Threshold in the News

Threshold is proud of its students, faculty, and staff and their accomplishments. This page will highlight those accomplishments as they've appeared in the Lesley University News and in the media beyond the campus.

Study shows success for Threshold Program

Results from a study administered last spring reveal major accomplishments for the Threshold Program and its graduates. Threshold faculty members administered the study in which graduates representing ten Threshold classes from 1996 to 2005 shared their post-Threshold experiences regarding employment, living patterns, independent growth dimensions, and living skills.

The study revealed that 80 percent of graduates surveyed are currently employed. Graduates worked in many capacities including as assistant teachers in early childhood settings, receptionists, assistant office managers, sales associates, and file clerks.

“Without this kind of training, students with these types of disabilities tend to bounce around from job to job,” says Director James Wilbur. “We completed this study ten years ago, and the full-time employment rate for our students has continued to grow higher despite changes and challenges in the job market.”

According to the study, 60 percent of students reported having benefits in their positions and 61 percent reported holding at least one job for four years or more.

Founded in 1982, Threshold is a comprehensive, non-degree, campus-based program at Lesley University for highly motivated young adults with diverse learning disabilities and other special needs. Threshold provides a combination of practical and academic experiences that enable students to learn vocational skills in early childhood or business services. Students also learn about money management, apartment living skills, and social skills. Threshold is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.

“This study provides us with some hard numbers as to what our graduates go on to accomplish after leaving the program,” says Wilbur.

The study also revealed increased independence in living patterns with 76 percent of graduates living on their own since graduation. Parents reported independent living skills, such as managing money and household chores, improved consistently since their children graduated from the program.

Threshold graduates and parents surveyed showed high levels of satisfaction for the overall Threshold experience. According to the study, 96 percent of graduates surveyed were satisfied with their overall level of independence and 83 percent of parents were satisfied with their children’s progress. Parents expressed the most satisfaction in areas of employment, social life, and general level of independence.

The Threshold Program will celebrate these accomplishments during a special anniversary gala on March 31. Alumni, parents, and faculty have all been invited to attend the event.

Published January 25, 2007 in Lesley Today

Lesley University presents 2006 Impact Awards

This past December, at the Lesley University holiday party and awards ceremony, President McKenna presented four faculty and staff members with Impact Awards in recognition of their contributions to the Lesley Community.  The awards are presented annually to University faculty and staff who have played an exemplary role in the institution’s mission of preparing men and women for careers that make a positive difference in the lives of others.

"Every year we have more worthy candidates than we have awards to give,” said President McKenna.  “This year’s four recipients all especially exemplify the values of our university.”

President McKenna and the Impact Award Recipients

Vivien Marcow Speiser, Director of International and Collaborative Programs, has been affiliated with Lesley for three decades, “always exhibiting an unwavering commitment to the liberal arts, scholarly inquiry and Lesley’s mission,” said McKenna.  She is a proponent of life-long learning, and earned her Master’s degree from Lesley in 1977.  She has held numerous positions at the University over the years and helped to bring the field of Expressive Therapies to Israel.  Most recently, she gathered 300 Israeli, Palestinian, and international participants together for an international peace conference in Israel.

Harriet Deane, Assistant Dean for Academic Programs in the School of Education, has been with the University for over 25 years following teaching positions in preschool, kindergarten, and middle school.  She has been awarded several grants for professional development in a variety of topics and continues to be a devoted advocate for students, and a “valued resource to Lesley’s School of Education,” said McKenna. 

Jim Wilbur, Director of the Threshold Program, has been at Lesley for 15 years, throughout which, he “has been instrumental in helping hundreds of challenged students succeed and trust that they can live as independent adults,” McKenna said.

Jim Holmes, Director of Public Safety, has been with the University for almost 10 years, responsible for any and all campus emergencies and ensuring the safety of students, faculty and staff alike.  While most of his work is done behind the scenes in the security office, McKenna said, “his efforts never go unnoticed as he keeps the campus and its inhabitants protected around the clock.”

Impact Award recipients from 2004 and 2005, Scott Boulet, Joan Dolamore, Margery Miller, Kevin Murphy, Julie Stanwood, Stanley Vieira, Eric Wilshusen, and Maureen Brown Yoder assisted in reviewing the nominations and selecting this year's recipients who join 28 other colleagues who have received the award to date.

Lesley students cross threshold to independence and opportunity

Eighteen graduates of Lesley University’s Threshold Program received diplomas at the 2006 commencement ceremony on May 5. These highly motivated young adults with various learning disabilities and other special needs spent the past two years following a path to become independent adults. They felt that going to college would make this possible, but the faculty in the Threshold Program helped them realize that they each possessed what they were looking for all along.

“This is no easy ride,” said James Wilbur, Director of the Threshold Program. “But everyone rose to the occasion and we’re really proud of them.”

President Margaret McKenna addressed the crowd as well, describing the changes she witnessed in each student during their time at Lesley. She acknowledged her appreciation for their friendly “hellos” and handshakes when crossing paths on campus and applauded them for living by Lesley’s mission and becoming “engaged citizens.” “The world needs you,” she said. “We need you.”

One student in particular was recognized for displaying the vision of the Threshold Program. Board of Trustees member, Patricia Squire, presented Andrew Turlo with the Judith Kranes award for his leadership, motivation, and academic achievement.

Edward Hanlon addresses his fellow graduates

Student speakers Riemy El-Hibir, Edward Hanlon, Daniel Levin, and Davina Samuels addressed the audience of proud friends and family. Their words prompted tears and laughter from the crowd, especially as Hanlon graced the stage. “Before I begin, I have to get comfortable,” he said as he removed his graduation cap and replaced it with a Red Sox hat instead. After the audience’s laughter died down, Hanlon offered supportive words for his fellow graduates. “We all hope to learn what we’re meant to become. I hope the best for my classmates,” he said.

As Dr. Robert Desimone, Director of the McGovern Institute for Brain Research at MIT and globally renowned neuroscientist, delivered his keynote address, he commended the faculty for the work they have done with the Threshold students and admitted that despite the countless advances he has made in brain research, he can only “hope to make a difference to students in the way that the Threshold professors have.” Dr. Desimone has done extensive research examining the brain mechanisms underlying attention, memory, and executive control and has received several awards including the Troland Prize of the National Academy of Sciences, and the Golden Brain Award of the Minerva Foundation.

Next year will mark the 25th anniversary of the Threshold Program—a comprehensive, non-degree, campus-based program at Lesley University for highly motivated young adults with diverse learning disabilities and other special needs. All are interested in careers in one of Lesley’s vocational fields of study—Business and Support Services and Early Childhood Studies—and all have a strong desire to become independent adults.

Threshold graduates gather outside Prospect Hall following their Commencement ceremony

Threshold students have typically received extensive special services in either private or public schools and would likely have considerable difficulty succeeding in a traditional college degree program. The goal of the Threshold Program is to guide the "whole person" forward by fostering growth toward independence through a comprehensive curriculum that emphasizes vocational training with a focus on independent living, psychological growth, effective use of leisure time, and creativity.

In her closing remarks to the graduates, Carol Streit, Associate Provost and Vice President of Enrollment Management, compared each student’s journey down an unknown path towards the glorious reward of discovering what had been missing from their lives to the story of The Wizard of Oz. Each student was on a quest for courage, compassion, and intellect, she said, and “the Threshold Program required that you use them. All you had to do is look inside.”

Published May 18, 2006 in Lesley Today

Threshold students explore the "Art of Love"

Students in Lesley's Threshold Program are currently taking part in an exhibition through the Cambridge Art Association. The exhibit, called "The Art of Love," is a celebration of art by special needs students and features work by students from a number of area schools besides Lesley, including Amelio Della Chiesa Early Childhood Center, Boston Higashi School, Cardinal Cushing Training Center, East Bridgewater High School, Horace Mann School for the Deaf, Lincoln-Hancock Community School, The Learning Center for Deaf Children - Framingham & Randolph, Manville School at the Judge Baker Children's Center, Mass Hospital/Brayton School, and Perkins School for the Blind.

The exhibit runs through February 28 at University Place Gallery at 124 Mt. Auburn Street in Cambridge. Gallery hours are Monday–Friday from 9:00 am – 6:00 pm, and Saturday from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm.

