Dreams, Expectations and Hopes

“Be you and embrace your individuality,” stated Adam Duerfeldt ’06, during Central College’s 2024 Commencement ceremony. “The bottom line is that the world has never experienced another you. Don’t deprive it or yourself through social conformity.”

Duerfeldt, this year’s Commencement speaker, reminded the Class of 2024 that individuality is paramount as they move into the next phase of their lives.

And as the “Pomp and Circumstance” music resounded throughout Ron and Joyce Schipper Stadium, two alumni families were filled with overwhelming joy as they watched their children with special needs cross that stage. They were given the opportunity to gain experience in ways their parents couldn’t have imagined and enjoy their individuality.

Steve ’01, Central Board of Trustees member, and Stefanie Bresnahan Perkins ’02, are the proud parents of Jackson Perkins ’24, who has autism.

Dave ’93 and Jennifer Vander Werf Van Gorp ’95 are the proud parents of Bella Van Gorp ’24, who has Down syndrome.

“We are so proud of Jackson and what he has accomplished this year,” Steve says. “Graduation at Central was never an assumption. It was a dream.”

Jackson crossed the stage during Commencement on May 11, graduating with a Certificate of Achievement from the Central READY program. Jackson enrolled in Fall 2023 with a program tailored to his passion: Baking.

Members of the Central community who attended the 2022 Scholarship Dinner may remember the video profiling the Perkins’ endowed scholarship, Jackson and his favorite chocolate chip cookies.

Jackson has a big smile to go along with his big heart. Central READY supported him as he explored training in baking skills with the Des Moines Area Community College campus in Newton, Iowa.

“We learned that Jackson was far more resilient than I think we ever could have imagined,” Steve says. “He became way more independent than we thought he would ever be.”

Similar sentiments are shared by the parents of Bella Van Gorp, who also walked across the graduation stage. Dave and Jennifer shared their delight in the progression of Bella in the Central READY program.

“For us, itʼs always been important for Bella to have age-appropriate peers,” Dave shares. “College has allowed her to continue to mature but also to live life with similar-aged peers who are also going through transitions, different in some ways but similar. Transitions like cutting some ties with parents and relying on themselves to make their own decisions. Those decisions have both rewards and consequences, and you hope they don’t make decisions with consequences that are too long-lasting.”

“Four years of college is a really transitional and pivotal time for a young adult. It provides this kind of middle ground between childhood and adulthood,” Jennifer says. “Thereʼs so much growth that happens whether you have a disability or not. It was advantageous for us, and a privilege for Bella, to get to experience that piece of young adulthood and all of the growth that comes in the four years. Giving Bella the opportunity was a big thing for us.”

Central READY has been in a pilot phase as it develops the programming, structure and funding to support students with intellectual disabilities. For the Perkins and Van Gorps, Central READY provided a safety net for their students, the foundation to build independence and connections with peers, the greater campus community and in Pella.

“Central READY customizes the programming to the needs of the young adult with special needs,” says Carol Williamson, Central READY director. “With her parents’ input, Bella participated in the two-year academic programming at the STRIVE Academy through Des Moines Area Community College and Pella High School. They supported Bella living on campus at Central and partnering with Respite Connections. This program supported the employment of Central students to implement and support residential living skills goals. These partnerships enabled Bella to spend four years on campus as she transitioned to working in a local school with preschoolers.”

Jackson’s journey was one year as his program was shorter. His skill set was different, so his individual support network was different.

“Jackson’s experience was challenging and rewarding in different ways than Bella’s,” Williamson says. “The individuality is paramount to the growth of each participant. We continue to learn along with each student what supports are necessary and adjust throughout their time at Central.”

The Safety Net

Training and preparation for the workforce is important, but both families believed safety was the first priority. Stefanie, Steve and their other two sons live in Waukon, Iowa, more than three hours away from Pella. After Jackson graduated from high school, they looked at baking programs and thought about him living in Newton on his own but that was not feasible for Jackson at the time, so they turned to Central.

“Our idea was for him to go to this baking program because that’s the one thing he loves more than anything. He’s done more than I ever thought he could. And some of that is because Central is just a safe place to be,” Stefanie shares.

“I would say honestly when we dropped Jackson off at Central there was excitement,” Stefanie continues. “We were actually very excited because attending Central was something we didn’t think would ever happen. I think we both were excited, and we weren’t very nervous.”

“Being on a campus where he can go to events safely, be part of the Catholic group, walk to the library and walk downtown safely — that’s what Central has provided. He’s done more and grown more in the last nine months than we could have imagined,” Stefanie says.

“We let him fly a little bit — let him be on his own more than we could in any other place. We just know Central’s campus so well. We know the community of Pella. I don’t think we could have done that in any other any place.”

