Iredell-Statesville Schools School & Family Magazine February 2018 | Page 6

Falling Into Place
“Things just fell into place” is not a
phrase that is often used when you work
with children or animals. At Pressly School,
which is now caring for both children and an
animal, the phrase fits.
Many students at Pressly School are
there because traditional school settings are
not suitable for them. It may be the crowds
or the distractions of larger campuses, but it
just doesn’t work.
For some students within the school,
day treatment programs are provided.
This programming is designed to meet the
needs of students with mild to moderate
behavior challenges. The staff to student
ratio is 1-to-6, and the classrooms offer
experiential learning paired with therapeutic
activities. Each classroom serves up to
twelve students with staff members who
have educational and therapeutic expertise.
All other educational opportunities replicate
a traditional campus but within a smaller
setting - a second chance for success, if
you will.
Anxiety levels can often run high when
you are dealing with fragile personalities.
Research shows that companion animals can help
reduce anxiety. Enter Jake, an eighteen-month-old
Labrador mix.
In mid-November of 2017, Andy Hannelin and his
DogsByAndy crew looked at one hundred dogs at
the Catawba County Humane Society to survey who
had the potential to become therapy dogs. There
were three dogs that caught his eye and eventually
found their way to his facility on Bevan Street in
Mooresville. Pressly School had secured funding
from Partners Behavioral Health Care for the
purchase and training of a therapy dog and, well,
things just fell into place.
“Dogs have to be stable to be cleared for therapy
work,” Andy said. “We want them to be appealing
to the eye, friendly and have very good footing
because they will be encountering all types of
4 Iredell-Statesville School & Family
obstacles and terrain in their work. Jake has been
through some very intense training since mid-
November, and now he’s ready to work, and he
meets all the requirements. That’s why we have
selected Jake to make his home with the students at
Pressly School.”
The staff at Pressly School embraced the notion
of a therapy dog, but Jake has also required several
school district departments to work together to
prepare for his arrival. Since he will be riding a bus
with students, Tommy Cook from the Transportation
Department designed, manufactured and installed
a specialized harness for the bus. Jake needed
a retreat during the day, so Archie Johnson
and Jerome Boswell, maintenance technicians,
designed and built his dog house. Jake needed an
identification badge since all employees of Iredell-
Statesville Schools have to wear an ID badge