Holy Cross raises awareness for autism

By Caleb Workman

School holds assembly to show people with autism aren’t much different

“Inside, I’m just like you,” is a new motto adopted by Holy Cross Catholic Elementary School after the recent World Autism Awareness Day.

Some students in the school created a video to show how, inside, people with autism do not differ from everyone else. The project was led by Grade 7 teacher, Robert Ferranti and his class.

“We were talking about World Autism Day probably about a month and a half ago and I’ve done things in the past with World Autism Day because it is something near and dear to my heart,” said Ferranti. “My son, Jack, has autism and he  once attended this school, so we used to do fundraisers all the time and I thought now that I have a class of my own it would be a good idea to revisit that and have another fundraiser.”

The video was featured at an assembly held by the class, and they also sold bracelets with all proceeds going to support autism awareness. Ferranti said the long hours spent in class planning everything taught the kids more than the curriculum ever could.

“The amount of compassion and empathy that was displayed by these kids was heartwarming,” said Ferranti. “Communication between students and people with autism is an example of the by-products from these kinds of assemblies and campaigns.”

Ferranti said through the experience and the video, the students and those watching it really get the sense that people with autism are not different.

Grade 7 student Keon Shoushak was a speaker at the assembly and shared facts about autism.

“Autism is just a hard way of communicating with someone and that’s the only real difference,” said Shoushak. “They can’t get their words across the same way and they have a hard time expressing themselves but everything else is the same.”

Shoushak said he learned he has to be more cautious in the way he interprets people.

“You can’t make judgments too quickly on people because it can offend them or their families because you don’t know and you can’t always just assume that you know,” said Shoushak.

Another Grade 7 student, Olivia Lutfallah, said she was in charge of putting the video together.

“I think it was important that the kids understood others with autism are just like us and they’re no different except that they have trouble communicating with us,” said Lutfallah. “This whole experience has changed my outlook on everything. I see them a whole different way now.”

One Holy Cross educational assistant, Tracey Heavens, said awareness about this topic means everything to individuals with autism.

“It helps integrate the students with autism into other classes where the students can know and learn more about what they go through and how they learn and think,” said Heavens. “They also learn what autism is and how it is different for each child.”

Heavens said the students at Holy Cross are very compassionate towards students with autism and always make them feel wanted and welcome.

“It’s gotten to the point where we don’t have to tell the students to include them anymore, they are already on it and ready to include them,” said Heavens. “Sometimes they even fight over them.”

Heavens said their hope is the students will continue these practices in high school and beyond.

At the assembly students took out their bracelets which glowed and held them up for a minute to illuminate the dark room blue.

The school would like the community to remember, “Not only are people with autism just like us but inside, we are just like them.”