The old adage it takes a village applies to Jackson as well. His great aunt and great uncle live in Oskaloosa. Several of Stefanie’s friends and Steve’s former football teammates live in Pella. They were lifelines if the Perkins needed them.

“We often got texts with photos of Jackson downtown — ‘Jackson sightings,’” Stefanie laughs. “You tell your kids ‘Don’t talk to strangers.’ But Jackson would comment that strangers come up to him and ask, ‘Aren’t you Jackson Perkins?’ He’s just a kind-hearted loving young man and our friends watched out for him.”

The Perkins also have an app on their phones so they can “watch” where Jackson is. Jackson walked all over Pella, stopping at the Pella Public Library as well as downtown.

“I could look on the app and see where he was. It brought back fond memories of when I was studying in the library, Central Market or down at the fieldhouse. It was just fun to see my son experiencing the same things that we did,” Steve says.

Safety was important for Jennifer and Dave as they dropped off Bella at Central in Fall of 2020, when the world was still in the throes of the pandemic. Students were more isolated in that time and it was difficult to meet people.

“For me, our biggest concern was safety. Just the idea that she wasn’t going to be under our roof. Her environment wasn’t going to be controlled by us any longer,” Jennifer recalls. “Similar to the same feeling we had with our oldest. And probably the same feeling we’ll have with our youngest as he heads off to college. But for Bella, safety and then just the unknown of whether these experiences will be meaningful.”

“One of the things that concerned us was where our place was in this journey,” Dave says. “When we sent our oldest child to college, mostly we were hands off. They were doing their own thing. But if Bella got sick, or if she had a roommate conflict, we didn’t know where our job as parents, her job as a Central student and Central’s job as an institution began or ended. What was our role in that and what was everybody else’s role? It’s been a work in progress to try to figure out how parents navigate with Central READY.”

Learning Life Skills

Parents of children with intellectual disabilities share common concerns about what a meaningful life looks like for their child. How can parents prepare and protect their children for the future?

“Bella has learned independent living skills,” Jennifer says. “She has learned job readiness skills and life skills. All of those things you learn aren’t fun but are necessary to live as an adult. You need to learn the skills that keep the wheels turning in your life.”

“One thing that has changed is that I have learned to make healthier choices since coming to Central,” Bella says. “I have learned that it’s important to do chores. I have also become more independent since coming to college. I can do tasks without being asked or told and do them well. I’ve learned time management, meal prep and cooking skills, how to keep my room clean and do laundry.”

Jennifer also explains asking for help is important.

“That’s a life skill, too. If you don’t know something, you ask a question. Bella and all of us learned to ask for help if you don’t understand.”

“We made a conscientious decision after her freshman year, to have her live in a townhouse her sophomore and junior years because we felt like that would be the next natural step towards independence,” Dave says. “Hindsight tells us that it actually isolated her while still on campus. She wasn’t in the hub of campus, and a lot of the responsibilities fell on her helpers.”

The organic interaction with other students is different in the townhouses. The Van Gorps decided to move her back into Graham Hall for her senior year where Bella had more opportunities for interaction.

“When a girl is heading to supper, she yells down the hall and invites anyone to go along. All of a sudden there are four girls, one of whom Bella may know really well and two or three she may not know at all. It forces interactions, which is helpful for Bella,” Jennifer explains.

“The three best experiences since coming to Central have been going to The Calm — a campus ministries weekly gathering, the Best Buddies Ball with Grace Hoffman ’25 and all the friends I have made on campus. I love cheerleading. Because of that I learned what it feels like to wake up at 4:45 in the morning with the other girls,” Bella says with a smile.

The parallels of life and cheerleading are important to Bella.

“You learn how to be a good teammate. I learned how to cheer on the team, peers and teammates and how to learn new things,” Bella shares.

Gaining Confidence

Both Bella and Jackson learned there are things and people competing for your attention, and as a result, learned how to manage their time.

Stefanie and Steve Perkins also realized the personal growth in Jackson from living on campus.

“He’s always been good with schedules and keeping things on task,” Stefanie says. “But even more so he’s become a master of his lifestyle. He knows what he wants to do and when he wants to do it. That’s been very, very positive for him. I think he’s grown in self-confidence, as well.”

Jackson worked at Central Market making deli sandwiches and doing general cleanup twice a week. During the spring semester, Sara Shuger Fox, associate professor of kinesiology and parent of a child with autism, Hadyn Miller ’24 and Jocelyn Timmerman ’24 baked with Jackson every week in the Garden Cottage kitchen.

“That has certainly been a highlight for Jackson and a real lifeline for him,” Steve says. “Sara had Jackson over for the Super Bowl and looked out for him. She reached out to us if she had concerns about Jackson. She’s been a real gift from heaven.”

