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Perspective Newsletters
Fall 2005
LEARY SCHOOL JOB SITE
Page 7
 This
year, after many hurdles, the Leary School JobSite will begin construction on a new
single family home. Once again, the staff and students will be working on the same
street where three other new homes and an extensive home renovation project have
been completed. This newest single family home construction project will be located
on one of two lots purchased next to the renovation project that was finished in
2002. Along with many of the lots on Holyoke, these two adjoining properties are
somewhat narrower than is typically found in this area. As a result, the two houses
that will be constructed over the next few years will be only 20 feet wide. After
applying for zoning and building permits, construction on the first property should
begin this fall. The neighbors have been very welcoming to the JobSite and we are
very happy to be able to continue working on this street.
We are excited about starting this new project. The house will have a formal living
room, dining room, family room, kitchen, three bedrooms, two and a half baths, and
a full basement. When we begin the work, we will include updates on the progress,
along with pictures, on the Leary School website.
 Nearly
three-quarters of the students are returning this year with six new students joining
the JobSite. We would also like to extend a tremendous welcome to Ms. Shannon Calhoun,
who has joined the staff as the academic teacher for the JobSite program. Ms. Calhoun
came from the Dallas, Texas area where she also worked in special education. Ms.
Calhoun replaced Ms. Haywood, who had been with the jobsite program for six years
and left in March of this year following the birth of her first child.
While waiting for the building permit to be completed, the staff and students have
been busy with projects that have exposed them to a variety of work skills. The owner
of the renovation project that was completed in 2002 asked for some additional assistance
in updating and maintaining the interior of the home, including some painting, caulking,
replacing light fixtures and general clean up. The students also painted the trim
on the outside of the house and, again, did some general clean up in the yard.
The staff and students also worked on cleaning up the classroom and getting it ready
for the new year. The shed that is used to store materials and tools for the jobsite
was also painted to help protect it from the weather. Additionally, there was some
work that needed to be done at the site where the new house will be built so the
students worked on getting that site ready, trimming existing hedges and cleaning
up the property.
As we begin this new project, we hope to provide pictures and progress on the Leary
School website - www.learyschool.org.
Alan Peck, M.S.
Vocational Coordinator
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