Gray Middle School | Application Preview
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General Information
Business Registration Number: 85-8013893247C-2
Location: Groveland, FL, United States
Length of Operation: 11plus
Number of Employees: 101+ Employees
Annual Gross Income: Less than $100k
Annual Gross Expense: $1M to $10M
Open to Loans: NO
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Funding Usage
My name is Ryan Milchman, and I am the proud theatre teacher of Gray Middle School. I am DESPERATELY seeking funding for new lights for the Auditorium as well as other MUCH needed upgrades! We have a very antiquated system that doesn’t work all the time, is difficult to teach the students to use, and frequently trips the circuit breaker. We are hoping to earn enough by May to put an all new system in here this summer. Even if our lights weren't tripping the circuit breaker, LED technology is going to be vital to the success of our new LMAO program. Laugh My Anxiety Out is Gray's brand new improvisational troupe that is meant to make Theatre more accessible for everyone. We partner up general education students with our special needs students in a Best Buddies type of atmosphere. Students then work together to play improvisational games and perform scenes while focusing on social skills. This program is in its very early stages and already has shown major growth in everyone participating. The LED lights would allow for my actors on the spectrum to have a more comfortable experience on stage. We will be able to limit the overstimulation and create as sensory friendly of a stage as possible.
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Business Plan
I began teaching my first special needs student 7 years ago. Since then, I have fallen in love with all things ESE, and wanted to do whatever I can to increase the quality of life and education for my special needs students. I began with being a normal theatre teacher at a middle school 10 years ago. Once I met and fell in love with my first student on the spectrum, I made a point of creating a warm and welcoming environment as well as providing accomodations for my special needs students. That turned into me getting a class with several students that came from the ISD, END, ASD, and EBD classes. Once I obtained the students from those particular classrooms, I realized that what I was doing wasn't working. I was trying to adapt my special needs students to my class. I read a book about the benefits of using improvisational theatre to work on social skills with students on the Autism Spectrum, and I immediately had an epiphany. At the beginning of this year, rather than trying to fit my special needs students into my already established curriculum, I would create my curriculum around their needs. What I now call my LMAO class - Laugh My Anxiety Out - is an improvisational class where my general education students partner up with my special needs students, and together they play improvisational games and perform scenes while focusing on improving social skills. In less than 6 months, this program has already had incredible effects on both my special needs students and my general education students. My plan is to grow it even further in the coming years. While I still intend to keep the class performing similarly, I am planning on adding an after school component to the program next year. I also have reached out to our school's ESE Teachers, our district Occupational Therapist and Speech Language Pathologist, 2nd City Improv, and SAK Comedy Lab to partner with us. The level of growth and interest in such a short period of time is amazing, and I can't wait to see where else it can go from here. While my program is as new and as small as it is, it's already changing lives and changing the world. With some financial support, we can grow the program even more. In order for us to grow, begin putting on the improv shows we have planned for next year, and utilize our special needs actors, we need to make the stage as safe a space as possible. Our stage lights are already antiquated and desperately need to be replaced as they frequently trip the circuit breakers, but by upgrading to LED technology, I can have complete control over the brightness and color of the lights, and allow the stage to be as sensory friendly as possible. In doing this, I can help special needs students feel at home on the stage and speaking publicly from a young age. This can literally change lives, and as a result, change the world.
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Self Identified Competition
I don't really have any competitors. Anyone that does anything similar to what I do does it for profit. As I am partnering this program with my middle school, it will be available to families of special needs individuals completely free of charge. The empathy, friendship, and social skills gained through theatrical programs should be accessible to EVERY one. My program is available in a public school, so it is completely free of charge to special needs families.
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Contact Applicant
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