Even though Katrina Watters’ 15-year-old nonverbal son Matthew doesn’t have the words to express how he feels about attending the Pacific Autism Center for Education, she knows he’s happy.
Matthew has been attending the nonpublic school for five years now and lives at one of PACE’s group homes. His mother said his behavior has been like “night and day” since coming to PACE. In the past, he’s struggled with aggression and “elopement” — trying to leave whatever space he was currently in.
“When he started coming here, within a month and a half they all just bottomed out,” Watters said of his behaviors. “They weren’t existent anymore. That’s how we knew this was the right place, because he was communicating that he felt safe and cared for.”
PACE is a nonprofit that’s been catering to individuals with moderate-to-severe autism since 1989. They have five group homes as well as two schools — one in Santa Clara and the other in Sunnyvale — that serve more than 60 kids ages 6 to 22.
Emily Gogas, a teacher and the curriculum coordinator at PACE, said many of the students haven’t always had the most positive experiences at other schools.
“Getting these students who you know have had some challenges, maybe had some negative experiences and just trying to make school a place they want to go and want to be again, is a huge part of my job and something that I keep in the back of my mind every day,” Gogas said.
At first glance, PACE’s Sunnyvale campus, which serves high school and post-secondary students, looks like any other school — the hallways are lined with lockers, and classrooms have rows of desks and chairs. But the class sizes are much smaller, and all the students are on Individualized Education Programs — or IEPs — to ensure their specific needs are being met.
There’s also an occupational therapy gym — a vibrant room filled with swings, hammocks, monkey bars and other equipment that helps with sensory regulation and other motor skills. PACE’s vocational room offers students a chance to practice everyday living skills like doing laundry, washing dishes, making their beds and setting a table before a meal.
Wish Book donations to PACE will help support and expand the various programs offered by the agency.
Tammie Vaughn said her 18-year-old son Andre has seen the biggest improvement in his ability to carry out daily tasks since he started attending PACE in April. Before, she had to prompt him to do everything from brushing his teeth to getting dressed. But now, he doesn’t need her help as much
“He’s just a lot more mature and independent, I don’t have to worry when he’s here,” Vaughn said. “I’d get calls all the time before — he’s acting out, this happened, he’s trying to escape. I’d be on my phone the whole time, and I’d sometimes camp out near school. Now, nothing. It’s been amazing that I don’t get any calls.”
Andre’s newfound sense of independence has given Vaughn a break — something she hasn’t had in years of caring for him from the moment he gets up until he goes to bed. He loves going to PACE, too, and she said he’s very proud when he gets to go out and volunteer in the community.
PACE has partnerships with several organizations and local businesses in the area that gets students out of the classroom and doing certain tasks, such as preparing to open the restaurant at Cicero’s Pizza by folding pizza boxes and setting tables. Other students go to the Animals Assisted Happiness farm to work with animals or Sunnyvale Community Services, where they help sort food or double-bag groceries.
School resource coordinator Jocelyn Malkenhorst said the goal is to take students out of a safe container and then expose them to new people and new environments where they can practice different skills like coping in a social setting and learning how to regulate themselves.
She’s been working at PACE for about a year now, and said one of the things she loves most about the school is the community.
“Everybody is really compassionate in this community, everyone has the same goals of helping others and helping see our students succeed in life, whereas maybe others think they can’t do anything,” Malkenhorst said. “We’re able to find tools and resources for these students to be able to thrive and have a better quality of life and teaching them skills to cope with the struggles they have, whether it’s emotional or the skills that they need to learn to be a bit more independent.”
As a parent, Watters said she has felt that sense of community for her son. When she first toured PACE five years ago she was filled with anxiety, worried that they wouldn’t know how to handle Matthew just like the past schools he attended. But as she walked around the campus, she saw other kids that reminded her of her son. And the teachers at PACE, Watters said, “just get it.”
“I think that’s the thing that it’s given me that’s the most priceless, just the faith that they can handle it and that my son is safe and that he is cared for and that he is understood,” she said. “He’s not just seen as a set of behaviors or a set of things to fix, they really see him for his whole self.”
THE WISH BOOK SERIES
Wish Book is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization operated by The Mercury News. Since 1983, Wish Book has been producing series of stories during the holiday season that highlight the wishes of those in need and invite readers to help fulfill them.
WISHDonations to PACE will help support and expand the various programs offered by the agency. Goal: $10,000
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