Young Marines Unit Building Character and a Focus on Service

Retired Marine 1st Sgt. Vivian Price-Butler
leads the nation's only Young Marines unit

With the Memorial Day holiday, couldn't help but notice this story from The Washington Post. 

BALTIMORE — Bob Nobles and Cornell Wright might not have a chance to serve their country when they are adults. No matter: They are serving it now.
“Good morning, Young Marines,” barked 1st Sgt. Vivian Price-Butler, greeting Bob and Cornell and eight other boys Friday morning in her small classroom at Kennedy Krieger High School.
“Good morning, First Sergeant,” they replied in unison, standing straight and still.
The Young Marines is an education and service program reaching 10,000 youths around the nation and overseas. Of its more than 300 units, only one is dedicated to students with special needs.

Baby's Poor Head and Neck Control Could Provide Autism Clue

Early research suggests that if a 6-month old baby has "head lag," or weak head and neck control, it may be an early sign of autism or another language/social developmental delay.

The test is simple – babies who are lying on the floor are pulled up into a sitting position. If the baby's head is not moving forward as you pull the baby up, it's a sign of weak head and neck control.
Researchers already know that head lag could be an early sign that a child's nervous system is not developing correctly. They've seen this in children with cerebral palsy and preterm infants, for example. But so far it had not been documented in children with autism.

Students With Autism Learn To Succeed On the Job

People with autism often have a hard time finding and keeping jobs, so more schools are creating programs to help students with autism get prepared for the workplace. One of those programs helped change the life of Kevin Sargeant.
Just a few years ago, when Kevin was still in elementary school, things weren't looking good for him. He was antisocial, desperately unhappy and doing poorly in school.
"He was pretty much a broken child, the way I would describe it," says his mother, Jennifer Sargeant. "We really didn't see that he would be able to go to college, even have a job. That just wasn't in our future for him."
Kevin, now 18, says his autism left him unable to handle the social interactions at school.
Six years later, Kevin is a lot more social. He's a good student. And he's working — as an intern in the IT department at the Parks & People Foundation. Kevin says computers are a good fit for him.