education | SMAHeadlines.com

Mother accepts son’s posthumous UTPA degree

December 19, 2010

Mother accepts son’s posthumous UTPA degree

The Monitor | December 18, 2010 | By Naxiely Lopez

MCALLEN — Yolanda Morado, the mother of a University of Texas – Pan American student who died in August, was met with a standing ovation and roaring applause as she received his posthumous degree during the Fall 2010 Commencement Ceremony Saturday at the McAllen Convention Center.

Her son Victor M. Alvarez, who suffered from spinal muscular atrophy, was well-known for his determination and joie de vivre among many in the South Texas community. Alvarez, a columnist for The Monitor, lived a full life despite his degenerative disease, said many who knew him.

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1 Comment | Education, Inspiration, Texas, Tribute, United States | Tagged: education, inspiration, Texas, tribute, united states | Permalink
Posted by stronwi

Ajax student uses webcam to join peers in classroom

December 17, 2010

Ajax student uses webcam to join peers in classroom

DurhamRegion.com | December 17, 2010 | By REKA SZEKELY

AJAX — Like any other Grade 1 student, Tristen Moses gets excited about going to school.

But instead of a traditional classroom, Tristen logs on via webcam from his living room where he can see his classmates at Bolton C. Falby Public School and his classmates can see him.

It’s all part of an innovative program created by Tristen’s teachers and the Durham District School Board and a team at the Grandview Children’s Centre.

Tristen has spinal muscular atrophy and was diagnosed with the condition when he was just 17 months old.

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Posted by stronwi

Roxbury kindergartner learning ABCs at home via computer connection

December 15, 2010

Roxbury kindergartner learning ABCs at home via computer connection

thedailystar.com | December 15, 2010 | By Mark Boshnack

ROXBURY — Video technology is providing a Grand Gorge boy with a long-term illness with an opportunity for a richer education, several involved with the effort said.

Five-year-old Dylan Utter is unable to attend kindergarten at Roxbury Central School because of the effects of a disease, spinal muscular atrophy, his mother Erica Utter said. He was diagnosed with it when he was 15 months old.

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Posted by stronwi

College Students Help Non-Verbal Children Communicate Many For The First Time

November 23, 2010

College Students Help Non-Verbal Children Communicate Many For The First Time

Medical News Today | November 23, 2010

Students majoring in communication disorders at Baldwin-Wallace College in Berea, Ohio, are ahead of their peers nationwide who are working toward careers in speech pathology because of a one-of-a-kind program that gives the undergraduates more hands-on experience than most graduate students in the field.

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Leave a Comment » | Education, Ohio, Speech Therapy | Tagged: education, ohio, speech therapy | Permalink
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Staying Connected At A Distance

November 19, 2010

Staying Connected At A Distance

Rosemount Town Pages | November 19, 2010 | By Nathan Hansen

On Monday morning, Mary Kate Bigelow and her third-grade classmates were hard at work unscrambling words. But while Mary Kate could see the other students and hear the chatter of the classroom, she couldn’t turn and whisper with a friend. Couldn’t ask for help or share a joke.

Mary Kate was miles away from the rest of the students, sitting in front of a small white laptop computer in her Rosemount home.

For the next few months, a webcam and a microphone will be Mary Kate’s primary connection to her classmates at Red Pine Elementary School. Diagnosed at 6 months of age with spinal muscular atrophy, a condition that causes a wasting of her muscles, Mary Kate is particularly at risk to illness. That makes cold and flu season is a dangerous time for her to be around large groups of potentially sick kids. So, while friends deal with sniffles and sneezes this winter Mary Kate will stay at home. When the days turns warmer in the spring and the risk of illness fades, she’ll head back to school.