Roxanne Jimenea recalls giving birth to her daughter, Andreina Perez, prematurely. “From the get-go, I knew she was very ambitious,” Roxanne says. “She screamed so loud that the obstetrician said, ‘even though she’s 33 weeks, she thinks she’s a full-term baby.’”
Andreina received early intervention services for her speech and walking delays, along with Applied Behavioral Analysis and occupational therapy. Now, after two years at AHRC New York City’s Astoria Blue Feather Early Learning Center, Andreina uses words to communicate, as opposed to the hand gestures she once relied upon, her mother says.
She has progressed so much that she will enter kindergarten in the fall in a local community school.
“She’s very sociable and sweet, has friends and wants everyone to be comfortable,” Roxanne adds. “I feel like she’s always been this way; she wants her presence known.”
Astoria Blue Feather is a barrier-free school for children between the ages of 3 and 5, who have developmental delays, communication disorders, and/or orthopedic needs. Classrooms are designed for 8-12 children, ensuring a high teacher-to-student ratio in each instructional setting.
When she entered preschool, Andreina was withdrawn and didn’t communicate with words, relying on a picture exchange communication system, recalls Sandra M. Evangelista-Gilman, Astoria Blue Feather Principal. “She was a little girl who was uncertain about what was going on.”
Staff learned Andreina was bright. “She had a lot of information and knowledge, but difficulty getting it out,” Sandra says, adding that she would try to communicate but was difficult to understand which made her more frustrated.
Eventually Andreina grew more comfortable with the staff and realized they were there to help her. Today she is a confident student, who speaks in complete sentences and expresses her feelings, rather than cries. She is more in tune with her environment and is retaining more information.
Anuradha Mann, Andreina’s special education teacher, credits the coupling nature and nurture. “You need to know the child’s nature – how they respond to the environment,” she says. “You nurture the child based on personality and how he/she prefers to learn. That’s how we learned to work well with each other. Andreina enjoys learning in all setting and through all modalities.”
“She can express herself without prompts and seems to be making more connections to the real world,” Anuradha says. “She’ll talk about her little sister or share small details about her mother or father.”
Andreina, who recently turned 5, and her sister, Eliana Perez, 3, are best friends, While Andreina will be leaving the school, Eliana will start her second year at Astoria Blue Feather in the fall.
For the first time, autism is being diagnosed more frequently in Hispanic and African American children than in white youngsters in the U.S., according to a recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report.
Studies have also found that Hispanic children are diagnosed at a later age than white children. Language and navigating a complex system contribute to the disparity. But with awareness increasing in the Latino community, there’s a move to bring these youngsters the supports they need, while ensuring that families understand what an autism diagnosis means for their child and family.
“I feel there are a lot of parents who are in denial about their child having an individualized education plan or any kind of learning delay,” Roxanne says. “It’s not a death sentence. I do everything I can to get both my daughters the services they need.”
Graduation will be emotional, Roxanne says, adding, because she’s so proud of the progress Andreina has made.
“I remember when she was born and she was only 4 pounds, 6 ounces,” Roxanne says. “She was so small, but I knew she had the biggest personality when she came into this world.”
Javier Flores Loves Numbers
“It feels like family,” says Patricia Perguachi, whose son, Javier Flores, will be leaving AHRC NYC’s Astoria Blue Feather Early Learning Center in a few weeks. “I call and the receptionist knows me. I have grown so many relationships with people in the program.”
Among those she wishes she could take with Javier, who will attend a general education kindergarten class at PS 89 in September, is his teacher for the last two years, Alicia Albornoz.
Javier knows his routines in Alicia’s class and may get upset when it is altered. Alicia has noticed the writing of his name, numbers, and shapes have improved. “Everything you give to him, he does it,” Alicia says. “And if he doesn’t understand, he will ask for help and then he can do it.”
Javier entered the preschool as a withdrawn child, who would utter one or two words to communicate, recalls Sandra M. Evangelista-Gilman, Astoria Blue Feather Principal. “Javier has just moved mountains,” she says. “Now you have a confident child who holds his head high, greeting people and helping his peers.”
Javier loves numbers. “Math is very easy for him to learn,” Alicia says, adding he also enjoys buses, art, singing, dancing, and books. Using positive reinforcement to reward Javier for completing an activity or task well, he has made great strides. He will continue to receive occupational, speech and physical therapies in public school.
“I think he will do well in the new school,” Alicia says. “He follows directions and does everything.”
Patricia, who lives in Elmhurst, credits her son’s improvement to Alicia, whom she calls “Miss Alice,” and other staff.
“It’s not me,” Alicia says. “It’s Javier. It’s easy for me to work with him. He’s bright and has a good memory. He must continue to work hard, and his teachers must challenge him.”
Astoria Blue Feather has helped not only Javier, but also Patricia. Her older daughter, Kayla Flores, also got her start at the program and will be entering middle school as Javier starts kindergarten.
“The school has helped me so much,” Patricia says. “I was frustrated because I didn’t know what to do to help him. They helped me with Kayla, too, but Javier had more delays. Miss Alice, the therapists, and everyone is there whenever I have questions. They always have answers.”
“Miss Alice works with a lot of love,” Patricia adds. “She loves the children and loves the profession.”
Sandra agrees that Alicia leads with her heart. “She pushes the children and challenges them. We know they will progress.”
Javier was recently diagnosed with mild autism. “We look at his skills and what he can do,” Sandra says. “It may impact the way he learns, but it will not keep him from functioning in his learning environment. Autism is not a life sentence,” she added. “Things can be done and getting support early on in school as well as in the home will help.”
As for Javier’s future? His mother says he can do whatever he wants to, “as long as he has a profession.” Perhaps his love of numbers will lead him to become an accountant, just like Patricia.
