NYLT Alumnus Connects Disabilities to the Achievement Gap

In New Jersey, one young National Youth Leadership Training alumnus has transformed his passion for making a difference into a lasting cultural shift in the schools of his home community. Zach Certner, a current NYLC Youth Advisory Council member, already had experience building a nonprofit organization, but the NYLT experience gave him a new perspective and deeper understanding of his work with special needs athletes.

Certner arrived at NYLT already a leader in his community. He is the co-founder and president of Special Needs Athletic Programs, Inc. (SNAP) in his hometown of Morristown, N.J. Certner has engaged his peers for years by providing opportunities for special needs youth to get involved in sports. Prior to attending NYLT, Certner had heard about the achievement gap, but didn’t know much about the complexities involved and never thought that differences in academic achievement could be related to larger issues, such as the socioeconomic backgrounds of students.

After his experience at NYLT he discovered a new outlet for his passion for service. He described the program as a “jaw-dropping” experience that changed his perspective on the world and on other people by making him more aware of the various backgrounds and challenges that individuals may have to overcome in order to get ahead. He left with a deeper understanding about these issues and, along with his prior experience with SNAP, came to the understanding that “disabilities are part of the achievement gap, as well.”

Since attending NYLT — a leadership program that encourages youth to make a difference towards alleviating the achievement gap by creating service-learning action plans — in 2011, Certner has developed a training curriculum that he and his peers have used to train elementary students in his school district — some 2,700 students — by bringing his service-learning action plan together with his experiences and partnerships from SNAP. SNAP offers a "children teaching children" model or mentor-based philosophy that focuses on getting children in schools and communities involved in working and understanding the “abilities not the disabilities” of others. His strategy includes leading simulation activities where students can experience how their learning might be affected by varying abilities and expectations.

By focusing on how disabilities can contribute to the achievement gap, he aims to educate and inspire his peers to recognize the challenges of living with a disability and the benefits of ameliorating the negative experiences associated with it. With blindfolds, balance balls, and other techniques, Certner shows “typical” school children what it is like to be blind, dyslexic, autistic, etc., so they experience firsthand the challenges and frustrations faced by many of their classmates. Certner reminds them that while they can take off their blindfolds or speak and read normally when the exercise is over, millions of children cannot. 

“This is not just an assembly or me lecturing, but a hands-on experience [to make it] fun yet inspiring,” said Certner.

Certner reports that he is getting great feedback from students and parents, and the attitudes towards students with disabilities are starting to change because of his trainings. Students with special needs experience more ‘Hellos’ throughout the school day and are receiving help from peers who “understand better now.” This feedback has continued to fuel Certner’s passion for service. He plans to expand his trainings to other middle and high schools where he sees the largest disparities in the achievement gap. He ultimately hopes to see the “oldest kids in the school train the incoming students each year,” thereby creating a school culture that is more inclusive of students with disabilities — a culture that sustains itself well beyond Certner’s time in high school.