UA-Partners Grant to Enhance Support for Young Children With Disabilities Across Arkansas

A new grant will enable UA-Partners, an outreach unit of the College of Education and Health Professions, to continue enhancing support for young children with intellectual and developmental disabilities across Arkansas.

"This grant will combine several different projects into one effort, allowing us to be more effective," said Karan Burnette, executive director of Partners. "We will provide consultation and training for early education providers statewide to enable them to support children with intellectual and developmental disabilities to thrive in their settings."

These environments can include early education centers or home-based settings in any part of the state, she said.

The nearly $400,000 in funding extends previous grants awarded to Partners by the Arkansas Department of Education Office of Early Childhood. This new grant will help strengthen Arkansas' early education system by providing a single point of contact for disability-related issues. The project focuses on the critical developmental window from birth to age 5, with the goal of fostering relationships and a sense of belonging for children with developmental disabilities statewide.

Partners can assist when a child exhibits behaviors the staff may not understand or when their development appears to fall behind that of their peers.

"That could mean they are less verbal, have difficulty interacting, or are struggling with routines like eating, sleeping or toileting," Burnette said. "Our staff members will visit the location and observe the child to assess whether there might be an unidentified disability and provide resources and training for the staff and family to help support the child."

Partners will offer customized training for early childhood educators and providers, including interactive sessions on topics such as autism spectrum disorders and available services, sensory processing disorders, trauma-sensitive spaces, equipping early education environments with visual supports and engaging with diverse families. Necessary follow-up and support will be provided after these training sessions, ensuring that participants have the skills to implement new strategies.

The anticipated impact is a more inclusive early education landscape in Arkansas, where teachers feel empowered to support students with diverse needs, leading to better long-term educational outcomes for all children in the state.