A few months before Ryan Burke became the first student with Down syndrome to attend Notre Dame College Prep in Niles, his father made an emotional plea to his son's classmates.
"All we ask is that you say 'hi' to him. Just give him a chance," Kevin Burke recalled saying at a school assembly. "He'll take it from there."
Living up to his father's prediction — and demonstrating the success of a remarkable initiative Notre Dame hopes other Catholic schools will emulate — Ryan Burke, 19, graduates Saturday. His yearbook features pictures of him on the swim team, student council and marching band.
He also has something perhaps more precious — memories from four homecoming dances and two proms, as well as a cellphone filled with messages from friends he's made along the way.
The ceremony will mark a sweet victory for the Western Springs parents, who have been campaigning for Ryan's inclusion in normal classrooms since preschool. Kevin and Elaine Burke worked tirelessly to persuade Notre Dame's administration to become one of only a few Catholic high schools in the country with a structured program for students with severe special needs.
And Notre Dame officials say Ryan's example has left a permanent mark on the school, where students now don't think twice about seeing a classmate with special needs carrying the school banner at a football game or in line at the cafeteria.
Next year, the school expects 10 special needs students, with many more applicants than can be accommodated.
"He's a trailblazer," said Principal Dan Tully. "The families have been finding us, sometimes years before they go to high school."
