I, Rebecca Rajaniemi at 16 years of age, have created this website to show the world what Autism really is. There's no need for a cure. Autism isn't a disease so people should stop treating it as one. I don't have Autism, but I have a very good friend that does. She is exceptional, intelligent, and beautiful. Her name is Elizabeth Stephens, and she is extremely talented when it comes to writing.
Elizabeth is the inspiration on which I've built this website. She has changed me in so many ways and made me a more compassionate person. She has taught me so much about Autism, and has told me her story. Please take a moment and let me share it with you.
"Do you ever have a place you really love? One place you never want to leave? One place that when you do leave you want to visit again and again? I have one of those places: my high school, Aim High. To understand why, let me explain to you the before and after of Aim High School.
Before Aim. I wish there wasn't a before Aim High. Before Aim High was, to put it simply, Hell. But I suppose for the readers, they want to know why it was Hell before Aim. I shall explain why. It started when I was in fifth grade. As a child with autism, I was a follower. Whatever other kids did, I did it too. It didn't matter if it was good or bad, I did it. At the start of fifth grade, I was sitting next to this girl who made some bad choices (not really bad choices, but they were bad just the same). I of course followed her. I was doing the same things she was doing, which didn't make my parents very happy. They requested that the teacher move me away from the girl and they did. My school year was better after I moved away from the girl. The other bad thing that year was the teacher. She wasn't mean, she just didn't understand the issues I had and didn't know how to handle them. But I had NO idea the Hell that was about to come.
Six grade. This is a grade I've been trying hard to forget. In simple terms: new school, new teachers, and new kids. Let me go into a little more detail about what this means. New school: it was much bigger than my elementary school and it took me longer than five minutes to get me to my next class. New teachers: these were teachers that were brand new to me. I didn't know how they would treat me. My math and science teacher was a devil. She hated me with a passion. Her teaching style (“You have to turn it in the next day”) and my learning style (“I need to take my time”) was different. This created many conflicts between us. The one time I was doing a science experiment and I said something to her. I'm not sure what I said, but the next thing I know I'm sitting in the hallway by the principal’s office for no reason (that I knew of anyway). New kids: What can I say? They didn't treat me nicely: they treated me like dirt. I got into a lot of fights that year and got suspended a lot.
8th grade. (I skipped over seventh grade because that was my best grade in middle school). This grade was my second worst grade in middle school. It wasn't because of my grades or my teachers-they were all fine! There were two boys who just would not leave me alone. All they would do EVERY SINGLE DAY was call me ugly, say I wasn't good enough, say my parents don’t want me…the list goes on. But there were two incidents with them that were just awful and made me hate them even more. The one kid-Dovon, I think his name was-was on the back of the bus talking bad about me (as always). I was sitting in the seat a couple rows behind them and I told him to stop. He stood up and walked up to me (he was a tall kid) and said “WHAT did you say?” I replied, “I told you to stop picking on me.” Then, he did something I never thought anyone would do: he smacked me hard across the face. Let me tell you: it hurt really bad. I think I had tears in my eyes; that’s how bad it hurt. He did get suspended of course, but I did as well. He lied and said I started it and the principal believed him. I hate him so much! And now for the other incident. This one happened at summer camp, but it was during the summer of my 8th grade year so I count it! I was walking down the hallway with some games in my hand that I was taking back to the class room. Mark and a friend of his were playing “catch” with a basketball in that same hallway. Being the bully he is, he threw the basketball at the back of my head. It hit me and knocked me down. I was close, oh so darn close to punching him. What kind of person throws a basketball at the back of someone’s head-which could GIVE THEM A CONCUSSION?! A coward, that’s who. People who try and hurt other people when their back is turned is a coward. Both of them will get what’s coming to them someday… at least that’s my hope. *Grins* (Note: PLEASE don’t think I’m taking away from my parents in this article. They are the best people on the planet because of everything they had to put up with. I LOVE my parents-I owe them a HUGE thank you. <333333333333333333333)
I was dreading high-school. New kids, new teachers, and a GIANT school. Getting lost in a big school, getting picked on…all of those things were causing my hands to shake. I had just barely made it past middle school, how in the world was I going to survive high-school?! All of those thoughts were keeping me wide awake at night… until my mom and dad found a school called Veritas Christi. The idea for the school was created by the mother of an autistic child who, like me and my parents, did not want their child to go to a giant high-school. The building was in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and I can still remember that memorable first visit. At first I was nervous: I hated meeting new people and going to new places. It made me uncomfortable. The building had a giant common room, a large room which would be used for art, music and math and a few smaller classrooms for the rest of the classes. The minute I walked inside, I knew something was different. Somehow I realized that this school was going to become my second home. And the teachers (I will introduce them below) were about to become my second family.
Mr. Michael Earls. He was born (and raised?) in Missouri but went to college at Michigan University. (Go Blue! <3) He was in the military, serving our country for 24 years. He was to be my history teacher. He had a way of making you feel comfortable around him. He was funny and made me feel like I could trust him.
Mr. Chris Sayer. He was born and raised in Ohio and went to Ohio State. He was my math teacher that year. He was funny too and taught me math in a way that made me understand it and like it. (I HATED math before Mr. Sayer came-I LOVED math while he taught me).