“I liked trying new events on campus,” Jackson says. “I went to ‘Young Frankenstein,’ headphone disco and the libraries. I exercise in the Maytag Student Center.”

He admits the most challenging part of his time at Central was meeting new friends. Baking with Miller and Timmerman expanded his connections on campus.

“Anytime you let your child go somewhere, especially with Jackson being autistic, you worry will your son be the butt of jokes or be picked on,” Steve says. “We have not gotten that side at all from Jackson. He’s been treated with respect. He may have been more invisible than we’d have liked him to be. A lot of students don’t know how to interact with autistic kids. And that’s something I would have liked the regular students on campus to learn how to do — interact with kids like Jackson a little bit better.”

Jackson participated in Alive, a Catholic student organization with weekly fellowship gatherings. His parents say he has gone to at least one of every home sporting event on campus, mainly by himself and he will sit with someone if he knows them. His parents are thrilled because Jackson doesn’t migrate toward sports.

“I never would have seen him walking into a wrestling meet by himself when he was in high school,” Steve says. “Just this year he went into the fieldhouse and watched a wrestling match. He was confident enough to go up to Coach Eric Van Kley and just say hi. I can tell he has matured.”

“Jackson isn’t like people who are self-conscious of ‘What is someone going to think of me’ or ‘Am I cool enough’ or ‘Should I say hi to that person?’ Jackson will go up and say hi to somebody at the info booth if he knows who they are. He’s going to make sure he waves at people he knows. And he’s become even more confident,” Stefanie says.

Solid Foundations for the Future

“I’m doing well and trying new things,” Jackson shares. “I do things for myself and have more responsibility like grocery shopping and doing my own laundry. I learned a lot in the classes this year like different baking techniques, how to make a new recipe, understanding ingredients, how to run the large equipment, how to roll out dough and using piping.”

His parents are more comfortable with his independence.

“If he were to go to Newton now, we’d be more comfortable with him living there,” Stefanie says. “From his Central experience, he has become more empathic, independent and competent.

“When we started Central READY and his Newton program, we really didn’t know what the future was going to hold for him. We knew he really wanted to do the baking skills program. This was the one time that he could really do something for himself that he wanted,” she adds.

This summer, Jackson is an intern at a bakery in Oskaloosa and lives with his great aunt and great uncle, while he completes the final classes for the DMACC certificate of baking skills.

Jackson plans to secure a job near Waukon after completing his training. His dream job is to own his own bakery or a food truck. One of his next goals is perfecting the soft pretzel.

Williamson is so proud of Jackson and Bella. She is also proud of Central for putting together a path for these two young adults.

“Saying ‘yes’ to working outside the box, when saying ‘no’ would have been the easier route, has made a huge difference in the lives of both Bella and Jackson and the rest of the Central community. Taking this pilot program and watching these two students grow and develop within the Central community has been a gift.”

“I am confident to leave campus and work, but I will miss my friends and living so close to everyone on campus,” Bella admits.

Bella completed her two-year certificate with DMACC in 2022. She has worked for two years in the preschool rooms at Madison Elementary School in Pella as a partnership with the college and Pella Community Schools.

This summer Bella is attending the Easter Seals Camp with a few Central students who volunteer as camp counselors and participate in Central’s Campus Ministry programs. She will also volunteer at The Well Thrift Store.

In the fall, Bella will be back in the classrooms of Amy Wilson and Stacey Sikkema, preschool teachers in Pella. She will support the early learning center in the new Little Dutch Academy that opens in the fall.

Bella decided to live independently after college. She has an apartment with a pool that is close to her work, the church she attends and her family.

“She could have come home and lived with us but that wasn’t really our dream for her. I don’t think it was her dream for herself,” Jennifer says.

As Duerfeldt expressed at Commencement, college is hard.

“It’s the first time in your life that you’re on your own, charged with the responsibility of prioritizing, self-motivating, paving the way of your own future and … learning to do your own laundry,” he says.

These and other words of Duerfeldt resonated with Jennifer as she described Bella’s journey during her graduation party.

“As the speaker said, ‘We don’t need another version of you.’ Bella can be her authentic self. We feel so blessed and this room full of people are the ones who rallied around us lifting mountains and dreaming things that we didn’t even know. They made it happen,” Jennifer says thankfully.

To see your child grow and develop in the Central READY program, contact Carol Williamson, director of Central READY, at 641-628-7667 or williamsonc@central.edu.

The Central READY program can grow and assist more students through your generosity. To make a gift and make an impact, please call 641-628-5154 and ask for Michelle Wilkie, director of development.

Photos By: CJ Bonifer, Dan Vander Beek and Melody VanderLeest