Pair of paraprofessionals help St. Charles special needs students find independence

Close friends and colleagues Yvette Harding and Dee Dahlquist are two of the St. Charles school district’s dedicated paraprofessionals working with students in the Transition Program.

Harding and Dahlquist met in 2011 and have been the Transition Program’s “dynamic duo” ever since, program chair Anne Federici Dragosh said.

“They provide student instructional support and are exceptional job coaches for our students in the community,” Federici Dragosh said. “They are incredible educators who work closely with teachers and related service providers to promote student growth and independence. We wouldn’t have the amazing program we have without them.”

The Transition Program is for District 303 special education students ages 18 to 22 who already have graduated from high school. It provides classroom training as well as on-site job-skill training to prepare students for independent living.

For many students in the Transition Program, paraprofessionals Dahlquist and Harding provide the final measures of support before the students set out on their own.

Dahlquist is the program’s full-time job coach, spending most of her time outside of the classroom at job sites and in the community.

Harding works mainly with students in the classroom.

While they work in different spaces for most of the day, Dahlquist and Harding still collaborate often and have lunch together at least once a week.

The program is located in Lincoln School, which also houses the Creative Threads clothing business, where students help design graphics on the computer, press them onto clothes, package and ship orders.

The Transition Program also runs the Daily Bean coffee shop in the library across the street and partners with local businesses such as Alexanders Cafe, Mooseheart School, the Salvation Army and more, where students work part time during the week.

Dahlquist and Harding have been working together for more than a decade and have become more than just colleagues.

“She isn’t just my coworker, she’s my buddy,” Harding said. “She’s a great person and she’s a hard worker. She’s everything I want to be. She goes above and beyond.”

“She is kind, supportive, loving, always there when you need her 100% and always has your back,” Dahlquist said. “She’s wonderful with the students, patient, giving and always the first to volunteer to help.“

The two have had similar career paths despite growing up with vastly different plans for their futures.

Dahlquist grew up in La Grange and earned a degree in recreational therapy from George Williams College in Downers Grove.

Harding grew up in Wheeling and moved to St. Charles in 1993. She holds a degree in elementary education from Northern Illinois University.

While Dahlquist knew from a young age that she wanted to work with people who have special needs, Harding never imagined she would be a special education teacher.

Growing up, Harding wanted to be a veterinarian, but she said after one education class in college, she fell in love with teaching and “the rest was history.”

Dahlquist said growing up her family would take trips to Lambs Farm in Libertyville every year. Lambs Farm is a nonprofit organization that provides vocational and residential services for more than 250 adults with developmental disabilities.

“I was always exposed to people with disabilities. It was never something that was new to us, and I knew as I grew older that I just had a passion,” Dahlquist said. “I love what I do and I wouldn’t change it for the world.”

Dahlquist got her first taste of working with the special needs population when she was in high school and volunteered with the Special Olympics.

“I loved how I felt when I was working with them,” Dahlquist said. “I loved seeing the joy on their face when they met a goal, that thrill.”

Both Harding and Dahlquist took time off after earning their degrees to start raising a family and both came to District 303 when they returned to teaching.

Dahlquist started at Wredling Middle School in 2008, was transferred to St. Charles East High School in 2011 and soon after joined the Transition Program.

Harding began substitute teaching for District 303 in 1997. On her first day of substitute teaching, she was working with special needs students at Norton Creek Elementary and immediately fell in love.

“My first day as a sub I was in a life-skill classroom and that was it. I was hooked,” Harding said. “I knew this is where I wanted to be. I just love being in the special-ed classroom.”

Harding started working full-time as a paraprofessional at Norton Creek in 2003, moved to St. Charles East High School in 2011 and shortly after joined the Transition Program.

Harding and Dahlquist now are in their 14th year of working together.

Dahlquist and Harding agreed that special educators need patience, kindness and a passion for working with this population of students. They said one of the biggest challenges is being willing to step back, watch and allow students to make mistakes and learn from them.

“Any progress is success,” Dahlquist said. “Watching them try and try and then finally get it, that’s the beauty of this. The rewards are seeing that they can do it and those goals were met.”

Dahlquist said a big part of the job is figuring out how she can help students overcome obstacles, which can range from pouring a glass of water to landing their first job.

“Those are just things that we conquer every day here in these programs,” Dahlquist said. “There’s always challenges, but you don’t look at them as challenges. They’re just steppingstones through the day.”

“You can’t really put your finger on it. … They inspire you to do better, to be better,” Harding said. “You always think you’re bringing something to them, but they give it back tenfold. When you’re around that day in and day out, it just makes you feel good. If I didn’t get paid, I would probably volunteer to do this. It’s just a positive place to be, in the classroom.”

Harding said because every student has unique needs and goals, success can look different from student to student, or even from day-to-day.

“Them showing up everyday and being proactive in their learning, I think that’s success,” Harding said.

Harding said the key to motivating students to reach that success is forming real bonds and connecting with them. She said treating them like the adults they are is the first step toward forming those bonds.

“They need to trust you and have a relationship with you,” Dahlquist said. “When there’s trust, that’s how growth occurs.”

Harding said a big part of the Transition Program is showing students the resources they have available and how to use them. She said through job training, resume building and interview preparation, students learn there is work out there for them and they can do it.

“It’s all about gaining independence,” Harding said. “It’s OK to fail. You have to let that happen. We can’t do it for them because they won’t learn those lessons.”

Every Transition Program student has the opportunity to try every job available. Dahlquist also takes students on visits around town to fire stations, the police department and the grocery store, where they shop as a class and make lunch together in the kitchen at Lincoln.

Harding said the location gives students more than just convenience. She said walking about town and being able to use resources such as the post office and the library gives them a sense of pride as citizens and members of the community, which she said is no small feat.

Dahlquist said the best part of being out in the community and at job sites with students is seeing them progress and start to get comfortable working and making relationships in the community.

“I love seeing the growth,” Dahlquist said. “It may not be big to one person, but it’s huge to us.”

Harding said the best part of the job is when the students finally get it and they don’t need you anymore.

“When they’re doing it on their own, that’s what you want,” Harding said. ”And yet, it’s bittersweet. It pulls on my heartstrings when you see them succeeding and believing in themselves.”

Dahlquist and Harding said the send-off at graduation is an exciting time for everyone, although it can be bittersweet.

“You know it’s time for them to spread their wings and move on, but you want to hang onto them,” Dahlquist said. “It is very bittersweet.”

“This is the ending of their time in D-303. After they leave here, they go out on their own,” Harding said. “It’s kind of like the last stop, but we’re doing our best to help prepare them for that future.”

Harding and Dahlquist said the best part of their job is seeing students out in the real world, working, shopping and just living their lives.

“It’s awesome seeing them going out and getting jobs and getting those benefits that they need,” Harding said.

Both mentioned a former student who now works at Jewel-Osco and how they love to run into her while grocery shopping.

Dahlquist said the students who were in her first classes when she started teaching at Wredling are now aging out of the transition program.

“That is the coolest thing,” Dahlquist said. “It’s beautiful to see them doing so well. That’s pure joy right there.”