Project calls for autism awareness

Editor's note: Brienna Marcy is a senior at Edison High School and enrolled in the district's Teen Leadership Corps. class, which empowers teenagers to achieve their leadership potential through a character and service-based curriculum. SANDUSKY — Eight years ago, my family's life was changed forever. My little brother, Joseph, was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder, a developmental disorder that impairs the ability to communicate and interact with others at varying degrees of severity. Because of his diagnosis, Joseph couldn't really attend a public school, so my family enrolled him at New Story Schools in Sandusky. There, the faculty is able to help students that demonstrate skill deficits in areas of daily living, reciprocal social interactions, safety awareness and more on top of traditional education requirements: math, science, English, etc. My family and I couldn't be more grateful for the work that they do. This is why I dedicated my Teen Leadership Corps class project to helping the school. Throughout the month of November, I worked on making educational booklets and other teaching materials for the school. I made around 26 teaching materials that amounted to 136 pages. These booklets consisted of instructions to make a sandwich, cross the road or create a pizza. They were materials that not only taught the students real-life skills, but they included lessons in science and math as well. By committing to this project, I hope to not only show my gratitude to the faculty at New Story but to also bring awareness to autism and neurodivergence. I want people to know that the words "autism" and "autistic" should not be used as insults. Neurodivergent people are still people and deserve to be treated as such. They are some of the most loving, curious and intelligent people you will ever meet. Personally, my relationship with my brother means the world to me. I adore him in every sense of the word. He is someone who is naturally curious, hilarious, and incredibly intelligent. He teaches me something new every day, and I couldn't be more grateful that he's my brother. I hope that society will become more accepting of the neurodivergent community, starting with our area. Additionally, before joining Teen Leadership Corps, I wasn't sure how to help my community. Once I joined the class, though, I was given the resources, time and means to complete my project. I hope that other local students join Teen Leadership Corps. to contribute to their community. The school's staff was extremely thankful for the contribution and hope to advocate for further awareness. I am more than delighted that I could help them and I plan to make another package by the end of March, just in time for Autism Awareness Month in April. Donations, preferably items but monetary donations are accepted as well, to New Story can be made by: • Contacting them at its website newstoryschools.com • Emailing the Sandusky school's director Anabel Mcfadden at anabel.mcfadden@newstoryschools.com For more information, the school can be reached at @NewStorySchools on Instagram and Facebook. To keep up to date with my project and my fellow classmates' projects, be sure to follow Edison Teen Leadership Corps at @EdisonTLC on Instagram and Facebook. Thank you for your support.