Having a child with Downs Syndrome herself, Emporia State alumna reaches out to children with special needs.
Shelly Drake Lutes graduated from ESU in 2002 with a degree in elementary education and then in 2008 with a masters.
“I graduated…and within 3 weeks I started my new job.” Lutes said.
She was hired at Maynard Elementary School in Emporia, where she student-taught.
“Before she was a teacher, she was a teacher… she was always trying to teach me something or show me something or sit me down and make me do things the right way,” said Cassie Dieker, Lutes’ younger sister.
Lutes puts her talent of helping students achieve to use by not only teaching technology at Riverside Elementary School here in Emporia, but also by working for the Down Syndrome Guild of Greater Kansas City (KCDSG) through the Learning Program.
“[The Learning Program is] designed to bridge the gap between research and practice… We’re excited to expand the program, which we’ve done with Shelly’s help,” said Sarah Wren, program director for the KCDSG. “We used to offer the program to only 2-6 year olds and now we’re offering it for kids who are 3 all the way up to 9.”
This is Lutes’ third year doing the program, which serves about 35 Kansas and Missouri children and their families.
“As a mother of a child with Downs Syndrome, I had a connection with the office already and I was like… I just need to do some tutoring or something, and then I saw this post by the executive director,” Lutes said. “It’s a program that I’d been working through on my own with my son for a couple years. I thought it was a long shot with me being in Emporia and them being in Kansas City, but I got a call like a week and a half later.”
The Learning Program focuses on early literacy in five main parts- math, music therapy, reading and writing, physical activity and speech and language. Lutes runs the physical activity station, focusing on occupational therapy skills like handwriting and other fine motor skills.
Lutes has three children: 8 year old twins Natasha and Drake, and 5-year-old Abby.
“Tasha is pretty sure she’s going to be a baker when she grows up, but she’s got a natural born instinct to help people and to work with students with special needs, and I don’t know if that’s because of her brother or if it’s just because it’s her nature and so she has answered a few people yes, she would like to be a teacher someday.” Lutes said. “Putting [Drake] on a stage you can see his eyes light up and he’s the star of the show. Every music program, he always has a speaking part, and most people can understand him. I think he’s just going to be Drake. Some days he wants to be a fireman, other days he just wants to be Drake.”