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Company Wide
April is Autism Acceptance and Appreciation Month! If you claimed one of our Autism Appreciation yard signs, take a fun photo and send to Laura@PartnersinAutism.com for use in a social media post.
We will be starting staff anniversary shout outs on our social media this month. Make sure to follow us to support and celebrate your colleagues!
We are putting the finishing touches on reviving our monthly staff recognition system within our new payroll management app. Stay tuned for upcoming announcements about how the new system will work and what gifts will be available.
Upcoming events:
The Ball State Runners will be completing the Carmel Marathon on April 19th while wearing shirts advocating for our ABA clients' medical rights. Thanks to those who are going down to cheer on the runners!
We are continuing to fight to protect our clients' Medicaid coverage. Keep reaching out to your legislators.
Stay tuned for details of our staff Earth Day event. We'll be working together to take care of our neighborhood either April 21st or 24th.
Stop by to say hi at the Disability Expo on May 11th.
Staff Spotlight:
Kaydn Ullom
Kaydn is one of our lead behavior technicians who recently took on the task of manning the front desk as the building responsibilities at Northcrest change. Among her many duties she also audits all of ABA's insurance notes before they are sent off for billing, often comes up with new and more efficient ways to tackle tasks, and does whatever she can to encourage, motivate, and be kind to staff. She is universally loved and valued and is an integral part of the support staff team!
Wellness Corner:
April is Stress Awareness Month. Helpful tips for reducing stress in your everyday life include the following:
Protect your foundation: prioritize sleep, exercise regularly, maintain a healthy diet, and set helpful boundaries
Listen to your senses: practice relaxation techniques like taking deep breaths or meditation
Replenish your core: take breaks throughout your day, engage in hobbies, connect with family and friends, and seek professional help if needed
Updates to Policies and Procedures:
Employment Services Restrictive Measures Procedure
409 -Employment Services Restrictive Measures, Emergency Responses, and Dangerous Behaviors
TB Testing and Policy Training for Waiver Service Providers
Welcome New Staff:
ABA
We continue to welcome new clients and new hires to ABA! We are beginning to redesign the office spaces in the new half of the building to fit the needs of ABA Services. We're excited for the opportunities these new spaces will open up.
Welcome to our new Behavior Analyst, Bri Smothers!!
This month's Spirit Days are:
Apr 11th: Wear #RedInstead
Apr 25th: Dress as Your Favorite Book Character
Can't wait to see everyone go all in!
Supported Pathways
EXCITING NEWS! After advocating and negotiating, Courtnie received approval to become a state certified testing proctor for iLearn, iRead, and iAM. This will allow our students to complete their state testing on-site in an environment where they feel comfortable and are supported.
Without this, our students would have had to travel to an off-site testing location which would be completely unfamiliar to them. The discomfort of an unfamiliar environment would have had a dramatic effect on our students' testing performance. They would not have been able to show their true progress in each subject. Now their test scores will be far more accurate reflections of their ability.
Students wrapped up their study of the solar system and have been learning about primary, secondary, and tertiary colors. We've been mixing colors using different art supplies, and we used the week of St. Patrick's Day to dive into rainbows and learn about how they form and why they show all the colors together.
Stay tuned to our social media for more on what they've mastered this year!
Waiver
We're excited to welcome new DSP, Hailey!
We had a great time connecting to families at the Dr. Seuss - Spring into Reading Party. Thanks to My Autism Ally for organizing this event every year - it is such a great resource for our community!
Chloe and Megan P. also made some great connections at the Homestead Transition Fair.
We are hiring full- and part-time Behavior Consultants. Know a friend looking for a way to make a difference in behavioral support with flexible scheduling? Encourage them to email Megan.P@PartnersinAutism.com or apply on our website.
Social Groups
Our Navigators Troop is launching this month with an Earth Day themed focus. We'll be making clay models of planet earth and greeting cards shaped like forest animals. Over 20 Navigators will be attending, each with a special adult who will be learning and creating right alongside them! We can't wait to see the connections that will form in our troop - connections to learning and connections each other. You can volunteer to help run activities (no behavior support needed).
We were delighted to welcome new participants to our Game Nights last month. Come check it out if you haven't - we have a wide selection of games for all interests and abilities!
Employment
Employment Specialists are training on a new documentation process for one of our funding sources, Vocational Rehabilitation. Some new forms, such as Career Profile, will make exchanging information about clients more streamlined so that we can put even a heavier focus on more in person meetings with client and their goals.
We are adding a new phase to our employment preparation about "dress for the interview." When clients bring in their appropriate interview clothing, our Employment Specialists ensure the clothing is professional, is in good condition, fits well, and is flattering to their body type. If clothing need to be steamed or ironed, we can work on those skills directly in our training spaces. Each of our clients will show up to their interviews feeling confident and dressed to impress.
Our clients have begun using our training kitchen for baking. Here's one of their treats:
