Autism Awareness Month kicks off on April 2nd with World Autism Awareness Day. In 1972, the Autism Society launched the first annual National Autistic Children’s Week and it evolved into Autism Awareness Month. During this month, organizations and individuals celebrate the autistic community and help to raise awareness and acceptance of autism.

Here are some local organizations that are supporting and celebrating the Autistic Community:

Equestrian Connection located in Lake Forest, was founded in 2001 and provides hippotherapy (equine assisted therapy) for children and adults with special needs. They serve clients from all over Illinois, Wisconsin and surrounding states—regardless of their financial standing and ability to pay.

Have Dreams with locations in Evanston and Park Ridge, was founded in 1996 by parents and special education educators to provide after school social programs for autistic children.

As they have grown, their programming has expanded to serve children and adults. In addition to social groups and therapeutic services for younger clients, they offer job training and independent living support to adults.

Keshet, located in Northbrook, was founded in 1982 by a group of parents looking to build a place where children of various abilities could feel belonging and acceptance. Within several years, a school was built and today Keshet serves thousands of children and adults with recreational programs, schools, summer camps and residential homes that help adults live full and independent lives.

Special Gifts Theatre headquartered in Northbrook, was founded in 2001 to provide individuals with an array of special needs the opportunity to experience the joy and enrichment the theatre arts can provide. Programs are educationally and therapeutically based and are designed to develop social skills and instill self-confidence.

Celebrate the diverse cultures of Sears! The JSSPVA World Culture Fair is back! The street fair style event will take place in front of the school on Monday May 9th 5:30-7:00pm (rain date: May 11th). Come learn about a new country or highlight your own story at this wonderful community event. We welcome families to sign up to host a country table here. More information forthcoming! Please reach out to Vanessa Menton or Anne Ryan with any questions.

Support Our Family Services (OFS) is an organization based in Arizona that provides for homeless youth, including those who have run away or been kicked out of their homes for being members of the LGBTQ+ community and other minority communities. The OFS Reunion House serves and houses teens aged 12-17, usually for a few weeks, while they await placements in other homes. The home provides food, transportation to school, and other necessities, while also providing a safe and fun space for the youth. OFS provides service to its community through other means as well, including transitional apartments for ages 18-24, counseling, and crisis assistance. This organization aims to ensure teens’ safety and comfort by bringing families back together using informative classes that help parents understand their children’s needs and identities. For young adults, Our Family Services programs provide safe and affordable housing, along with other necessities.

If you’d like to help these youth in need, the student DEB group has created an Amazon Wish List for the items Reunion House requested. Any items mentioned would be greatly appreciated!

Please consider purchasing items from the wish list that will be sent directly to Reunion House to support homeless youth.

If you are interested in learning more about Reunion House, here is a link to a tour of their facility: Reunion House Virtual Tour.

What will students learn? SELF-AWARENESS. SELF-MANAGEMENT. RELATIONSHIP SKILLS. SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING. HEALTH. WELLNESS. YOGA FLOWS.

The 5th - 8th grade series starts Monday, May 2nd (3:30 - 4:30 P.M.). 

REGISTER here.

Join The Joseph Sears School and the Diversity Equity and Belonging Committee for a free yoga and meditation series by our very own Liz MacIntosh. Liz is a physiotherapist (PT) from the UK specializing in pediatric PT since 2003, and gained her Masters in Physiotherapy at the University College London.

 The kids will develop strength, flexibility, balance, coordination and body awareness. They will foster empathy, patience, focus and empower children to accept themselves and others. We hope you can join!

Location: The Joseph Sears School Gym

Join other members of The Joseph Sears School community to volunteer at Feed My Starving Children in Libertyville, IL on Thursday, May 12th from 4:30pm to 6:15pm. Adults and kids over 5 years of age hand-pack meals specifically designed to assist in reversing and preventing undernutrition.

FMSC donates meals to mission and humanitarian organizations around the world.

Please register here by Friday, April 29th to join our group. Thank you! 

Contact Brittany Gottschall (312-636-9871 or brittanyannsmith@gmail.com) with any questions.

Feed My Starving Children links: volunteer policies & FAQs.

Meet up with other Sears parents for safe, informal and supportive monthly discussions about parenting and diversity. No topic is off-limits, but we request that conversations are kept in confidence among those who attend. Our next meetup will take place on May 21st from 10 to 11 am, location TBD. RSVP to Sumita Thakurta at sthakurta@yahoo.com.

The DEB Committee was created in 2019 to encourage richer dialogues and augmented programming around diversity, equity, and belonging in our school community. The committee is made up of parents, faculty, administration, socio-emotional learning team leads, and a school board member representative. This unique collaboration amongst school and community stakeholders allows for diverse perspectives on the committee and in the schoolhouse.

Kate Donegan, Superintendent, kdonegan@kenilworth38.org

Stephanie Helfand, Principal, shelfand@kenilworth38.org

Mia Sachs, School Board Liaison, msachs@kenilworth38.org

Rebecca Quigley, Parent Lead/HEROS Liaison, rebeccaquigley@aol.com

Shawn Bard, JSSPVA Liaison, shawnbard@gmail.com

Nancy Economou, Social Worker

Hilary Harvey, Social-Emotional Learning Facilitator

Bill Gordon, Vocal Music Teacher

Gabriella Noyes, Social Worker 

Adrienne Eynon, Steve Fifita, Brittany Gottschall, Katalina Groh, Joe Guarino, Anjali Kase,

Kyra Nelson, Erin Paul, Kristin Pilant, Sofia Reyhani, Janet Scholl, Meredith Sullivan

Interested in joining the DEB Committee? Please fill out the following form and a committee chairperson will reach out with more information.

School Office: 847-256-5006