Learning About Independence in the Green Mountains of Vermont

Burlington is located in northwestern VT

A drive up to Burlington, Vermont from Philadelphia is not exactly like a short jaunt over to King of Prussia. But that said, it is beautiful countryside and once there, the people are warm and welcoming, relaxed and engaging.

My purpose for the trip was not to just be an hour from the Canadian border but to visit a relatively new program for students on the spectrum who want to attend college but are looking for individualized support with the experience.  Hill Top Prep's own Director of Transition, Amy Gillespie, told me that my sabbatical project wouldn't be complete without meeting these folks at Mansfield Hall.  And, she was spot on!!

Setting this visit up couldn't have gone smoother with a few emails back and forth with Jake Weld who handles all of the applications and transitions for prospective families.
The two of us hit it off immediately, especially, when he opened the front door of the building before I had been able to knock on it!

View of Mt. Mansfield 

Named after the local landmark, Mt. Mansfield, and located in a former fraternity house on the campus of the University of Vermont, Mansfield Hall has quickly grown its program in Burlington, Vermont and also opened up an identical program in Madison, Wisconsin.  These are both college-friendly communities which make it "a perfect place for our students at Mansfield Hall," said Jake.

"We are more than just a place to live, we think of ourselves as a "super dorm."

Different from other college living experiences, the Mansfield Hall students think of themselves as college students first and foremost because their students have several colleges and the university to choose from within walking distance of their own dorm.

Mansfield Hall "selects students for the program who feel they are ready to transition and willing to work on everything that living on your own requires".   "We work with each student on the four pillars of our program; learning, living, social and giving."  

Instead of feeling like a therapeutic program, Mansfield Hall defines itself as working on a coaching model.  "While our students can see counselors outside the program and 65-70% of their populations is Asperger's-like, our program is not a managed milieu."  There are several requirements for a student to be accepted.  "All of our students are required to self-identify.  They need to demonstrate that they are kind, college capable, quirky compatible, interested to be part of our community and ready and willing for coaching."  "It is here that they truly build knowledge about themselves."

Jake introduced me to a student who is a freshman this year.  His name is Jae Hong.  He is a student whose family lives in South Korea but who graduated from a school like Hill Top Prep located in southern VT called Greenwood School.  "My high school was amazing.  Everyone there did everything possible to help me to succeed.  They just about carried me through from one class to the next each of my years at Greenwood.  Anything that I needed the faculty and staff gave me.  I knew I really needed that amount of support back then to get my diploma."

But he knew that the college experience was going to need to be different.  "Here at Mansfield Hall I am treated more like an adult.  I need to meet with the staff here and I can call on them for support.  They have all kinds of ideas and provide lots of support but they remind me that I am the one who is responsible now, and I need to do the walking myself." 

Jae says that he gets help with his academics and a tutor helps him to set up a study plan.  He also shared, with no apology, that social anxiety is also something that he is working to address.  He credits not only the staff for his growth in this area but his housemates have been a great help with this goal.  He exercises and works out every day at a local gym (Jae is in great shape) and has begun to connect with a number of the folks there.  In fact, while he shared some videos he has posted on YouTube in the past, he would like to do instructional workout videos in the near future.

Jake shared that the success that they see in students like Jae comes from "someone who is tasked with regularly monitoring the progress (or lack of progress) of each student in our program so that we can catch difficulties early and put plans in place to address them."  He referred to their program as a "centralized service model" because all of the dorm staff, the coaches, tutors, and counselors all know how each and every student is doing.

I asked Jake where the parents of his students fit in into the equation at Mansfield Hall.  He replied, "Our parents need to be part of the team and when their child begins here, they are at the center of the conversation.  We make phone calls each week to the parents of each student until everyone settles into the routine here."  This sounded a great deal like we do at Hill Top.  In fact, Mansfield Hall takes it one step further and provides each family with six parent coaching sessions provided by an outside program that the parents can use in their first year. Jake used a very interesting phrase that I just thought that encapsulates how Mansfield Hall works for their students.

"At Mansfield Hall, we provide a safe landing and a very long runway." 

I can't think of a better way to create the visual image of providing support and safety in the beginning and then giving each of their students the time they need to make mistakes, create a plan to address the mistakes and learn from what happens next.

In reflecting back on my lengthy visit to Mansfield Hall I think that this was one of the most enjoyable professional exchanges I have experienced in years.  Their entire program just fits so perfectly with so many of the students that I see coming out of Hill Top Prep.  In addition to Jake Weld, I also met the program director, Jasmine Lamb.  Her background is amazing.  She brings training and experience in residential treatment, summer college internships, marriage counseling and grant writing to her work.

Folks, Mansfield Hall has created a great balance between the value of independence for each of their students, which "is a process that can get messy sometimes" says Jake, and not letting them get too far down the wrong road so that they can learn from their mistakes.

Mansfield Hall is truly the safe landing for each of their students that can provide that long runway for learning about themselves as emerging adults.