How the Coleman School Helped Matthew Welling

Matthew Welling is an exceptional 5-year-old. His memory is uncanny, his language skills are highly developed, and he speaks articulately about the Yankees—and is an avid fan of reggae music. 

He also spent the first two years of his life in a hospital as a result of a bone disease that left him legally blind. Thanks to the special education program at the John A. Coleman School in White Plains—Matthew has developed the skills to enter a mainstream kindergarten class in the fall.

Matthew inherited, a rare infliction also known as Albers-Schonberg disease, which required him to seek two bone marrow donations. The transplants saved his life, and part of his eyesight and hearing.

 “Matthew was now almost 2-years-old, and as a first time mother, I had never even taken him to the supermarket,” said his mother, Susie Welling. “Still, Matthew is the happiest kid I know.”

Upon being released from the hospital, however, Matthew was weary of adults due to minimal contact with the outside world. Susie Welling, 39, and Matthew’s father, 39-year-old Michael Welling, of Port Chester realized they needed speech and physical therapists to help Matthew attain the real-world skills necessary to lead a normal life.

“I like playing outside,” said Matthew. “My friends love playing a lot, too.”

Enter Jennifer Sarner, special educator at the John A. Coleman School in White Plains—the first adult Matthew learned to trust after his parents. Sarner stresses the importance of interacting with children and allowing them to become comfortable before incorporating textbook therapeutic techniques.

How did Matthew become comfortable with Jennifer?

“We spent our first six months together just getting used to each other,” said Sarner. “I’d read him stories and we’d listen to reggae music.”

Part of the Elizabeth Seton Pediatric Center, the Coleman School offers educational opportunities to children with and without disabilities.

“The Coleman School was the only education facility in Westchester that would sent therapists to our house,” said Susie Welling. “They sent speech, occupational and physical therapists to our home.”

With campuses in Manhattan and White Plains, the Coleman School teaches children from 18 months to 8 years of age to develop real-world skills in a challenging environment that supports and respects their disabilities, learning styles and unique qualities.

“We [at the Coleman School] try to give students a warm, nurturing environment for children to come into as young as they are,” said Coleman instructor Michelle Onoda.

Onoda also had the pleasure of getting to know Matthew during her two years as his in-class instructor. She directed Matthew as well as the rest of his class as they moved through different aspects of the Coleman School’s curriculum, such as gym instruction, musical therapy, cooking and library activities.

“We get to know the child first,” said Onoda. “For instance, Matthew is hands on; he is very tactile because of his vision impairment, so we make it possible for him to take in information via touch.”

Matthew, one of the 53 recent graduates of the school’s special education program, will start King Street School in Port Chester this fall.

“[The Coleman School] takes every child’s needs into account in and out of the classroom, and they often don’t get enough recognition for what they do,” said Susie Welling. “On top of that, it’s really school. Matthew’s language skills are far beyond his age. I’m kind of sad that he’s going into this mean world now."

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