‘Guess what he did today?’

Lawrence school district accommodates Atlantic Beach resident

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Since he was born 13 years ago, Atlantic Beach resident Oliver Miller has suffered daily seizures, compounded by blindness and developmental delays that stem from a seizure he had prior to his birth.

Due to his disabilities, Oliver received home-based early-intervention services through the Hagedorn Little Village School in Seaford before he began attending the school at age 3. At 11 he moved to the Carman Road School in Massapequa, which is part of Nassau BOCES, and had to ride a bus for over an hour each way. “I became increasingly uncomfortable with him being so far away, especially in case something happened,” said his mother, Missy. “We had a lot of hard decisions to make.”

Those decisions were made easier with the help of Lawrence School District Superintendent Gary Schall, who came up with the idea of having Oliver attend school in the district three years ago. Schall, the former head of Lawrence’s music program, knew Katy Miller, Oliver’s sister, who had performed in school musicals and sung at events. Katy graduated last year.

“I had seen Oliver come to productions his sister was in, and I got to know him,” Schall said. “I remember seeing Missy at an event and she told me her father had a stroke and she had to get up each morning and take care of her husband and Oliver. She’s a remarkable woman and they’re a remarkable family. I wanted to see what I could do.”

Missy told Schall that if the district could create a program to meet her son’s needs, Oliver could attend school in Lawrence. Schall introduced Missy to the district’s Life Skills program, in which students ages 13 to 16 who have significant cognitive impairments learn academic and independent-living skills. Educational components were added to the program to accommodate Oliver. “When they invited me to come look around the building, the lessons were appropriate for Oliver and the staff members were all saying hello to him,” she said. “I knew within minutes that he’d be getting the socialization he needs and that this is where he belongs.”

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