Mr. George Vandertuig. He was born and raised in Maryland-right near Washington D.C-and went to Calvin College in Michigan. He was my science teacher. He taught science in a way that made me understand it-such as power-points. Power-points helped me a lot because I could visually see what he was talking about.
Mr. Matthew Landrum. He was born and raised in Grand Rapids and went to Bennington College. He was my English and Latin teacher that year. Being in his class was fun. English was my favorite subject (duh!) and Latin was fun to learn.
Mrs. Janet Kruse. She was my art and music teacher that year. I loved her-she and I got along very well. (She was let go halfway through the year, which made me unhappy).
My freshman year was great. A lot changed about me during that year. Example: about a week after I started school, I had some math homework. My parents, knowing my history of hate of math and of my refusal to do it, probably thought it was going to be another big fight. But I surprised them by saying “I want to get my homework done.” I think they looked at each other like “Who is this girl and what has she done with Lizzy?!” For the rest of that year, I always did my homework and most of the time got it done at school. The teachers at this school were dedicated to their students and were always willing to help us with our homework.
Sophomore year. I was still the only girl in the school. But, we were getting a new teacher-a girl teacher. Mr. Sayer, who had been my favorite math teacher, had been let go. Some of the parents didn't like the way he taught his classes. I was sad that he was leaving, but I was excited to have another teacher. Her name was Ms. Molly Urquhart. She was the same age as Mr. Vandertuig and had been born and raised in Michigan. She went to Michigan State for college and had gotten a degree in teaching math. I remember that first day I met her I was attached to her. I’d know the other teachers well enough but I wanted to find out about her. I’d soon realize that she was kind of like Mr. Sayer. She was funny and she taught me in a way that made me understand it better than at a public school.
I've just graduated from Aim High School and I'm heading off to college. College was not something I’d thought I’d be going into. I guess before Aim I didn't have enough confidence in myself to get to where I am today. College was the biggest thing that Aim did for me, but it did more than that. Before I came to Aim, I was shy in crowds. I didn't like being around a lot of people. Now, I'm more comfortable in crowds than I ever would've been had I gone to a public high school. They've taught me to believe in myself and not to be so hard when something doesn't go right the first time. They've taught me how to write applications and how to do job interviews. I don’t think if I’d gone to a public high-school I would've been able to do that. This school is my second home and these guys have become my second family. Without them, I honestly don’t know where I’d be.
Please go to the school’s website and read about them. If there is a parent of an autistic child out there reading this and your child needs a change, please call Aim High School. That school did miracles for me: I'm sure they can do miracles for you and your child as well."
Her story truly touches me and I hope it touched your heart as well.
Elizabeth is the inspiration on which I've built this website. She has changed me in so many ways and made me a more compassionate person. She has taught me so much about Autism, and has told me her story. Please take a moment and let me share it with you.
"Do you ever have a place you really love? One place you never want to leave? One place that when you do leave you want to visit again and again? I have one of those places: my high school, Aim High. To understand why, let me explain to you the before and after of Aim High School.
Before Aim. I wish there wasn't a before Aim High. Before Aim High was, to put it simply, Hell. But I suppose for the readers, they want to know why it was Hell before Aim. I shall explain why. It started when I was in fifth grade. As a child with autism, I was a follower. Whatever other kids did, I did it too. It didn't matter if it was good or bad, I did it. At the start of fifth grade, I was sitting next to this girl who made some bad choices (not really bad choices, but they were bad just the same). I of course followed her. I was doing the same things she was doing, which didn't make my parents very happy. They requested that the teacher move me away from the girl and they did. My school year was better after I moved away from the girl. The other bad thing that year was the teacher. She wasn't mean, she just didn't understand the issues I had and didn't know how to handle them. But I had NO idea the Hell that was about to come.
Six grade. This is a grade I've been trying hard to forget. In simple terms: new school, new teachers, and new kids. Let me go into a little more detail about what this means. New school: it was much bigger than my elementary school and it took me longer than five minutes to get me to my next class. New teachers: these were teachers that were brand new to me. I didn't know how they would treat me. My math and science teacher was a devil. She hated me with a passion. Her teaching style (“You have to turn it in the next day”) and my learning style (“I need to take my time”) was different. This created many conflicts between us. The one time I was doing a science experiment and I said something to her. I'm not sure what I said, but the next thing I know I'm sitting in the hallway by the principal’s office for no reason (that I knew of anyway). New kids: What can I say? They didn't treat me nicely: they treated me like dirt. I got into a lot of fights that year and got suspended a lot.
