An On Track Program instructor helps brain injury survivors make progress and find community
When someone suffers a traumatic brain injury it can be an isolating experience. People often must put their careers and hobbies on pause as they struggle with focus, memory and self-expression. But in the On Track Program, part of Mt. Diablo Adult Education School’s Adults with Disabilities Program (AWD), they find a community prepared to help them persevere through the myriad struggles they face.
“Once they’re in the program, they call themselves family,” says Camille Stasuik, On Track’s lead instructor. “They are very supportive of one another and they form a tight circle.”
Stasuik has spent nearly seven years guiding an ever-shifting class of students, each with unique challenges and goals. Over time, as she grew acclimated to her position, she says she noticed there was a much greater focus on physical healing than emotional healing. The program prioritizes group work, math skills and communication but, for balance, Stasuik also added art and creative journaling to the curriculum.
“Students really just want someone to listen and to hold space with them while they go through what they’re going through, and to have other people that understand them,” she says. “A lot of times, family, friends, strangers—just don’t understand.”
“Students want someone to listen and to hold space with them while they go through what they’re going through.”
Camille Stasuik, Lead Instructor, Mt. Diablo Adult Education School’s On Track Program
With a background in social work and 25 years experience as an educator, she considers it a “blessing” to have her job.
“The most rewarding thing is to see growth in people whose lives were turned upside down,” she says. “I learn so much more from them than they will ever learn from me.”
The class meets three days a week—two 90-minute classes per day on Tuesday and Wednesday over Zoom, and four-and-a-half hours each Thursday at the Loma Vista Adult Education campus in Concord. On the last Thursday of each month, the staff and students travel out into the community where they might see a play at a local theater, explore a museum or play bocce ball, then get lunch. Stasuik says these outings diversify students’ lives, and gives them opportunities to adapt to new environments and become more independent.
“I make it my goal to offer them a variety of experiences because I really believe that their learning is through doing and trying to navigate the world post-TBI” she says.
The healing also doesn’t end in the classroom. Students will often arrange excursions with each other independent of the program, showcasing the depth of their bonds.
Stasuik says her ultimate goal is for her students to regain confidence and independence. Many have made significant progress: One achieved their goals of relearning to drive, and returning to work; a once-reluctant art student now crafts her own stained glass projects, and a former police officer got married and enjoys a new focus on family.
She adds that despite the trauma of their injuries, the participants are the “most positive people” she’s ever met. Combining a caring community with understanding instructors, the On Track Program provides the tools for its students to see their injury as a detour, not a dead end, in their life’s journey.
“The most important thing about our program is that it offers hope,” she says.
For more information on Mt. Diablo’s Adult with Disabilities On Track Program visit https://mdae.mdusd.org/programs/awd
Written by John Flynn
| Regions | Classes & Topics |
|---|---|
| Bay Area California | Life Skills |
