Teaching the democratic process

She gives adults with developmental disabilities the communication and group skills that also help them become more effective advocates

By Melanie Cleveland
mcleveland@thetribunenews.com mcleveland@thetribunenews.com

Teacher Carol Lopes shares Peter Stoner’s thoughts with the group during a class Monday in San Luis Obispo.

Teacher Carol Lopes'classroom is a windowless warehouse converted to hold day programs for adults with developmental disabilities.

As an adult education teacher, she helps students learn how they can make effective decisions, both as individuals and collectively.

"My classes are a microcosm of the democratic process," she said. "The group learns that every person has a right to his own opinion and that every vote counts."

Lopes'early classes had only a few interested students; now she has more than 100 students in a series of classes designed to teach how to become a part of the political process.

"When the state budget got tight, the students mobilized and their topics got more sophisticated," Lopes said. "They made connections with state organizations and started personally testifying in Sacramento on behalf of all of the developmentally disabled. It has become more than a class. It’s a civil rights movement."

What you see: As 20 students gather around a large table, testing the microphone and finding their agenda paperwork, Lopes helps a student with his wheelchair’s batteries, then digs into another’s backpack to find his reading glasses. Once everyone is set, she stands back, nodding encouragement, as the group’s leaders plunge into the day’s agenda.

Starting with the first action item — establishing a permanent scholarship for advocates to attend state conferences — the group follows the structure of Robert’s Rules of Order as she has taught them. The meeting is polite, orderly and efficient.

What she sees: "Incredible results," Lopes said. "My job is to break down complicated concepts into what people can understand; mostly I relate them to people’s daily lives. Now they’ve learned to solve problems as a group through their own organization, priorities and decisions. They have heroes in their own group, and I’ve never seen that before. They have learned that when it’s just one voice, it is a soft voice, but with a group it’s louder and self-assured. I see them making a difference in their lives and the lives of other people. It’s empowering."

What she likes best: "My students really, really, really benefit from having their competence respected. It raises the bar for everyone. ...When you teach to someone’s abilities, they feel better about themselves; they know they can do it. My job now is to keep supplying the group with information that will keep them growing — and more powerful."

What she would change: "Historically, people with developmental disabilities have been viewed as recipients of services. And the opportunities for them to be contributors haven’t been legitimized in the community. I’d like my students to meet out of the congregate day programs and be integrated into a community setting that’s accessible to the public. Maybe they could work on political campaigns, with city government committees or service clubs like the Rotary. They can be volunteering in community agencies, assisting the library, or working in schools to help others self-advocate.