1. Promoting Inclusion: Students with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Amber Excelssior
Introduction
SUNY Delhi has been a powerful force in breaking barriers within communities and changing personal attitudes regarding individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities. Through the use of inclusive education classrooms, Delhi has been working to change attitudes related to this population. Our culture has traditionally accepted that individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities could not attend or be successful in college.  In the Think College project The Arc of Delaware County (Delarc) and SUNY Delhi have collaborated to include Delarc students in traditional college level psychology courses. Students within the class volunteer to be “Study Buddies”, and meet with Delarc students before and/or after class on campus and at the Delarc students’ day and vocational programs. 
Benefits to Delarc and SUNY Delhi
The Arc of Delaware County is an extraordinary organization that is nationally renowned for their skills, commitment, and passion within the professional field of developmental and intellectual disabilities. The “caring without restraint” philosophy of the agency is the foundation of Delarc, based on their positive and proactive Board of Directors policy that forbids the use of restraints, demonstrating a true person-centered approach to service.
On a daily basis, Delarc clients develop and meet individual goals in a process that is truly person-centered. In order to meet many of these goals, it is necessary to get assistance from the community to provide appropriate experiences and opportunities for interaction with others. With the engagement of SUNY Delhi’s students and staff, many of the person-centered goals that are considered unrealistic and/or impractical at other human service organizations become real – significantly changing the lives of those involved. In the words of Delarc’s Steve Finkel,“…There is a community at large everywhere that will be receptive and welcoming to people with disabilities if we care about developing programs that truly give our folks the training and opportunity to be part of those communities in a meaningful and rewarding way for all.” Inclusive classes are important examples of such opportunities.
SUNY Delhi benefits from this collaboration in numerous ways, as demonstrated in reflection papers/projects, personal conversations, and course evaluations. Students who learn within inclusive classrooms speak and write about the powerful changes that take place as they work through their experiences, and often state it was the most important aspect of their time at SUNY Delhi.
Even in our educated societies, many students still experience and display attitudes of stigma and fear when interacting with individuals who are different from them; in this case, people with developmental and intellectual disabilities. We know that the most effective way to change attitudes, which are based on our values and beliefs, is to provide ongoing positive experiences with the culture, population, or activity that is feared. Many of these college students will be leaders in other higher education settings and in their workplaces, making an ideal group of people to first experience these changes in themselves, and then become role models for their peers, coworkers, and families.
With this Delarc partnership, students become more confident in their ability to engage in new situations with people who have different skills and abilities. Students become more creative in the ways that they solve problems. Students begin (or continue) to understand that small changes in the way they treat others dramatically affects outcomes. Students experience insights about how they personally can make an impact in their communities and that their personal choices matter. Students see that differences in communication and labels do NOT matter in the big picture; we are all people and deserve to be treated fairly and respectfully. On a course evaluation from an inclusive course, one student writes, “…students can learn things like tolerance and understanding – valuable skills for the real world.”
During the educational process, it is important for learners to associate course material with other personal experiences, making connections between course content and their real world. This is a process that is clearly taking place through these inclusive classes. Individually, students benefit. As an institution, SUNY Delhi become a stronger institution through learning the value of diversity when building communities.
Conclusion
During inclusive experiences the students’ personal attitudes about the capabilities of others changes in a profound way, directly affecting the ways in which they interact as professionals at work. Respecting the ideas, experiences, and feelings of people who are “different” – especially when discomfort and fear existed prior – becomes easier, and students become more cognizant about these issues as they reflect upon them. Incorporating this type of process into the education of the students at SUNY Delhi means they are engaging in true learning that permanently changes how they think and solve problems. However, it is not only our students who have fears related to people with disabilities, but our colleagues. Through sharing and celebrating our experiences, we can encourage others to try this active approach to learning. This process changes not only individual attitudes and lives, but our communities.
“There are two types of education: One should teach us how to make a living and the other should teach us how to live.”
- John Adams