LPS center helps students with disabilities prepare for adult life

"Heat pan, add meat, break up and stir. Mix in taco seasoning. Stir, and bring to a boil. Simmer for five minutes."

These are some of the instructions provided as part of a recipe for walking tacos, a lunch prepared by students with special needs at the Independent Living Center on Thursday.

With the help of two teachers and additional support staff, Koda Dubbs, Darius Antonides and Matthew Leach were busy at work, each assigned with a different task.

Hovering over the stove, Dubbs was browning and breaking up ground beef into bits and pieces in a pan, Leach was peeling avocados and Antonides was looking up instructions on an iPad.

A typical day where special needs students come together to learn, cope and become functioning adults.

The Independent Living Center is a Lincoln Public Schools program under the Independence Academy aimed at equipping 18- to 21-year-old students with disabilities with the skills needed to better transition to adult life.

Recent renovations, thanks to a hefty donation from former LPS teacher Pat Campbell, added more rooms and now allow for greater space and accessibility.

Currently, the center can accommodate between 12-15 students at any given time.

"We have a variety of opportunities for our students to engage in activities to prepare them for that next step," said Alisha Bollinger, special education supervisor and an administrator at the Independence Academy. "Students can really focus on those independent living skills that they would need to live either on their own or in a supported living environment."

Established more than 20 years ago, the Independent Living Center is one of 11 programs for students with special needs.

It’s also the only one open in the summer.

According to Bollinger, the goal is to provide certain students with the added assistance they need during the summer months so they can build on progress they’ve made during the school year.

"We want to make them as independent as possible,” Bollinger said. “But we also know that the outcomes are really varied and that we have students who are going to need a lot of support when they reach the age of 21."

Along with the students’ parents, an Individual Education Program (IEP) team makes decisions about which programs and services need to be provided based on each student's needs.

During their time at the center, students take part in day-to-day activities, including laundry, dishes, cooking practice and even yard work when the weather allows.

Abigail Elgueta, a teacher at the Independence Academy, said one of her favorite parts is seeing progress being made.

"Being able to finally see it or being able to finally hear a student say a certain thing like 'Please,' or 'Excuse me,' or 'I need to use the restroom,' — that’s one of my favorite things because that just means that we’re helping them with the things that they need to learn," Elgueta said. "And that’s our whole purpose here: to be able to give them these skills before they leave."