Variety School opens new campus for special needs students

Special education teacher Kimberly Caris sits at her desk and recalls her time as a student. Children such as the ones she teaches were treated differently then.

"Forty years ago in school, children like this were not allowed," she said. "There was no such thing as special education. They were barred from school or taught in little broom closets by people not qualified. They had no hope, no opportunity to ever be successful."

How things have changed. Caris teaches at the new Variety School, 2800 E. Stewart Ave., which was built specifically for such students.

"We've gone from not allowing children with disabilities to set foot in a school to actually building a facility custom-made for them," Caris said. "That's just overwhelming to me."

The previous Variety School at 2601 Sunrise Ave. was built in 1952. The new campus is one of the last projects funded by the 1998 voter-approved bond program, which raised $4.9 billion to build more than 100 schools and renovate others.

The school cost $18 million and features vocational training centers for laundry, a kitchen and restaurant, a recycling center, a graphics center and a greenhouse. Students will be able to choose "mini-majors," said principal Tyler Hall, and spend time learning a skill of their choice.

"The whole thing is trying to provide them with skills they'll be able to use once they graduate," he said.

The school even has a room decorated like a small apartment where students can learn to live independently. It has a stove, a dishwasher, a bathroom and more that students can practice with.

Hall said none of the vocational centers are operational yet because he does not have the staffing to run those programs.

The school usually has between 130 and 150 students. Variety serves students with severe behavioral issues at their comprehensive campuses.

The school also partnered with the Cleveland Clinic, a nonprofit academic medical center, which will use three of the school's classrooms to train teachers at Variety and other schools about best practices for special needs education.

Every classroom has what Caris calls a "calming room," which is a small, padded room where students can go when they are upset.

"A lot of our kids have problems controlling their emotions and get really angry," Caris said. "This is kind of a safe way to get rid of that."

Students can punch a wall if they want, but many just sit in the corner and cry, Caris said. She brought a plush bloodhound from home and put it in the calming room in case students want to hug it. It also gives her a place to talk about anger with a student away from the rest of the class.

Each classroom also has a private outdoor patio for students to use as a calming area and get fresh air, Caris said. The school also has several outdoor areas, each shared by four classrooms, so teachers can easily bring kids outside.

After the Jan. 7 grand opening, Hall said he received a call from a parent asking how to enroll her child. The parent saw the new campus on a TV news report that night.

Although he thinks Variety is a great school, Hall said it is best for special education students to be at a regular elementary, middle or high school campus. Variety is just a backup for kids who need intervention. Officials from a student's school and other Clark County School District officials determine which students attend Variety.

"The goal is that all students are on a general campus," he said. "... My goal is we're going to work with these students, modify their behavior and transition them back to a comprehensive campus."

But some students will have to stay for extended periods of time. Many will stay until they reach 22 and no longer can attend.

Scherrie Adams-Ambre, whose 17-year-old daughter is autistic and has been at Variety for four years, attended the school's grand opening and said "it's a bazillion times better" than the old campus.

"It is just out of this world," she said. "It looks like a college campus. The health office looks like an ER. It's beautiful.

"It seems like the outlook of everybody there is more positive. It just seems like it gives (students) more hope. They don't feel like they're at the bottom anymore."

For more information about Variety, call 702-799-7938.

Contact View education reporter Jeff Mosier at jmosier@viewnews.com or 702-224-5524.