New classrooms for St John the Baptist BNS, Cashel

St John the Baptist BNS is currently waiting to build two mainstream classes and two ASD classrooms.

One ASD class is currently operational since September 2018 as seomra na rí.

Katie Cowan is class teacher and is assisted by special needs assistants Karen Butler and Una Kinnane.

There are six boys attending seomra na rí. Wonderful students, the boys have made many trips to the local library, playground, shopping and a trip to Cahir garda station.

The boys also made smoothies, pizzas, eggs, pizza, hot chocolate and even chocolate chip cookies in their oven in their classroom. The school was delighted to welcome Nicholas Ryan Purcell to school to officially open seomra na rí.

Nicholas Ryan-Purcell is a local film-maker who made a documentary about growing up with Asperger’s Syndrome.

This Is Nicholas — Living With Autism Spectrum Disorder is about a mother’s recognition of a son’s difficulties and her unstoppable determination to see him through.

It is a documentary that opened the floodgates of emotion for its maker, Nicholas Ryan-Purcell, finally allowing him to let go of the emotional trauma around a childhood bereavement. And it’s above all a tribute of deep gratitude to the people – many of them in the rural community of Emly, Co Tipperary – who helped Nicholas “navigate through challenging times”, the struggles posed by having Asperger’s Syndrome as well as depression.