Lyndsey Moreo of Delphos, Ohio, remembers as a child watching Sesame Street and being fascinated by the segments about sign language.

Today Moreo, a BGSU communication disorders student, has taken those childhood lessons to heart.  She believes “giving someone the ability to express themselves is That is why, in addition to a rigorous class load, she works part time for Wood Lane Residential Services, a residential program for individuals with developmental disabilities.  For nearly two years she has worked for the program, which provides residential programming for the Wood County Board of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities.

During her time, she has developed a strong working relationship with a resident who has an “amazing personality,” but who is nonverbal. “One of the biggest realizations for me working at Wood Lane is that the value of communication is so important,” she said.

“We take for granted being able to have a conversation, talk on a phone. A lot of people don’t have any way to communicate, so I want to help make life better for these people and to give them a voice,” she explained.

She has been around special needs people for much of her life. Her father is a middle school principal and coordinator of special education; her mother is a teacher’s aid with special education students. The first summer after high school, she worked as a teacher’s aid with developmentally disabled children.

After graduating in May, she hopes to return to BGSU for a master’s degree in speech therapy. “BGSU is my first choice because the program is good, the faculty is great and I like the small-town feel here,” she said.  Her career goals are to gain school certification and work within a school system, where she can help children improve their abilities to communicate.