On a chilly Tuesday afternoon, Guild School student Leah* is busy whipping up some homemade mac n’ cheese in Middlesex Community College’s instructional kitchen. “It’s even better than Kraft,” she promises.

The Guild for Human Services, which educates, encourages, and empowers individuals with intellectual disabilities, is premiering its documentary, The World Got Smaller: The Spirit of The Guild during COVID-19 on March 16th at 1 PM EST online. The short film provides a first-hand look at how the pandemic curtailed the community life of individuals with intellectual disabilities. The film is being released to commemorate the second anniversary of the State of Emergency declared in Massachusetts and the subsequent closing of schools.

Leading up to the March 16th premiere of The World Got Smaller: The Spirit of The Guild During COVID-19, we’ll be featuring students, residents, staff, and parents interviewed in the film on our blog.

Laura Schooley, Student Services Manager, celebrated her 10-year anniversary with The Guild last month! We sat down with Laura to chat about her professional experiences and what motivates her in her role.   

What roles have you held with The Guild?

After remaining closed throughout the pandemic’s peak to provide distanced office space for staff, The Guild’s counseling center has re-opened. Counselors can now take advantage of its chalkboard wall, collection of instruments, therapeutic toys, and art supplies.

The language we use to describe ourselves and others has lasting implications. Language preferences are personal, especially as terminology evolves within the disability movement to accurately reflect individuals’ unique strengths and challenges. Recently, some have shifted away from the term ‘nonverbal’ in favor of ‘nonspeaking’ to describe individuals who use modalities other than speech to communicate.

On a cold Wednesday in November, The Guild School’s kitchen is a whirlwind of activity: one student pops a pan of cheesy pigs-in-a-blanket into the oven while another cleans up the countertops. More student chefs are putting the finishing touches on a second tray, taking care to wrap each appetizer just right.

This month, we’d like to congratulate Guild staff member Benji Menard on his recent promotion to Pine House Manager. Benji has been with The Guild for five years, having served as Overnight Residential Staff, Residential Assistant, and Assistant Residential Manager with Dogwood House, and most recently as the Lead Residential Assistant with the Woburn I adult house. We sat down with Benji to learn more about his journey with The Guild:  

In October, The Guild celebrated National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM). NDEAM reflects the importance of ensuring that people with disabilities have full access to employment and community involvement. Throughout the month, the national #NDEAM campaign aimed to educate the public about disability employment issues and celebrate the many and varied contributions of America’s workers with disabilities.

Whether we’re in the middle of the action, hanging out on the sidelines, or watching from home with friends, sports foster community-building and a healthy sense of competition. The connection between sports and positive life outcomes has been well documented.