Staff Announcements
Meet Nicole Witt, CTRS
Congratulations to Nicole Witt on her new position as Recreation Specialist for Inclusion
(Behavior Management)!
Nicole is a recent graduate of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse with a B.S. in Therapeutic
Recreation and just finished her internship with SEASPAR. Nicole has jumped right into the world
of Inclusion and we couldn't be more thrilled to have her on board! #teaminclusion
Meet Kai Treston, CTRS
Congratulations to Kai Treston on her new position as Recreation Specialist for Adult
Programs!
Kai comes to us from the University of Iowa where she recently graduated with her B.S. in
Therapeutic Recreation. She completed her internship with MacNeal Hospital and spent her
summer working for M-NASR. We're so glad to have Kai on #teamtraditional!
Goodbye, Darleen Negrillo
NSSRA would like to thank Darleen Negrillo for her over eight years of commitment and
service to the agency as Manager of Human Resources. Darleen is moving on to NWSRA as the
Superintendent of Administrative Services and we wish her all the best!
NSSRA Facilitates Peer Mentor Workshops at Glenbrook
South High School and Highland Park High School
In October we had the opportunity to facilitate two peer
mentoring workshops with over 100 high school students
from Glenbrook South and Highland Park High Schools.
Peer mentoring creates opportunities for students with
and without disabilities to bond and form relationships
throughout the year. NSSRA has hosted peer mentoring
training in partnership with GBS for nearly 30 years, and
this year was our inaugural year with HPHS. styles to the specific needs of the individual they are
communicating with, rather than become upset that
they aren't being understood.
This year students participated in activities designed
to help them advocate for and empower those with
disabilities. Communication-focused games like
telephone (but no words allowed!) helped students put
themselves in someone else’s shoes and learn skills to
communicate more inclusively. Students commented
that they learned how to adapt their communication Once trained, peer mentors are paired with one or several
students, sometimes in a special education classroom or
in an activity outside the classroom, like PE. The program
serves as a bridge builder between students in general
education and special education classes, assisting in
creating an atmosphere of belonging at school for
everyone.
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NSSRA full-time staff also led students through engaging
discussions on how to help empower those with
disabilities to make friends and be an integrated part of
their school communities.
Register online at register.nssra.org.