Jermaine

There’s a student at Hope named Jermaine. Jermaine is probably the most enthusiastic student I see all week, both at school and in private practice. In fact, his clapping was so enthusiastic that his teachers asked him to tap his knees instead, so that his peers weren’t distracted during music therapy.

Jermaine absolutely loves music, and over the last two years I have made him countless CDs of my songs. He knows all of them by heart, and will often request the songs by name. Today he asked me to sing the song “I Will be Your Friend”, which I hadn’t sung or even thought about in months and months. But another student echoed his request, so I began singing the song. I got through the first verse, and then completely blanked on the second verse. Jermaine was there to save the day – he took over as lead singer, and belted out the second and third verses.

When the song was through, Jermaine raised his hand. I called on him. “Yes, Jermaine. Do you have a question?” (He will often ask me questions in between songs.) He replied, “Miss Rachel, you encourage my heart every time you sing.”

Actually, it’s the other way around…do I really need to explain why I love my job?

Be Still, My Heart

If my heart was filled with one more ounce of pride this morning, it would have burst all over the Senior 1 classroom. I know, I know, not a good image…but it’s true! The warm weather must have gotten to everyone in that room, including me, because the overall mood during music therapy was positively giddy. And that translated into an amazing session during which the staff and students enthusiastically participated in each activity, singing so loud I could barely hear myself (quite a feat).

I really do have the best job in the world. I get paid to write songs for my students, work with them each week, and cheer them on as they reach their goals. While I appreciate this every day, it really hit home this morning when I looked around and saw an entire classroom, adults and students alike, 100% engaged and having a great time.

Life is good.

School Spirit

I’ve been blogging for about a month now, but I haven’t talked much about the school where I work, the Hope Institute in Springfield, Illinois. I’ve been fortunate to serve as the music therapist there for the last year and a half, and it has been an extremely eye-opening and gratifying experience.


The Hope Institute is a residential school for children with multiple disabilities. Over 70% of our students have a diagnosis of autism; other diagnoses include Down Syndrome, Tourette Syndrome, severe behavioral disorders, and various cognitive, physical and emotional deficits. Hope has a staff of over 500, including teachers, educational and habilitation specialists, therapists, and administrative officials.

As the only music therapist, I work with each class as well as several students individually. We work on social skills, movement, following directions, interaction, and many other goal areas. I also get to do all sorts of fun “extras” such as leading school singalongs, organizing student performances, and sharing the music of Hope with the community.

Last year I was asked to write a new school song, which the students sang at this year’s pep rally. It was so much fun to write, but what I really love is hearing the kids sing it and showing their school spirit. Here it is:

We are the bulldogs,
We are the bulldogs,
The Hope bulldogs are we.
Mighty and strong,
At the top we belong,
Oh just you wait and see!

We are the bulldogs,
We are the bulldogs,
White and blue and proud,
We do our best,
Stand apart from the rest,
We sing our song out loud!

We are the bulldogs,
We are the bulldogs,
The Hope bulldogs are we.
Mighty and strong,
At the top we belong,
Oh just you wait and see!