'Apartment for Life Skills' Boosts North Salem’s Special Education Program

NORTH SALEM, N.Y. - North Salem students with special needs have a better space to work on their language, academic, and social skills.

Sen. Peter Harckham recently announced that a classroom for the school district’s Structured Teaching Education Program (STEP) has been renovated thanks to a $100,000 grant he secured from the Community Resiliency, Economic Sustainability, and Technology (CREST) program.

“Providing quality educational opportunities for children with IDDs (Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities) is essential to ensuring they thrive both during their school years and in their future careers,” Harckham said, noting that the new classroom will “offer invaluable hands-on experiences, equipping students in the North Salem community with the skills they need to lead more independent, fulfilling lives.”

He thanked teachers, administrators and school trustees for their “unwavering commitment to providing the best possible education for these incredible students. 

“The North Salem Central School District is deeply appreciative of receiving this generous state grant from Senator Harkham,” said Superintendent Adam VanDerStuyf. “With this funding, we were able to design and build a fully functioning Apartment for Life Skills, providing our students with opportunities to learn and develop skills necessary to transition to life after high school.” 

The renovated classroom, now known as the “Apartment for Life Skills,” is in the district’s Middle School and High School building.

The space has been transformed into a fully functional apartment, complete with a kitchen, washer and dryer, and other essential amenities.

The project started in June and was completed in November. It was also supported by the North Salem Foundation for Learning, a local nonprofit dedicated to funding special school initiatives.

The innovative setup allows students to develop practical skills in areas such as organizational management, grocery shopping, menu planning, cooking, laundry, cleaning, and personal hygiene. 

Students will also use the classroom to practice job readiness skills and prepare for community-based work opportunities that are part of the program’s focus on real-world application.

Harckham and his colleague, state Sen. Shelley B. Mayer, chair of the Senate’s Education Committee, recently visited the “Apartment for Life Skills” classroom.

The CREST program is among the State Senate grant programs administered by the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York (DASNY) to support community and economic development.

Pete Harckham represents the 40th Senate District, which includes the towns of Carmel, Kent, Patterson and Southeast, and the village of Brewster in Putnam County; the town of Stony Point in Rockland County; and the city of Peekskill, the towns of Bedford, Cortlandt, Lewisboro, New Castle, North Salem, Ossining, Somers and Yorktown, the town/village of Mount Kisco, and the villages of Briarcliff Manor, Buchanan, Croton-on-Hudson and Ossining in Westchester County.