Donna Wade serves as Hope for Miami’s Inclusion Specialist at the Advocacy Network on Disabilities and the All Children Together (ACT) Resource Network, an initiative of The Children’s Trust. In her role with us, Ms. Wade coaches our staff on inclusion strategies, provides any specialized equipment needed to promote safety, any materials which would increase engagement of children with disabilities or tools to ease transitions between activities, and program supplies to assist with homework and learning.
Ms. Wade states “Working towards inclusion involves teamwork, effort, and time. It is a joy to work together with a committed group of professionals, willing to give of their time, efforts, and energy, for inclusion. I have enjoyed working alongside afterschool program staff of Hope for Miami at their Riverside and Great Heights Academy sites.”
The mission of ACT is to increase the participation of children with disabilities and their families in all aspects of community life through capacity building, advocacy, and promoting best practices.
While Hope for Miami is required to ensure that a minimum of 10% of enrollees in our afterschool programs are children with disabilities, we have always gone well beyond the minimum requirements. Donna and the ACT team have helped us expand our programs, creating an overall inclusion rate of over 30% in the past few years. If you have a child with special needs, please call our office to inquire about availability in our programs.