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Providing Opportunities to ‘Excel’
Melissa Fralick
The 2016 Gift to Tech helps the Institute offer students with intellectual and developmental disabilities a chance for a real college experience. Georgia Tech’s Excel program now has
$40,000 to improve programming for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities, thanks to the Student Alumni Association’s 2016 Gift to Tech. Each year, many students make a $10 donation to join SAA. Of that, $5 goes to Roll Call and $5 goes toward the Gift to Tech, which benefits a different campus initiative selected by members. This year's winner, Excel, is a four-year certificate program at Georgia Tech that provides students with intellectual and developmental disabilities with the opportunity to experience college in full. They take college courses, participate in campus activities and form friendships that will no doubt last a lifetime. Excel’s first eight students have just completed their freshman year at Tech. They’ve taken courses modified to their individual abilities, and they’ve had access to many of Tech’s campus services and activities— including the Campus Recreation Center, sporting events and the library. “In our first year, students have attended courses in psychology, film, servant leadership, Spanish and GT 1000,” Excel’s Director Kenneth Surdin says. “They have shown their school spirit at football and basketball games; joined various clubs and organizations, including wrestling club, Campus Christian Fellowship, Hillel and WREK radio; and volunteered serving the homeless, in after school programs and in nursing homes.” After completing the program, Excel students receive certificates in social growth, academic enrichment and career exploration. The funding from SAA will support the growth of Excel’s career development program, in which students participate in campus jobs, internships 0 7 0
GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE VOLUME 92 NO.2 2016
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∏ In their first year, Excel students have enjoyed participating in campus activities at Tech. and other employment opportunities. "We seek to create a culture that embraces diverse learners and employees in order to maximize inclusion on our campuses and create inclusive opportunities in our communities," Surdin says. Excel uses a peer mentoring and support system to enhance students’
classroom and social experiences. A peer mentor, typically an undergraduate Georgia Tech student, assists students who may still be developing the skills for independence. “Our students are pursuing their passions and fully participating in the college experience,” Surdin says.