ROCKLIN VS. DEL ORO - My High School Journalism
ROCKLIN VS. DEL ORO - My High School Journalism
ROCKLIN VS. DEL ORO - My High School Journalism
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November 2006 rhs_flash@yahoo.com 23<br />
Features<br />
Senior preparing to gradutate from ILS<br />
Alexis Coopersmith<br />
Staff writer<br />
Taren sits sipping on hot<br />
chocolate as she thinks hard<br />
about the question. She looks<br />
around the room as if to find<br />
the answer.<br />
“I think Pam is my<br />
favorite teacher. I like her…<br />
sometimes,” Taren jokes. “She<br />
is my favorite and I love her.”<br />
“Do I smell pretty?’ wonders<br />
Pam Wentz.<br />
“Only in the mornings.”<br />
“Am I your favorite because<br />
I buy you things?”<br />
“Yep.”<br />
“Ha! I never buy you<br />
anything! You’re lying.”<br />
“Not true. You buy me<br />
Starbucks.”<br />
Taren Beamer is a senior at<br />
Rocklin <strong>High</strong> <strong>School</strong>. She is the<br />
average high school student<br />
that likes music, movies,<br />
football, and dance. Beamer<br />
does not let the fact that she<br />
has Down’s Syndrome get in<br />
the way of being a regular,<br />
independent senior at RHS.<br />
Beamer has been involved<br />
in the Independent Living Skills<br />
program all through her high<br />
school career. ILS is a program<br />
designed to fit student’s<br />
certain or special needs and<br />
focuses on teaching important<br />
life skills. Each student has<br />
an individual education<br />
plan with specific goals<br />
determined by the parents,<br />
general and special education<br />
teachers, the student, and the<br />
administration. All students are<br />
taught math, science, English,<br />
and social studies, as well as<br />
Community Based Instruction,<br />
cooking, pre-vocational skills,<br />
and social skills.<br />
“As a senior, Taren is more<br />
independent than many other<br />
ILS students. She is capable<br />
Photo by Amanda Palm<br />
of taking electives without ILS<br />
staff support,” said Wentz,<br />
Rocklin ILS teacher for four<br />
years.<br />
Beamer is also involved in a<br />
summer program called Camp<br />
Lotsafun. She spends her<br />
summers there doing various<br />
activities such as taking guitar<br />
and singing lessons.<br />
“I really like going to Camp<br />
Lotsafun. There is a water<br />
park; we watch movies,<br />
sing camp songs, and roast<br />
marshmallows,” said Beamer.<br />
Beamer has many hobbies<br />
that keep her busy outside<br />
of school. She plays on the<br />
computer, goes to basketball<br />
games and all football games.<br />
She has been in the RHS dance<br />
program since her sophomore<br />
year and takes part in the<br />
dance show every year. She<br />
loves Lindsay Lohan, going to<br />
the mall, and designing clothes<br />
and jewelry. Her family often<br />
goes boating and waterskiing.<br />
Beamer also<br />
loves dances,<br />
e s p e c i a l l y<br />
Sadie’s and<br />
Hearts-a-Fire,<br />
and plans<br />
on attending<br />
Senior Ball this<br />
year.<br />
“The ILS<br />
teachers try to<br />
attend many<br />
major functions<br />
with our<br />
students, like<br />
football games,<br />
dances, plays,<br />
etc. It helps<br />
gives our<br />
students an<br />
o p p o r t u n i t y<br />
to have all<br />
the high school experiences<br />
everyone else enjoys,” said<br />
Wentz<br />
She has two brothers,<br />
both of which graduated<br />
from Rocklin <strong>High</strong>. Brandon<br />
Beamer was ASB president<br />
in 2001, and both brothers<br />
have gone off to prestigious<br />
colleges. Her father also used<br />
to be the voice announcer for<br />
all RHS football games.<br />
Beamer also spends a lot<br />
of time at work. She has a job<br />
at Best Buy, where she does<br />
much of the organization and<br />
she helped people pick out<br />
Christmas gifts. Her dad also<br />
works there. She wants to<br />
soon work at a bookstore.<br />
“Taren having a job is part<br />
of the work ability program.<br />
It is like the ROP program,<br />
in that it pays to get a job<br />
somewhere such as the Dollar<br />
Tree or Ross,” said Wentz.<br />
After high school Beamer<br />
plans on moving out and living<br />
in her own apartment. She<br />
looks forward to it because of<br />
her independent nature. She<br />
will also be attending Sierra<br />
College to study history.<br />
At Sierra College, there is<br />
a continuation of the ILS<br />
program that Beamer will be<br />
taking. They continue to teach<br />
functional academics as well<br />
as vocational skills that greatly<br />
promote independence.<br />
In addition to a campus<br />
classroom, the Sierra College<br />
program has an apartment<br />
they have turned into a<br />
classroom so the students<br />
can learn life skills in a natural<br />
setting.<br />
“Soon I will be going to<br />
college and living alone. I am<br />
very nervous and afraid, but I<br />
don’t care because I want to<br />
be alone,” said Beamer.<br />
Beamer believes that the<br />
most important thing to know<br />
to get through high school is to<br />
always be honest and friendly<br />
to everyone.<br />
“I don’t really like freshman,<br />
but I would still like to help<br />
them find good classes. And<br />
make new friends. They can’t<br />
be shy,” said Beamer.<br />
Wentz said it best when<br />
explaining how everyone<br />
should get to know her<br />
students and embrace the<br />
diversity of the RHS campus.<br />
“ILS students are just like<br />
everyone else. They may<br />
learn differently, but they have<br />
dreams and desires that are<br />
very similar to all other RHS<br />
students. Take the opportunity<br />
to get to know them and see<br />
for yourself.”<br />
Because, in the words<br />
of Taren Beamer, “I’m a<br />
superstar!”
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