‘Opened a new world’: Autistic North Allegheny student breaks through with help of innovation

Nick Canciello, a 16-year-old student at North Allegheny Intermediate High School, has aspirations to be a lawyer. He wants to learn archery and is a history buff.

The Franklin Park resident even hopes to attend the University of Pittsburgh.

More than a year ago, his parents wouldn’t believe any of that was possible.

As a nonspeaker with autism, Nick wasn’t able to verbally communicate his wants, needs, frustrations or joys. His mother said he couldn’t follow one-step directions, and his parents were told he had a moderate intellectual disability.

But in March 2023, Nick was introduced to Maggie Rice of Spero Education LLC, a motor skills coach who helped Nick learn to communicate using a device called a letterboard.

With Rice and the support of North Allegheny School District, his whole life has changed.

“It has opened a new world for me. I have so much to offer,” he said.

His parents, Niru and Rich, learned about the game-changing method for nonspeakers or unreliable speakers from another parent. At their first meeting with Rice, her son spelled “jumping jacks.” Niru was floored.

Rice told his mother, “Of course he can spell. He’s a teenager,” according to Niru.

“It was one of the best days of my life,” she said. “I will never forget that moment. Since then, I have been shocked and delighted over and over again about how much he knows. He has a remarkable memory for information that interests him, like history. I have filled one notebook of conversations with him and am currently recording a second one as we go.”

Rice, a public education teacher for 29 years, learned about Rapid Prompting Method on “60 Minutes” and wanted to use it for her own nonspeaking son.

RPM is a teaching method created by a parent, Soma Mukhopadhyay, who wanted to help her autistic child. This is done by identifying the student’s open learning channels, including visual, auditory, kinesthetic and tactile, according to www.halo-soma.org.

Rice developed a program including the RPM process that has been successful for students like Nick. She used the method with her son, who graduated from Riverview High School with honors in 2019. His motor coach supported his communication and regulation throughout the day.

Her son progressed so much that by the time of his graduation, his individualized education program included only occupational therapy, said Rice.

‘North Allegheny is investing in him’

Nick began his journey using three stencil boards that displayed all the letters of the alphabet. Rice coached his motor skills and body regulation while supporting his family through the process. Nick is now using a letterboard with 26 letters. Some students, like Nick, use a stylus to spell out words.

The method involves teaching motor skills, increasing initiation and supporting an individual’s sensory system.

“We’re coaching motor. We are not teaching anybody to spell,” Rice said.

Rice now helps other nonspeakers and those with minimal speech or unreliable speech through Spero Educational Services. The accomplishments of her clients are life-changing for them and their families, according to Niru.

After discovering Nick’s ability to communicate with a letterboard, his parents asked Patty Tkacik, coordinator for gifted and special education at North Allegheny, to meet with Nick last year. Tkacik was skeptical at first and did research while watching Nick closely while he answered questions. She wanted to make sure that he wasn’t being guided to spell and that it was truly him responding.

After a couple of meetings, she was convinced and took the request to her director to get the support Nick needs.

Nick has been attending the Hope Learning Center in Mars and attends North Allegheny Intermediate two days a week for adaptive physical education. He plans to transition full-time to NAI and is looking forward to taking English class and meeting peers. He will begin as a freshman so he can catch up on the academics he missed.

“Now he has a chance to get the education he wants because North Allegheny is investing in him,” Niru said.

Bryan Jones was hired by NA as Nick’s motor coach for school.

“It is amazing to watch Nick use this method to communicate with people around him and show us what he really knows. I believe Nick has been doing an incredible job with his letterboards, and I can’t wait to see him succeed at whatever he decides to dive into in the future,” Jones said.

Tkacik explained that people with certain barriers can get cognitively stuck, making it difficult to respond or speak. An iPad also did not help with communication for Nick.

“He’s very fluent with the use of board with Maggie, Mom and Dad,” Tkacik said. “He can spell like nobody’s business.”

‘They believe in Nick’

Being able to communicate has helped Nick decrease his aggressions, which Rich said are most likely from frustration at not being able to communicate.

Nick would have about 150 aggressions a day at Hope. Now he goes days without an aggression, Niru said.

Their daughter, Lexi, 23, who does not have reliable speech, is also using a letterboard and said she wished she had one when she was in school.

Her use shows that Nick is not an anomaly, but that everyone can be a candidate.

“It doesn’t change autism or take it away. It gives you a better understanding,” Rich said.

Nick’s parents and Rice credit North Allegheny for being open and supportive.

“They believe in Nick, understand that his form of communication involves a letterboard and have gone so far as to create two full-time paraprofessional positions to spell with Nick throughout his day, so that he can start getting an appropriate education. We couldn’t have asked for more,” Niru said.

His parents said it’s like they are finally getting to know their son

Rich said they never realized he liked history until the letterboard was introduced. When they asked Nick where he wanted to go for vacation last summer, he said the White House.

He recently shared that his favorite attraction is the National Archives. He also said that he wants to go to school “to integrate” and meet “a variety of people.”

Nick said that he wants to learn archery because it will help with his hand and eye coordination.

Once, when asked about music, Nick said he likes a fast tempo, and pitch does not matter.

When he was asked if lyrics matter, Nick spelled out, “OMG, lyrics matter, please.”

“It’s not about spelling. It’s about them conveying their knowledge you never knew they had,” Rich said.

Tkacik told Nick that he was going to make his teachers “better educators.”

“It warms my heart,” she said.