Ramaz students stepped into the classrooms at the Manhattan Children’s Center (MCC) on the Upper West Side expecting something unfamiliar and instead, found shared understanding.
“I expected it to feel different and for the classrooms to be different,” Sophie Gut ’28 said. “But once I got there, I realized they are students learning just like us.”
As the tables were stocked with ingredients to make granola, Ramaz students and MCC students stood side by side measuring, mixing and chatting. The activity was part of Ramaz’s chesed program, and it was a “great experience,” Liora Nussbaum `28 said.
MCC provides treatment and education for children ages 5 to 21 with developmental disabilities, including Autism Spectrum Disorder. In addition to academics, students at MCC focus on life skills and job training. At MCC, they practice following multi-step directions, working within a structure, collaborating as a team, communicating clearly, and adapting to change. MCC uses Applied Behavior Analysis teaching style in order to better teach our students, explained Sarah Parkes, Director of Bakery Operations at MCC.
That structure was visible in the classrooms, where the recipe was outlined and completed together.
“We were working on making granola with them,” Joseph Kaufthal ’26 said. “They had to mix the ingredients together, and then they ate it afterwards, everyone seemed to have a good time.”
For many Ramaz students, the visit challenged their expectations. What they encountered was not a school defined by differences, but one built around structure, purpose, and community.
“Before going to MCC, I expected to hang out with the kids, but I didn’t think we would connect on a deep level,” Juliette Dweck ’28 said. “Right in the beginning many of them ran up to us and asked about our lives.”
Dr. Nancy Block, Director of Chesed and Community Outreach at Ramaz, explained what makes MCC unique: “Kids on the spectrum can go and feel like everybody else, and go to school in the same kind of hours that all the other kids and all their siblings go to.”
Ramaz’s partnership with MCC began when a ninth grader suggested the MCC visit. “One of our goals for chesed initiatives is exposing our kids to opportunities and working with a wide range of students with various disabilities that they wouldn’t ordinarily interact with,” Dr. Block said. “ As a way to teach them sensitivity [and] empathy.”
By the end of the day, the granola was finished, but students said the impact went far beyond the actual process. By working on a shared project, even something simple, Ramaz students said they gained a new perspective, one built on common ground, teamwork, and connection.
