It takes a special teacher to work with students with special needs. And Drew Laurence definitely fits the bill. He teaches "emotionally disturbed kids in a small school setting," including students with oppositional defiance disorder and autism. The next step for many of these students "would be lock-down." Drew has found some innovative ways to help his students learn social skills, and sometimes move into regular classroom environments. And his attitude and constant desire to help his students succeed are positively infectious. During the 2002?03 school year, Drew was able to create a minisociety for his students, allowing them to learn valuable life skills such as how to apply for and hold a job, how to handle money, and how to interact with others. One of his successes with this project came during the r?sum? writing process. Drew often suggested which jobs each student should apply for, then helped them write their r?sum?s using the word processor. Many of Drew?s students didn?t know where to start, because they did not see themselves as having any useful skills. In showing the students how, for example, time spent playing baseball exemplified experience working as part of a team, Drew "helped them bring out the positive aspects of their lives--to see how extraordinary they really are. "