History

In 1963, five Broomfield families, who had children with disabilities, founded the Broomfield Foundation for Exceptional Children. At that time, the only option for their children with special needs was long-term care in an institution. The school was the first of its kind in Colorado. For this reason, we were selected as a pilot project by the State of Colorado to study the effectiveness of day programs for disabled children in their own community.

In 1972, Bal Swan gave the Center its current building and land and the name was changed to honor his gift. Shortly after moving into the new facility, two mothers came to the staff with a problem. Each family had two children, a four-year-old son and a much younger daughter with special needs. Both boys were acting out destructively in the home and neither parent knew what to do. The boys were invited to stay at the Center, figuring that they would go off and play together. Instead, the boys engaged the students with challenges in play. Staff saw things they had not seen before -- students with special needs were using language and movement to communicate with the boys, skills they had not used previously to communicate with staff! These two young boys were the catalysts that caused the board of directors and staff to create a new way of teaching children with challenges.

The Center expanded its mission in 1973 to include typical preschoolers, becoming the first preschool in Colorado to blend typical and children with special needs in the same classroom. Once again, the State of Colorado recognized the Center for its leadership and selected it as a pilot project. After proving that blended preschools could be successful we became the standard for other preschools. Today it is required that all preschools serving students with special needs must also provide interaction with typical children. Studies show that early childhood education programs for children with challenges:

• reduce the cumulative expense of subsequent special education by as much as $2,000 per child per year,
• result in significantly higher language skill scores, and
• provide other long-term benefits to children with special needs, their families, and society*.

*Effectiveness of Early Special Education for Handicapped Children, Report Commissioned by the Colorado General Assembly, pages 4-5.

Activities and accomplishments:

Building on each child's strengths, the Center provides early intervention and education services for children from infancy through 5 years old. Why is early intervention important? Studies show that the earlier a child is diagnosed with a disability and the earlier appropriate therapies begin, the better chance the child has to fulfill their life potential - whatever it may be.

• Children who attend high quality early childhood programs are assigned to special education programs less frequently*.
• New medical research confirms that the experiences of children in the first three years of life determine, to a large degree, the brightness of their future**.

Therapies provided at the Center include warm water therapy, physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy. Other services include parenting skills training, family counseling and support. Counseling addresses a variety of issues - grief, parenting needs, divorce, along with regularly scheduled discussions on a myriad of subjects. Counseling support is provided at no cost to all Center families. All services to children with special needs who are referred through a contracted funding agency are provided at no cost to their families. In 2001-2002 we served 297 children, of those 127 were challenged.

*The impact of Head Start on children, families, and communities. Final report of the Head Start Evaluation, Synthesis, and Utilization Project. (1985). Washington, D.C.
** Ibid., page 8

Current Programs

We have an early intervention program for children with special needs ages birth to three called Parent Infant Program (PIP). Once a child is diagnosed with a disability and approved for services, they are eligible for assistance. PIP has a direct positive effect on families of disabled children by providing occupational, physical, and speech therapies, parenting skills, and counseling support. Staff members meet with clients, their parents and family members in their home or at a satellite site in Commerce City. Bal Swan employee's work with parents and caregivers to show them the most effective ways to help their challenged child realize their fullest potential. Those receiving in-home services come to the Center for PIP group activities each Friday, which includes using our warm water therapy pool.

Challenged infants and toddlers are referred from both North Metro Community Services in Adams County and the Developmental Disabilities Center in Boulder County. Program addresses the needs of both typical and disabled children and serves 65-75 children each year, depending on need.

Two-year-old children who are enrolled at the school meet two-days per week. The classroom is blended in a 50/50 mix of challenged toddlers with typical toddlers. Class size is small (6-7 students) and focuses on facilitating overall developmental skills through routine play and interaction with peers. A unique feature of the Parent-Infant Program is the teaching staff. The team is comprised of an early childhood education specialist, a speech therapist and an occupational therapist. All toddlers benefit from the specialized staff and individualized attention due to small class size.

Goals and Objectives

Our goal is to provide the services necessary to give each child the skills they need to have a successful learning experience, be they "typical" or "challenged."

Collaborations: Bal Swan Children's Center provides a choice to parents of children with disabilities in the Boulder/Broomfield area. We collaborate with the Boulder Valley RE-2 School District, Boulder County Developmental Disabilities Services, North Metro Community Services and Adams County School Districts to serve children in an inclusive therapeutic preschool.