Having had surgery to remove a brain tumor at the age of 13,
Jessica Solorio was never expected to attend college.
”
The doctors said I wouldn’t be able to continue on,
”
Solorio said.
”
I proved them wrong. I’m here.
”
Having had surgery to remove a brain tumor at the age of 13, Jessica Solorio was never expected to attend college.
“The doctors said I wouldn’t be able to continue on,” Solorio said. “I proved them wrong. I’m here.”
Last May, 22-year-old Solorio graduated from Gavilan College with an associate’s degree. She credited her success in part to help received from Gavilan’s Disability Resource Center, which provides services for people with mental and physical disabilities.
Students like Solorio are the reason the center and Gavilan’s WorkAbility III Program recently were named Outstanding Community Agency of the Year by the California Department of Rehabilitation. The department was honored Dec. 9 for “outstanding collaboration, dedication, and excellence in promoting successful employment outcomes for students with disabilities.” The ceremony in San Jose was attended by over 200 disability and rehabilitative administrators statewide.
“We have the most passionate and dedicated staff who truly deserve being recognized,” Fran Lopez said, Associate Dean of Disability Resources. She accepted the award along with three of her staff.
“I would have brought them all with me but they were too busy registering new students for class back at the college,” she said.
What makes this program exceptional on a human level can be most clearly seen in how the center works with other agencies and entities to provide a wide spectrum of services. Lopez and her staff work with students in need of community services, located both on- and off-site. If specialized rehabilitation therapy is needed, for example, Lopez partners with the necessary agency to provide it.
“A deaf student needs hearing-assisted technology to understand the classroom lessons,” Lopez said. “A student with a prosthetic leg needs state-of-the-art work out equipment; a carpenter who has hurt his back needs retraining for new ways of doing his work; in a specialized wing of the gym at Gavilan, you will find post-stroke patients working out on specialized adaptive P.E. equipment – our students come from all walks of life. Sometimes the learning disability is very slight and sometimes more challenging. It’s different every single day. We never know who is going to walk through our doors.”
The WorkAbility III Program helps people with developmental disabilities who are pursuing an untraditional college track to meet their needs for vocational training and community involvement. In a cooperative partnership between the state Department of Rehabilitation Services and Gavilan, students are matched up with jobs.
Maribel Galvez came to Gavilan with a learning disability, but with the help of the DRC staff, she graduated and was hired by the Admissions and Records office.
“The program has done a lot for me,” Galvez said. “I can say that I have succeeded, and it’s all because of the DRC program.”
“Anyone with a verified disability is eligible to receive the necessary accommodations through our department,” Lopez said. “My heart is with this department. I thrive in it. We don’t do this work for thanks. We want to give each student the best opportunity every day to level the playing field and reach his or her educational goals.”
“Fran works really hard,” said Rachel Perez, Associate Dean of Community Development. “We are both products of the ’60s, imbued with the belief that an individual could make a difference. I don’t think she ever lost that. Fran is a really good advocate – she always speaks out for those issues that impact her students.
“In these uncertain and challenging economic times, collaboration with others is more important than ever,” Perez went on. “There are no single solutions anymore.”
In collaboration with others, those who work at the DRC improve the lives of others every single day.
“The light doesn’t often shine on us in a public way,” Lopez said. “But in here in our department, it always glows brightly because of my staff and the work they do down in the trenches.”
