of Developmental Disabilities and Ohio Alliance of Direct Support Professionals to secure funding and an internship site for the program.

When the 2024-2025 school year kicks off, NHS students will complete the Alliance’s full DSP-U program with additional material and support from the Board. Center for Disability Services is excited to provide internships for the students at both its residential homes and adult day service, Eveland said.

"Having the opportunity to share our experiences and what we do with potential DSPs is exciting for us," she said. "This gives them the tools to be more prepared going into the field."

Many students are already supporting family members or friends at school with disabilities and DSP-U gives them a place to understand that those skills can turn into a job after high school, Mye said.

Hunter Stevens, a junior at NHS, has already had some experience providing direct care for a family member with dementia. His ultimate goal is to become an intervention specialist, but with the skills he gains through DSP-U, he’s thinking of spending several years as a paraprofessional before going to college.

Rae Morse, a sophomore at NHS, is hoping to become a therapist but is open to learning about other career paths through DSP-U.

"Having this experience at a young age may come in handy in the future," he said. "I can use this information to help others."

Anna Jeffries works for Licking County Board of Developmental Disabilities. For more information about DSP-U, visit OADSP.org or contact Becky Watson at bwatson@oadsp.org. If you represent a Licking County high school and are interested in starting a DSP-U program, contact Hannah Rebb at Hannah.Rebb@lcountydd.org.

This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: NHS program prepares students for careers helping people with disabilities