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Program Guides Silver Spring Man Toward Goals and Accomplishments
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Lisa Nelson, a teacher at the Ridge School, said Teabout's experience isn't unusual, but what helps him is his ability to be honest with himself.
"Quite a lot of [students] have trouble verbalizing their emotions," she said. "For Devon, that change came when his mom passed. You have to remember, these kids missed huge chunks of their early childhood programming."
About 130 students attend the Ridge School, with six to eight students in each class. The intimate setting is vital for teachers to connect with students, Nelson said.
Teabout graduated from the program late last year. From there, he went to Montgomery College, where he completed a year of general studies at the Rockville campus and then transferred to Tesst College of Technology in Beltsville, where he is studying criminal justice.
"I've always been a 'CSI' and 'First 48' fanatic," he said, referring to the television shows. "I want to be a homicide investigator."
His schedule is almost as regimented as it was at the Ridge School, Teabout said. He works from 9 p.m. to 3:30 a.m., goes to school from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., rests at home until 6 p.m., and then starts getting ready for work. He works Sunday through Thursday.
He sums up his experience at the Ridge School as "time well spent." While there, he said, "it's like I went from being a 5-year-old to a 20-year-old."
For kids who could be heading in the same direction he took, Teabout has this advice: "I would not say it's not hard. It's most definitely very, very hard. Whatever got you here, you're still human.
"There are certain things that you have to do but don't want to," he said. "But in the end, the outcome will be good if you allow it to. You've got to accept hope and want to help yourself."
