Special Kids Foundation

The Board of Directors of Special Kids Foundation is thrilled to announce our newest program in our ongoing endeavor to support the special needs children and their families in Eastern Contra Costa County. This spring, we are embarking on a whole new program called The Assistive Technology Assistance Program.

We are painfully aware of the major cutbacks in both state and federal programs for special needs children. We are also saddened by the devastating cutbacks in public school programs. In order to maintain our vision of educating and supporting those who are most critically hit by these budgetary restrictions, we are allocating a portion of our proceeds to funding the purchase of a number of iTouch and iPad systems, and loading them with the applications which will best serve the communication and educational needs of the students who will be receiving them through our loaner program.

Many of our board members have experienced firsthand the amazing advances our own children have made with the aid of several of these devices and the applications meant specifically to help them maneuver and communicate in our confusing world. The local school districts are working with many students currently using these and other assistive technology systems with wonderful success. Unfortunately, not all children who could benefit from these devices, are able to get them funded, either by their families in these tough economic times, or by the badly overburdened school districts.

Special Kids Foundation would like to change that for as many children as we can! If you know of, or have a student or child who has communication deficits that would be enhanced, and an assistive technology device would enable them to better communicate and learn in school, and they are not able to get the device needed to achieve better success, please contact us via our website at www.spkids.org. You can email, mail, or fax us a written request for one of the devices.

Applicants must have a child with a communication disability, have a support staff person at their school who would be able to assist the child using the device in the school setting, and parents would be required to sign an agreement that the devices not be used by other family members for purposes beyond educational or communication needs. The fully loaded device would then be loaned to the student for use as long as they would need it.

We can’t wait to get started! If you need a device for your challenged child, contact us! If you’d like to contribute to this extremely beneficial program, contact us!! If you have new iPads or iTouches you’d like to donate, contact us!! Stay tuned…we expect this to be a wildly successful program!