Community-Based After-School Inclusive Programs for Low-Income Minority Youth and Their Families: the Disability Specialist Approach

• Main Authors: Donald G. Unger, Tara Woolfolk, Vanessa Harper, Teresita Cuevas
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: University Library System, University of Pittsburgh 2008-03-01
• Series: Journal of Youth Development
• Online Access: http://jyd.pitt.edu/ojs/jyd/article/view/330

Intervention for helping community based after-school programs become more responsive to youth with disabilities and their families is presented in this manuscript. The Disability Specialist intervention utilized a variety of approaches, including: a) increasing awareness of disabilities and services by providing learning opportunity sessions for families and staff, and outreach activities to youth through interactive theater; b) developing in house “disability specialists” to offer ongoing leadership and technical expertise for after-school programs and their community centers; c) developing a network of technical consultants in order to connect families and after-school programs to specialized community resources; d) providing financial assistance to enable community center staff to allocate time to outreach activities; and e) providing families with support in educational advocacy efforts by partnering with a local parent mentoring program. The success of the project depended upon building partnerships with families, community centers, human service agencies, schools, and local funding sources.