When Donald DeVito arrived at the Sidney Lanier Center School, music classes were held in a portable with only seven instruments.
Today, the disabled students at the school take music classes in a large, colorful room filled with instruments, uniforms and music.
DeVito, who was recently named Florida ESE teacher of the year, began to build the school's music program eight years ago while he was working on his doctorate at UF.
He said the more he worked with the students and spent time developing the program, the more he fell in love with it.
"I was working on my dissertation and teaching here part time, and I was just too enthralled with what was going on here and enjoyed building the program here too much to leave," he said.
DeVito said the program is tied to colleges like Syracuse University and the University of Londrina in Brazil, and music majors from the schools develop lessons for the students at Sidney Lanier. The college students hold teaching sessions with DeVito's students through Skype and a large SMART video board in the classroom.
He serves on the board of the International Society for Music Education Commission for Community Music, which is a field of study in which people travel around the world and develop programs for the needy.
"They might go to the Middle East and develop a music program that has Palestinian and Jewish children together," he said. "Someone in Ireland who's a community musician might even have a Protestant and Catholic ensemble."
About one-third of DeVito's 60 students are unable to speak, and the others have disabilities like autism, Down syndrome and cerebral palsy. They use music to express themselves, he said.
"Music really helps students to transcend their challenges through creative self-expression," he said. "I believe that there is really only one ability needed to participate in music education, and that is the ability to feel. As long as the music can reach you through an effective response, then everything else is just accommodation."
For students who are unable to speak, DeVito programs music into a device which allows the students to select songs they prefer to hear. In some cases, instruments are also modified to accommodate the students. Students whose hands are too fragile to play bongo drums are given a specialized mallet to strike the drum with instead.
DeVito emphasized the importance of taking the students out into the community and allowing them to perform. Last school year, they became the first ensemble of disabled students to perform at Festival Disney, a music competition held at Disney World, where they received an Excellent rating.
In May, the group will perform at Carnegie Hall in New York City.
Staff members at Sidney Lanier have noticed the effect DeVito's music classes and teaching style have had on the students.
"Academics isn't a strong point for these kids, so it gives them a chance to do something positive," said Connie Lee, a teacher at the school. "It does a whole lot for their self-esteem."
She said that DeVito has been able to take what so many view as a negative and turn it into a positive.
"I mean, other parents get to go to baseball and footballs games to watch their kids," Lee said. "But these parents, well, they get to go to Carnegie Hall."
DeVito acknowledged that what he does isn't always easy, but that he wouldn't trade it for more conventional students.
"To me it's a challenge," he said, "and I absolutely find it to be a rewarding one."