8th grade. (I skipped over seventh grade because that was my best grade in middle school). This grade was my second worst grade in middle school. It wasn't because of my grades or my teachers-they were all fine! There were two boys who just would not leave me alone. All they would do EVERY SINGLE DAY was call me ugly, say I wasn't good enough, say my parents don’t want me…the list goes on. But there were two incidents with them that were just awful and made me hate them even more. The one kid-Dovon, I think his name was-was on the back of the bus talking bad about me (as always). I was sitting in the seat a couple rows behind them and I told him to stop. He stood up and walked up to me (he was a tall kid) and said “WHAT did you say?” I replied, “I told you to stop picking on me.” Then, he did something I never thought anyone would do: he smacked me hard across the face. Let me tell you: it hurt really bad. I think I had tears in my eyes; that’s how bad it hurt. He did get suspended of course, but I did as well. He lied and said I started it and the principal believed him. I hate him so much! And now for the other incident. This one happened at summer camp, but it was during the summer of my 8th grade year so I count it! I was walking down the hallway with some games in my hand that I was taking back to the class room. Mark and a friend of his were playing “catch” with a basketball in that same hallway. Being the bully he is, he threw the basketball at the back of my head. It hit me and knocked me down. I was close, oh so darn close to punching him. What kind of person throws a basketball at the back of someone’s head-which could GIVE THEM A CONCUSSION?! A coward, that’s who. People who try and hurt other people when their back is turned is a coward. Both of them will get what’s coming to them someday… at least that’s my hope. *Grins* (Note: PLEASE don’t think I’m taking away from my parents in this article. They are the best people on the planet because of everything they had to put up with. I LOVE my parents-I owe them a HUGE thank you. <333333333333333333333)
I was dreading high-school. New kids, new teachers, and a GIANT school. Getting lost in a big school, getting picked on…all of those things were causing my hands to shake. I had just barely made it past middle school, how in the world was I going to survive high-school?! All of those thoughts were keeping me wide awake at night… until my mom and dad found a school called Veritas Christi. The idea for the school was created by the mother of an autistic child who, like me and my parents, did not want their child to go to a giant high-school. The building was in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and I can still remember that memorable first visit. At first I was nervous: I hated meeting new people and going to new places. It made me uncomfortable. The building had a giant common room, a large room which would be used for art, music and math and a few smaller classrooms for the rest of the classes. The minute I walked inside, I knew something was different. Somehow I realized that this school was going to become my second home. And the teachers (I will introduce them below) were about to become my second family.
Mr. Michael Earls. He was born (and raised?) in Missouri but went to college at Michigan University. (Go Blue! <3) He was in the military, serving our country for 24 years. He was to be my history teacher. He had a way of making you feel comfortable around him. He was funny and made me feel like I could trust him.
Mr. Chris Sayer. He was born and raised in Ohio and went to Ohio State. He was my math teacher that year. He was funny too and taught me math in a way that made me understand it and like it. (I HATED math before Mr. Sayer came-I LOVED math while he taught me).
Mr. George Vandertuig. He was born and raised in Maryland-right near Washington D.C-and went to Calvin College in Michigan. He was my science teacher. He taught science in a way that made me understand it-such as power-points. Power-points helped me a lot because I could visually see what he was talking about.
Mr. Matthew Landrum. He was born and raised in Grand Rapids and went to Bennington College. He was my English and Latin teacher that year. Being in his class was fun. English was my favorite subject (duh!) and Latin was fun to learn.
Mrs. Janet Kruse. She was my art and music teacher that year. I loved her-she and I got along very well. (She was let go halfway through the year, which made me unhappy).
My freshman year was great. A lot changed about me during that year. Example: about a week after I started school, I had some math homework. My parents, knowing my history of hate of math and of my refusal to do it, probably thought it was going to be another big fight. But I surprised them by saying “I want to get my homework done.” I think they looked at each other like “Who is this girl and what has she done with Lizzy?!” For the rest of that year, I always did my homework and most of the time got it done at school. The teachers at this school were dedicated to their students and were always willing to help us with our homework.
Sophomore year. I was still the only girl in the school. But, we were getting a new teacher-a girl teacher. Mr. Sayer, who had been my favorite math teacher, had been let go. Some of the parents didn't like the way he taught his classes. I was sad that he was leaving, but I was excited to have another teacher. Her name was Ms. Molly Urquhart. She was the same age as Mr. Vandertuig and had been born and raised in Michigan. She went to Michigan State for college and had gotten a degree in teaching math. I remember that first day I met her I was attached to her. I’d know the other teachers well enough but I wanted to find out about her. I’d soon realize that she was kind of like Mr. Sayer. She was funny and she taught me in a way that made me understand it better than at a public school.
I've just graduated from Aim High School and I'm heading off to college. College was not something I’d thought I’d be going into. I guess before Aim I didn't have enough confidence in myself to get to where I am today. College was the biggest thing that Aim did for me, but it did more than that. Before I came to Aim, I was shy in crowds. I didn't like being around a lot of people. Now, I'm more comfortable in crowds than I ever would've been had I gone to a public high school. They've taught me to believe in myself and not to be so hard when something doesn't go right the first time. They've taught me how to write applications and how to do job interviews. I don’t think if I’d gone to a public high-school I would've been able to do that. This school is my second home and these guys have become my second family. Without them, I honestly don’t know where I’d be.
Please go to the school’s website and read about them. If there is a parent of an autistic child out there reading this and your child needs a change, please call Aim High School. That school did miracles for me: I'm sure they can do miracles for you and your child as well."
Her story truly touches me and I hope it touched your heart as well.