Best Buddies Brings Friends and Fun to ELHS
By Ellie Mara ’23
High School can be a cliquey place.
Kids stick with their friends and don’t branch out.
Students like Roshna Bush are bucking that trend with Best Buddies, a program that gives students the opportunity to befriend peers with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Giving students the chance to meet students they might not ever have the chance to meet.
Emily Roche, the special education teacher for the ELHS Autism Spectrum Disorders classroom established the Best Buddies program here.
“I was involved with Best Buddies at the University of Rhode Island in college, and I really wanted to be at a school that had best buddies,” Roche said. “I thought there was a really big need at ELHS for it. And we sorta just brainstormed and decided to start it, and it’s been very successful so far.”
An international program, Best Buddies started in 1989, aiming to establish a global volunteer movement, create opportunities for friendship, develop leaders, and provide inclusive living for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Twenty students are involved at ELHS, a small portion of the thousands across America and the globe.
Roshna joined Best Buddies this school year. Bush had never gotten a chance to get to know the students in the ASD classroom.
“If you give the students a chance to really know them, you can see how hard they work and how great they are to be friends with.”
Roshna thought less was expected of the ASD kids.
In gym class, for example, they might be asked to throw a ball against the wall instead of joining the rest of the students. When Roshna played sports with the club. However, she realized how athletic the students really could be.
“Eric shot the basketball way better than me, and Travy sprints super fast,” she said.
Ms. Roche hopes that the program will continue to evolve, and the kids will go on outings together.
“Whether that be going to a bowling alley or going to get Starbucks. I think that for the future of Best Buddies hopefully we can see some growth in that direction.”
