Special to The Citizen

A national club aimed at fostering friendships between special needs and regular education students is gaining popularity at Fayette’s high schools.

Starr’s Mill High was the first in the county and in Georgia to start a PALS (Peers Assisting Learning Support) club last year. Although the club is new, it already has 125 members. The club’s success lead another school to start its own chapter.

The PALS club at Sandy Creek High in Tyrone began in January 2006 and now has 37 registered members. The focus of the club is to allow students of all ability levels to experience the benefits of friendship, dedication and responsibility.

Social interaction among students is fostered through one-on-one group activities such as bowling, eating out, skating and attending chapter meetings. Club activities are held both during and after school.

One of Sandy Creek’s most recent social activities involved a trip to Pump It Up Party in Tyrone, an inflatable indoor recreational play area.

About 50 special needs students, teachers, PALS members and chaperones enjoyed a free morning of bouncing, climbing and tumbling earlier this month.

“Although PALS is a fun and exciting organization, it relies on the hard work of a core group of members as well as additional support through community volunteers and donations. Our members had a wonderful time at Pump It Up and we appreciate the owners for donating use of the facility for our students,” says Ellen Jeffers, speech pathologist and PALS club sponsor at the high school.

Since January, the club has been busy organizing activities and outings for its members including a pizza party, Valentine breakfast, a lunch cookout and a trip to Dixieland Fun Park with the Starr’s Mill PALS club. These activities provide members with a fun, relaxed environment in which to get to know each other and develop relationships.

Educators say the value of the club is immense. Special needs students gain socially from the interaction and acceptance of their typical peers while regular education students develop an understanding and appreciation for students with special needs. Plus regular education students benefit from the intrinsic value of assisting others.

“Since the club started, I have seen regular education students taking a more active approach in involving the special needs students in our school. The regular education students are recognizing that special needs students are not always able to enjoy the same experiences that they take for granted. PALS helps all students understand each other better and gives the special needs students an opportunity to learn from the regular education students,” says Jeffers.

Any student can become a member of PALS by filling out a registration form and paying $5 in annual dues, which covers the registration fee to the National PALS organization which helps support various expenses and outings. Meetings are held once or twice a month.

In order to help the club with expenses associated with their social gatherings, Sandy Creek has pledged to provide PALS passes to all school-related events. The club is also seeking outside assistance from the business community to help make the program a success. Anyone interested in helping the club next year can contact Jeffers via e-mail at jeffers.ellen@fcboe.org or call Sandy Creek, 770-969-2840.

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