1. Advocating for families
bit of destiny
brought Nanci
Fine to work
as an Inclusion
Speciaiist at
JFCS. Her bachelor's degree
in speech and language pa-
thology, master's in educa-
tion and teaching licensure
certainly qualify her to work
with indMduals and families
challenged by disabilities.
But she aiso brings the
experience of sitting at both
sides ofthe table at school
special education meetings
- sometimes as a parent,
sometimes as a teacher.
Fine has been in similar
situatlons as some of her
clients, and she knows the
amount of nurturing and
nudging they may need to
overcome hurdles and thrive.
Now she works with indi-
viduals and families through
JFCS's Inclusion Support
Services as an advocate,
mediator, case manager and a
source ofreference and refer-
ral for clients and colleagues.
Her goal is to help her clients
develop the knowledge and
courage to advocate for
themselves, while remaining
a source of reference and
encouragement. "l still con-
sider myself to be very much
a teacher because my goal is
to empower families I work
with, just like a teacher em-
powers her student to apply
his newly gained knowledge,"
she said.
And that's what she has
been working toward with
Aimee* and her son, Ben*.
Ben is a third-grader who
was diagnosed on the Autism
Spectrum and with Tourette
syndrome, a neurological
disorder characterized by
involuntary motor and vocal
tics that change over time.
Nanci Fine
His mom,
Aimee,
was
referred
to Fine by
a connec-
tion at
her syna-
gogue,
and their
relationship developed from
there. 'Though I was guard-
ed, angry, confused and
scared, somehow I felt as
though I had known (Nanci)
forever," Aimee said.
The two connected via phone
or email, and every week
Fine would send Aimee
information to help her
learn more about her son's
diagnosis and how it might
challenge him at school.
"l was beginning to trust that
we could get him what he
needs, and little by little the
barrier of protection I created
began to come down," Aimee
said.
The two women began to
piece together a plan to
obtain individualized services
for Ben at school. "During
the process of evaluating our
son, Nanci knew just what
to ask for in terms of testing
and observation. She knew
just what to have them do,
and she was right next to me
during the (Individualized
Education PIan) meeting.
"Had Nanci and I not con-
nected those months back, I
believe I would not be work-
ing with any agency," Aimee
said. "l am sure I would not
be requesting services and
I am sure I would still be a
numbed-out shell ol [ear,
protection, resentment and
panic trying to flx something
that wasn't broken in the
first place, just different."
Fine takes an approach of
"person-centered" planning.
"l like to evaluate the stu-
dent's needs at school and
then offer options for the
family to develop a consis-
tent and, hopefully, seam-
less plan to put in effect at
home," she said.
That comprehensive, persis-
tent approach is sometimes
intimidating to parents, she
said, but "I try to make them
see the more honest they
can be with themselves, the
more they can help their kids."
Aimee said she and her son
have beneflted from Fine's
expertise, compassion and
consistency. "Nanci has
empowered me to take an
active role in our child's
school plan and I, in turn,
have a responsibility to
keep this going so one day
he can advocate for himself
and his children," she said.
"Throughout this process,
she has reminded me that
she is serring me as my ad-
vocate and I can turn down
any suggestions she has
along the way. Amusingly,
I haven't,"
When Fine reflects on
results like those she has
INCTUSION SPECIALIST NANCI FINE HELPS PEOPTE
COPE WIIH THE CHAILENGES OF DISABILEIES.
seen with Aimee and Ben,
she said it confirms she's in
the right job. The combina-
tion of fate, motivation and
willing clients make her work
as an Inclusion Specialist a
great flt,
"lt comes very natural to
me," Fine said. "l'm very
straightforward with my
clients and still manage to
help them feel comfortable
so they don't think they are
talking about very personal
information to a stranger at
an agency - they're calling
Nanci at JFCS."
* Pictitious nomes haue
been applied to Fine's
clients in order to keep their
identities cnongmous.
Helping
families
I nclusion Support
ilin:mt,:ffi,.
with the challenges
presented by disabili-
ties. JFCS Inclusion
Specialist Nanci Fige
rvorks with families to
tailor a plan speciflc to
their needs.
Client Services Director
RuLh Paley says the
individualization of
ihe program is ben-
eflcial. "By having an
Inclusipn Specialist on
stafl we're able to offer
specialized services
that are unique to the
needs of these individ-
ual families," she said.
For lurther inlorma-
tion, contact Fine
at952-417-2136 or
nfine@jfcsmpls.org,