By Nicole Falco
He was eventually diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder. He had trouble with communication, socialization and adapting to change, but early intervention, TV shows like ³Sesame Street² and Baldasare¹s own determination have helped him succeed despite his disability.
Baldasare¹s parents, Barbara and Anthony, recognized that their first-born son (their younger son, Jonathan, is a junior at North High) had no receptive or expressive language when he was about a year old. At about 21 months, he was placed in an infant/toddler program for children with disabilities. He attended pre-school at the Hagedorn Little Village School in Garden City (now located in Seaford), for children with disabilities. Having been diagnosed with autism, Baldasare spent kindergarten and first grade in a Nassau BOCES program in Massapequa for children with emotional difficulties, severe learning disabilities and autism. From there he moved to another BOCES program in North Bellmore.
³People really understood him there,² his mother said of the program in North Bellmore. ³His teacher said, ŒI know you¹re happy with him here, but the older he gets and the longer you wait, the harder it will be for the other kids to be accepting.¹ He had started there in December, and by April he was only in the special education class for a total of 15 minutes a day, just to take attendance and for reinforcements.²
Baldasare started third grade at the James A. Dever School. Now, at 19, the Malverne resident is a senior at North High School, and was looking forward to the prom on Friday, graduating with a Regents diploma on June 23 and attending Nassau Community College in the fall to study commercial art and computer graphics.
³As a parent, no matter what the issue is with your child, you have a vision for that child,² said Barbara. ³If you don¹t think of this kid in the future with a million obstacles, you won¹t be motivated to clear those obstacles one at a time.²
Throughout Michael¹s schooling, many people have helped him become an honor roll student and member of the National Honor Society: teachers, aides, counselors, administrators, students, parents and others, Barbara said. Outside school, he played basketball with the Police Athletic League and baseball in the Valley Stream Little League. He also works one day a week at CVS in Franklin Square.
³People at school presumed competence in Mike,² Barbara said. ³If anybody has said anything negative, I¹ve never heard it. If they¹ve said anything to anybody I know, they¹ve never told me. The community has been more supportive than I ever could have imagined in my wildest dreams.²
When Barbara says the community has been supportive, she is talking about more than just the school community. At the suggestion of Ellen Palazzo, district coordinator of career and technical education, Barbara and her son went to LuMarr¹s Tuxedo on Rockaway Avenue to rent a tuxedo for the prom. There they met Jersen Louis, the store manager, a 1997 North High School graduate. Louis, who has worked at the store since high school and got the job in the first place thanks to what he learned in Palazzo¹s Home and Career Skills class, offered to waive the cost of Baldasare¹s tuxedo rental after hearing his story.
³When [Barbara] was telling me [Michael¹s] story, it just sent shivers down my spine,² Louis said. ³If he can do it when kids who have all the benefits can¹t, that¹s amazing. If he has come this far, I want to be the cherry on top of the cake, because he¹s working twice as hard as the rest of us.²
Louis also offered to pay for a corsage for Baldasare¹s date, Ashley Scialo, a 2004 North graduate. Scialo is one of the many students who befriended Baldasare through Palazzo¹s Education 101 and 102 classes, which give students the chance to explore the different facets of a career in education. Students take part in internships, including one in which they work with students with disabilities. Since seventh grade, Palazzo¹s students have worked with Baldasare.
³He¹s just an amazing young man,² Palazzo said. ³He¹s really worked very hard, and our students have worked very hard alongside him.²
Comments about this story? NFalco@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 208.