The Threshold Program is a two-year, nondegree, campus-based program for highly motivated adults who have a wide range of learning disabilities and special needs. The program assists them to transition seamlessly into professional life by providing the services that a traditional college experience would not. For more information on the program, visit www.lesley.edu/threshold/threshold_home.htm.

Published February 24, 2006 in Lesley Today

Threshold graduates its 21st class

The Threshold Program at Lesley University graduated its 21st class recently. The two-year residential program teaches academic, career and life skills to students with learning disabilities.

New graduates Allison Bushong, Kate Medina, Caitlin McShane and Tal Banker.

“Every student and every parent has traveled a journey of unheralded heroism and courage to get here today,” Lesley University President Margaret A. McKenna told the audience gathered in the Harvard-Epworth Church. She noted that many of the graduates had worked much harder than other students to earn their diplomas.

McKenna said the ceremony was a chance to bring the community together to celebrate the achievements of the 24 graduates and their families. But the students were just as interested in celebrating the achievements of the Threshold faculty and staff, who had served as teachers and mentors over the past two years. Students gave Threshold director James Wilbur and other faculty members an enthusiastic standing ovation after his welcoming remarks.

The students also listened as five of their classmates spoke about how the Threshold experience had affected them.

“I was scared and frightened the first time I was in the dorm,” remembered Bonnie Bratton. Two years later, everything had changed. “I had friends, very close friends, who felt like brothers and sisters, and teachers who were role models,” Bratton said.

Christina March had discovered an interest in early childhood education at Threshold that she plans to pursue after graduation. Andrew DiNoia and Bryan Hoyle talked of trips to the movie theater, around town on the T, and frequent pilgrimages to Starbucks that had the staff at the coffee shop on a first-name basis with the students.

The Judith Kranes Award was presented to Jennifer Edmondson and Kathleen Medina, two students who staff felt best exemplified the program’s mission to build leadership skills, to promote academics, socialization, independent living, and to establish vocational skills. The students’ classmates gave the two award-winners high-fives and claps on the backs when they returned to their seats.

The commencement speaker, Peter J. McDonald, headmaster of the Eaglehill School in Hardwick, Mass., spoke about the meaning of success, which he defined as “making a profound and enduring difference in the lives of others.”

McDonald advised the students to find something they love to do, and to pursue it with passion, with vigor, and with purpose.

Published May 26, 2004 in Lesley Today

Connecting through Technology,
Patricia Morrissey, Coordinator Transition/Bridge Year

The Threshold Transition program is a one-year program designed to support Threshold graduates who are living independently in the Cambridge area. This year the Threshold Transition Program at Lesley University has been participating in an exciting new program in collaboration with the Pace Program at National-Louis University in Illinois. This pilot program uses technology to bring students together who are participating in similar programs. The Pace Program is a post secondary program for young adults with learning disabilities, which was modeled after the Transition Program at Threshold.

In the fall of 2003 Patricia Morrissey of the Threshold faculty and Marci Stern of the Pace faculty worked together to plan a curriculum to be taught jointly during the spring semester of 2004. One way to accomplish the goals of the project was for students of both programs to participate in a required evening class in a classroom setting. This is made possible through technology. Classes on both campuses are held simultaneously. Threshold connects with the Pace students with the use of computers, cameras, microphones and very cutting edge software. The class takes place in real time with both classes participating via the Internet.

The class was created to empower the students and share information about independent living while making long distance friendships. Students from both programs are exploring similarities while discussing the challenges and the values of living independently. They share information about the struggles and triumphs regarding employment, money management, maintaining an apartment and leisure time activities.

Another goal of the project is to establish new friendships. Plans have been made for the Pace students to visit Cambridge on April 30th. Pace students have begun preparing for the trip by making hotel and airline reservations. A welcome party for the Pace students will be hosted here on the Lesley University campus. Threshold students will be entertaining their guests and serving as tour guides. The visiting students will also have the opportunity to share information about organizational skills and independent living by visiting the apartments of Threshold students.

As the program nears an end discussions will focus on how the students from Pace and Threshold can stay connected and maintain the friendships that have developed over the course of the semester. One step toward that goal is already in place. Threshold students have been invited to visit National-Louis University in Illinois next spring and be the guests of the Pace Program.

- from Threshold, 4/1/04