Devin Allen just finished his sophomore year at Oswego High School, where he plays on the Varsity Football team and JV Lacrosse team in addition to being a member of the National Honor Society and in the top 25 of his class.
Allen also has autism, which he says, has made him work harder to reach his success today.
“In the second grade, I struggled with how to control myself in the classroom,” said Allen. “The smallest things could trigger me into a meltdown, and I didn’t understand why.”
In second grade, Allen was welcomed to the A+ program at the Center for Instruction, Technology & Innovation for support.
“Right away, I felt I was welcomed and made to feel like I belonged there. I felt safe,” he said.
Together with the teaching staff, Allen acquired greater self-awareness about his triggers and explored safe methods to work through them.
“Within the A+ classroom, I was able to work through and talk about what I was feeling and how to overcome this,” Allen shared. “I learned many tools that I still use today [breathing methods, heavy input].”
Allen felt he was ready to return to Oswego City School District in middle school and re-entered his home district in the seventh grade. Although he admits there were challenges to returning to a regular class setting, he was able to overcome them and even earned the prestigious “Triple C Award” in the eighth grade given by the NYS Attorney General.
“All of this would not have been possible without the tools I was taught in the A+ program,” he said. “One of the largest lessons I learned was perseverance and the way to advocate for myself and my needs.”
Photo caption: Devin Allen shares the story of his educational journal with the CiTi Board of Education.
