Dr. Michael Taylor, Assistant Special Education Director and GiGi’s Playhouse Board Member, and Katy Sursa, Site Director for GiGi’s Playhouse Little Rock.
An organization for Down’s Syndrome achievement donated over $6,700 worth of supplies to Bryant’s Special Education Department. Partnering with Ferncliff Camps and Good360, GiGi’s Playhouse Little Rock purchased the goods to be used by Occupational Therapists, Physical Therapists, Speech Therapists, and teachers to help facilitate education in a post-COVID-19 world.
There are students with disabilities, chronic health issues, and behavioral concerns. Items include kid-friendly face shields, weighted blankets, sensory and brain break tools, fidgets, Response to Intervention (RTI) box materials, incentives, and more.
Bryant teachers have assisted GiGi’s with tutoring and other projects. The partnership is ongoing as both groups serve individuals with a disability and lend support to their families.
GiGi’s Playhouse Little Rock provides free therapeutic and educational programs for children, adults and their families. Ferncliff Camp & Conference Center also partnered with GiGi’s for the project.
“Every student needs their own supplies for health reasons – for every therapy and every classroom,” stated GiGi’s Playhouse Site Director, Katy Sursa. “A child in a typical classroom might only need one set of supplies whereas a child in a special education environment could easily needs 3, 4, or even 5 sets of supplies for their individual therapies and classrooms.”
Many children with disabilities are at a greater risk for COVID-19 due to other chronic health issues, so these classrooms must be constantly kept clean and virus free.
GiGi’s Playhouse Little Rock is a Down syndrome achievement center offering free programming, free tutoring, free life-skills trainings and more for families of individuals with Down syndrome of all ages. The program is 100% grant and donation driven. If you would like to donate or volunteer, email [email protected].