Parent
to Parent Program: Our Parent-to-Parent
Program was created to provide parents with
a supportive network of peers. This program
offers parents an opportunity to develop leadership
skills and offer parents in similar situations
with support. Peer supporters are provided a
comprehensive six-week training that focuses
on educational advocacy, the laws supporting
special education and related services, and
leadership training.
Parent
Training and Information Center: The
Parent Training and Information Center is a
comprehensive resource library and training
center. The Center offers parents information
on the laws of special education, specific disabilities,
the latest research on treatment and interventions,
and adaptive technology. This resource
center is especially critical to our work, as
it is located in a low-income community that
traditionally would not have had access to this
information. Our training and advocacy sessions
are specifically designed to: clarify legal
obligations and rights; assist parents and advocates
in the preparing for educational meetings and
conferences; and to orient the individual on
the various services available for children
with special needs.
Transition Advocacy Project:
The Transition Advocacy Project provides youth
ages 13-18 with support, advocacy, information,
and training in order to improve their involvement
in their educational planning. This program
provides parents with guidance on the role of
the child in transition planning. AJE
serves as a mediator between parent and young
person when disagreements arise in goal planning
sessions. In order for this program to
reach greater numbers of youth, we have developed
a comprehensive outreach and engagement strategy
for the youth involved. In addition, we
have chosen to have a special emphasis on children
suffering from emotional, anti-social, and mental
disorders who are truant, most at risk for dropping
out, or becoming involved in the delinquency
system.
Direct
Services/Individual Advocacy:Unlike
other organizations in the community, A.J.E.
provides direct services to parents in the form
of individual representation in situations when
the intervention of third party is necessary
to ensure that appropriate services are being
made available to a family in need.
Community
Education: Parents of children
with special needs have a desire to know more
about their child's disability, its impact on
their family, and the support that is necessary
for the child to thrive and grow - physically
and intellectually. We provide community education
through our workshops and seminars which are
free to the families we serve.
