In middle school, the inclusion program has sometimes been thought of as very intrusive. You're taking kids with disabilities and putting them into the mainstream. What's unusual about the case with Susan's students is how accepted they have become.

It's very unusual for inclusion students to become enmeshed in the classroom to that degree. Because of her, their limitations don't seem to exist.

The overall goal is to increase the number of kids who get high school diplomas . ... I thought maybe I can make a difference with one student.

She's responsible for a major attitude adjustment among the teachers on the team. She is as much of a core teacher as any of us. Many inclusion teachers are the odd man out who only cater to a few students. But for our team, she has changed that image. She is integral. We could not function without her.

In middle school, I really didn't have music, but in high school, I remember taking a lot of choir and drama.

I feel so strongly that it's critical that we keep these kids in school and get a high school diploma for them.