(Photo by Alex Szwarc) Tuscola Intermediate School District Social Worker Kathy Mroz, left, and Liz Hayes. Hayes, a senior at Cass City High School has ASD (autism spectrum disorder) and will be attending Saginaw Valley State University after graduation.
Tuscola Intermediate School District Social Worker Kathy Mroz, left, and Liz Hayes. Hayes, a senior at Cass City High School has ASD (autism spectrum disorder) and will be attending Saginaw Valley State University after graduation.
When Liz Hayes graduates from Cass City High School next month, she said she’ll be glad to be done, but at the same time, will have an attitude of gratitude for the support she’s received in the past four years.
Hayes, 19, from Sanilac County, has ASD (autism spectrum disorder) and is deemed as being cognitively high-functioning. She was diagnosed between the ages of 3 and 4.
“She has come a long ways as far as how it affects her,” Hayes’ mother Kelli Callahan said. “She used to not look people in the eyes and had a stutter. The schools have worked with her to correct some of that.”
ASD, as defined by the National Institute of Mental Health, is a developmental disorder that affects communication and behavior.
In the fall, Hayes will attend Saginaw Valley State University, where she plans to major in social work.
“It was a big dream of mine to go there,” she said.
“A few years ago, we wouldn’t have imagined that happening,” Callahan said. “We are very proud of all the hard work she’s been putting in to get this far.”
Hayes began her schooling at Cass City Public Schools before transferring to the Caro Community Schools district. She lived out of state for a few years and returned to Cass City, where she has been since sixth grade.
“I’ve been through a lot when it comes to the way I was treated at some of my old schools, but I would like people to know it’s not OK to treat people who are different, different. You don’t have to be their best friend, but at least you can be friendly,” Hayes said.
Her favorite classes in high school have been English, art and forensic science, the latter of which she is taking this semester.
Some faculty members who have impacted Hayes throughout high school were special education teacher Kathy Wright at Cass City High School and Tuscola Intermediate School District social worker Kathy Mroz.
“Mrs. Wright helps me stay caught up on my school work and helps me pay attention better,” Hayes said. “I can always talk to her, which helps.”
Mroz meets with Hayes individually as needed and with the group she is a part of – ASD Peer to Peer Group – monthly.
ASD Peer to Peer Group is a volunteer program linking general education students with students who have disabilities, in order to support them throughout the school day.
Mroz said Hayes has been in a peer-to-peer group since sixth grade.
Two of Hayes’ peer supporters – Nikki Younglove and Kaitlin Witherspoon – both seniors at Cass City High School – asked her to be a roommate with them at SVSU.
“That’s huge because now she is going there with two peer supporters from high school,” Mroz said. “To ask Liz to live with them with no prompting from adults is pretty cool and is a big commitment on their part.”
Since eighth grade, Hayes has been involved in the drama department and took part in Cass City’s production of “Phantom of the Opry,” a comedy version of “Phantom of the Opera” in March.
“My favorite part of being in the play is that it’s one big family,” Hayes said. “Everyone is real close, and I really like the acting. It’s really fun.”
Hayes enjoys writing poetry and is working on producing a book of all her poems. The 2018 Cass City High School yearbook will feature a friendship page and Hayes was asked to write a poem on friendship.
Hayes’ poem is titled “To Friendship” and is about what friendship looks like in her life. The first few lines read “To the friend who knows me so well, my secrets, to only you I will tell, our jokes only we understand and through the pain, you held my hand.”
It took her only a few minutes to complete the poem.
“I wanted to include things that I feel went on with my friends,” she said. “I wanted to write a poem people could relate to with their friends.”
Hayes uses her gift of writing to properly handle emotions and said it helps her in many ways.
“I usually write poems for a therapeutic reason when I get really emotional or when something is bothering me,” she said. “It helps to write down things.”
When she’s not in class in Cass City, Hayes is involved in childcare as part of the careers in early childhood class at the Tuscola Technology Center in Caro.
After college, where she hopes on earning a master’s degree in social work, Hayes’ goal is to work at Highland Pines School, which specializes in teaching those who need highly-concentrated special education and therapy services.
