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Perspective Newsletters
Fall 2003
LEARY SCHOOL JOB SITE
Page 3
 As
we enter the second year of this two year project, the staff and students of the
Leary School JobSite will begin to shift to the interior work of the house.
Before beginning work on the house, however, time was devoted at the beginning of
the year to reviewing last year's work as well as reinforcing both the safety rules
and the JobSite rules. A number of students who graduated last year came from the
JobSite program; as a result, new students came into the program so ensuring that
all students made safety their first priority was our main concern. Along with mandatory
safety testing, a review of the tools we would be using this year was accomplished
so that everyone was familiar with not only the function but the safe use of each
piece of equipment.
 In
addition, we made some finishing touches to the renovation project we completed at
the end of the 2002-2003 year. A new roof was added to the existing garage on the
property as well as replacing some windows. Finally, the paved driveway was extended
to the garage and some landscaping on both the front and rear lawns occurred.
We also spent time doing some ongoing maintenance work on the classroom at the jobsite.
In addition to sealing the parking lot, they also applied a coating of protective
membrane to the roof of the trailer.
So far, the staff and students have started to work on getting the front porch built.
This required digging the footers, framing them out and then pouring the concrete.
Following that, the students built the floor joists and leveled the posts. The decking
was then installed on the first floor porch. A new decking material was used; this
is a composite decking material that is maintenance free and should provide the homeowner
with many years of enjoyment. Following that, the staff and students began work on
the "rough-in" plumbing in the basement.
Hurricane Isabel interrupted our work for a few days but gave us an opportunity to
work with the students to understand what measures need to be taken on a construction
site in the face of severe weather. Loose building materials were secured or moved
to the basement and extra silt fencing was put up to help prevent erosion that might
come with the heavy rains and winds. Following the hurricane, the students went into
the community helping the neighbors pick up branches, tree limbs, and debris. The
community has welcomed the JobSite and we are happy to help out whenever we can.
Fortunately, neither the house nor the trailer sustained any damage during the storm.
 In
the classroom, the students began the year with a review of their current coursework.
The staff worked with all the students but particularly the new ones assessing their
educational needs and reviewing credit requirements.
This year, the students have begun working in a "mini-cluster"model for much of their
academic studies. Both of the academic staff work with students in smaller groups
to provide them with more individualized assistance. In addition to their coursework,
the students are spending part of their classtime on Mondays addressing skills that
will be necessary as they begin to transition to the world of work.
A recent recreation therapy trip to the Potomac and Anacostia Rivers gave the students
the opportunity to see the effects of erosion - something they have worked to prevent
at the construction site - in a different environment and to discuss how the measures
they take to prevent erosion at the JobSite compares to that taken on the waterways.
Alan Peck, M.S.
Vocational Coordinator
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