A Message from

Carolyn Hayer

As we pause this week to give thanks, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude for your ongoing support and trust in SPAN. We are truly thankful for the opportunity to work alongside families. Your experiences inspire and guide our efforts to provide information and resources to support families and improve outcomes for children and youth.

This is also a time of transition, and we have received many inquiries from families regarding their children’s educational services and supports. Please know that SPAN remains unwavering in our mission to serve, support, and empower all families—particularly those with the greatest need, special circumstances, or facing unique challenges. Our goal is to continue being a steadfast source of support, amplifying the voices of families, and cultivating leadership that advances the parent perspective. We will diligently monitor this period of change and keep you informed of any developments that could impact the health and well-being of children and families.

In this season of gratitude, I want to extend my thanks to the SPAN team, our community partners, our Board of Directors, our donors and funders, and—most importantly—the families and parent leaders we have the privilege to work with every day.

Wishing you and your loved ones a season filled with gratitude and peace.

A Potential Threat to Fundamental NJ Programs and Services?

A healthcare op-ed from

NJ Spotlight News.

Dr. Deborah M. Spitalnik, recently retired director of the Boggs Center on Disability and Human Development at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, recently penned the following important healthcare related op-ed: Click here to read.

Training Opportunity for Parents and Professionals in the Be Strong Families: Parent Cafe Model

This experiential, interactive two-day workshop sets a foundation for parent - led parent engagement through the use of Cafe materials, activities, and practice opportunities that emphasize deep self-reflection and peer-to-peer learning.

Be Strong Families Parent Cafe is about building community, trust, and Strengthening Families Protective Factors. After this workshop, participants will have the basic knowledge and skills to bring Cafe to life and thereby to deliver a family support service with parents taking the lead and providers supporting them.

To learn more about this opportunity, including the two, in-person sessions required, click here.