Alumni Spotlight: Margaret Scott’s Mission to Meet Special Needs

The lame, the blind, the children, the maniacal, the helpless.

They were those whom society pushed aside.

They were those to whom Christ showed great love and compassion, those in whom He invested and for whom He made time. Though they afforded Him no political, material, or social gain, and though few would have noticed if He had ignored them, Christ made these people a priority, personally bringing to them His glorious message of deliverance.

The greatest spiritual leaders of the cities, with all of their “ministry busyness” and keeping of God’s commandments, did not have time or love for those who could not return favors and gifts.

The unconditional nature of Jesus’ love was similarly commanded to all of His followers throughout all centuries—to love God first and to love all others, not based on appearance, gender, age, or societal compatibility. Love entails making time for and showing an interest in someone, even when he or she does not or cannot give anything in return.

Practicing Compassion

One believer who has answered this call of compassion is Margaret Scott (’16). “In high school, I gravitated toward helping individuals with disabilities. For example, I spent time with two individuals at church who helped me see that I enjoyed working with those who would fall under special education. One was physically and cognitively disabled; I spent time with him, especially on Wednesdays, by sitting and talking with him and helping him around. I don’t know how many times I have heard from him about a flying ship that was going to crash into the church or about his concerns of where his grandpa was going to park when he came and visited.

The second individual was diagnosed with autism when he was two. I stayed with him as a one-on-one worker in nursery. Then, I worked with him during a special class that his mom created on Sunday nights during church.”

“I don’t know of an exact time when I decided to go into special education. Gradually, I just assumed that that was what I was going to do and decided to go to MBU because they had a strong elementary education program with the option of special education.”

Meeting Needs

Margaret was hired by Friendship Christian School in Raleigh, NC, directly after graduating from Maranatha and began working as a Specialized Learning Center resource teacher in the fall of 2016. She teaches resource classes, which allow her to work with a smaller ratio of students who need specialized help in some of their classes. Additionally, she works as an inclusive teacher with some of her students, going with them to their class to help. “The observations and hands-on projects that we had to do at Maranatha helped prepare me for special ed,” she explains.

“My burden is for special education in the Christian school and church,” Margaret explained. “I saw church families who had to send their children to the public schools because the Christian schools didn’t have the resources and staff to work with those in special education. By having special education in the Christian school, there is an opportunity for the families in the church to send their children to the school. This also provides a huge outreach opportunity to the community.”

Giving a Warm Welcome

Following Christ’s example of love, churches of modernity must also serve the special needs community. “My church uses a buddy system. Each child with special needs has adult and teen buddies who participate with them in Sunday School or Children’s Church. Anyone can be a buddy. A separate class can be utilized for those who are severely disabled. In a small group, the teacher can focus on the more basic information that the students can comprehend.”

Additionally, Christians can ensure that those with special needs feel welcomed at church in several ways:

  • Train ushers to find optimal seating for families or individuals dealing with developmental disabilities. Some people may favor seating options near a back exit. Others may want to minimize their own distractions by sitting close to the front.
  • Consider providing a comfortable place where those with special needs can watch church services on closed-circuit television.
  • Organize a program that lends support to people who are caregivers of disabled family members.
  • Assess the needs present and anticipate needs to come. Are there those in your community you could reach by having a few Braille Bibles or hearing assistive devices? Find out if there is anyone in your church who can communicate through sign language.
  • Invest in a wheelchair van to help transport disabled persons to church services.
  • Interact with the disabled. Many people with special needs feel invisible and are used to being ignored. Take the risk of not being able to understand their speech. Extending a heartfelt smile and an “I’m glad you’re here today!” may be the difference between their returning to church or not.

Taking the Next Step

By reaching out and including the disabled and by sharing her time and sharing her Savior, Margaret Scott is making a difference “To the Praise of His Glory.” She looks past their limitations and labels and sees their God-given potential. “Each person has a different strength. One of my students is great at counting money. Another one has been working with one of the facilities men around church. They sometimes just need to be given a chance.”

Are you interested in teaching individuals with disabilities? Contact us or talk to your advisor to learn more about MBU’s new learning disabilities minor.