It was hard for him to focus on his work; he knew he could do the work if he was just able to focus. He just couldn’t seem to remember due dates no matter how hard he tried. School work felt like that for freshman Andy Schlaff until he had a LINK to help him organize and plan.

“Before I had a LINK, my worst classes were science and math because it was impossible for me to focus,” Schlaff said. “My LINK made me focus and made me a better student.”

Many high needs students have had similar situations with their LINKS since the program started in 2013. Based on Grand Valley University’s START program, the Peer to Peer program is determined to help those in the junior/senior high school who need more help.

The LINKS and the teens they help share a comradery with each other. Outside of helping their buddies learn, LINKS themselves take their experiences in the program and continue to grow as people both personally and professionally.

Social worker John Twining has been in charge of the Peer to Peer program in Stockbridge since its inception.

“The goal of the program is to make it so that high needs students are successful in classes with their peers,” Twining said. “Students with autism can feel disconnected, and our students provide a way of linking them back into the school environment.”

Schlaff thinks one of the best parts of the program is the bond that forms between the LINKS and their peers.

“I’ve had a LINK since the eighth grade, and I currently have two LINKS for gym and algebra.”

Sophomore Christopher Hall, a first-time LINK, serves as Schlaff’s aid in his physical education class.

“I joined because I just wanted to help people who needed it,” Hall said. “The bond really grows as time goes on.”

Since the program’s creation, the amount of participants who have volunteered to be LINKS has grown greatly.

“We are going to have 54 LINKS throughout the entire year,” Twining said. “We have 14 students who require LINKS currently, but that number might change as kids mature out of the program. When I first got the idea of the program, some larger schools had similar programs, but no smaller schools were doing anything like it.”

The goal of the Peer to Peer program is to continue to bring students with additional needs together with their peers, and the progress that the program has made shows this goal being accomplished year after year.

“I would recommend the program,” Hall said. “It’s just a good way to help people and make friends.”