Celebrating Civil Rights

Traveling and training for KIT does provide some wonderful benefits. Meeting people from all over the country who care about providing quality services for all children and are eager to learn new techniques, getting to talk about the positive and powerful subject of inclusion every day and the chance to visit other parts of our beautiful nation. This past week I was in Memphis, Tennessee to meet with the Headquarters staff for the US Navy Child & Youth Programs. KIT is partnering with the US Navy CYPs to ensure that staff who work with children on Navy bases WORLDWIDE have training on inclusion. Wow- we are so impressed with the US Navy Child & Youth Programs and the commitment they have to inclusion.

So, while in Memphis I had a few free hours. This allowed me to visit a museum devoted to one of the subjects I am most passionate about (I know you are thinking Graceland right now). No, my passion is not Elvis Presley. I spent a morning visiting the National Civil Rights Museum and it was a moving and powerful experience. The museum is located in the Lorraine Motel, where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. The motel has been gutted and turned into a museum, but the facade remains and there is a wreath placed on the balcony outside room 306 in King's honor. Across the street from the motel is the second part of the museum, which is located in the boarding house where the assassin (James Earl Ray) shot from. You can stand in the location of the bathroom where the assassin stood and look out the very same window to the motel. Learn more about the museum here.


The displays in the museum are outstanding and detail every element of the civil rights movement leading up to King's assassination. It was incredibly moving. In a ten-minute film that runs in the museum's theatre I heard that "movements don't start as movements, movements start with individuals" and I could not help but think about the movement of inclusion. It is true. It starts with individuals. KIT's work is to train and speak to as many people working in out-of-school time programs as we can, and invite them to join our movement so that all children can experience the life-enhancing benefits of participating in their own community, doing typical childhood activities.

I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to do this important work, and that I get to share it with so many others around the United States (and now the world- thank you US Navy!).

Delaware 21st Century Grantees

Mary Shea, Ed.D., and I traveled to Dover, Delaware to facilitate a full day of training for admistrators and supervisors working in 21st Century Community Learning Center funded after-school programs. Bringing together adminstrators from school districts across the state, the training provided a rich environment for discussion. Challenging their own perspectives, participants impressed us with their questions and comments. The training was made possible by the University of Delaware. Until our next adventure, Alissa

Our Nation's Capital

I loved spending time in our nation's capital. It was nice to be reminded of our great history and how far we have come. Visiting Abe Lincoln and reading the words he wrote so long ago was a reminder that civil rights and equality are virtues we have fought for throughout our history. I started my trip working with teaching artists at Imagination Stage in Bethesda, MD, one of KIT's national affiliates. We spent three hours exploring ways to make accommodations for children with autism spectrum disorders participating in theater and arts classes and programs. I also had the great pleasure of working with volunteer trainers and staff at Girl Scouts Council of the Nation's Capital in Washington DC. I am proud to welcome these talented women into the growing family of individuals trained to present KIT's core training curriculum Opening Doors to Inclusive Programs. Represented in the photo below are volunteer trainers, residential and community camp directors, Program and Inclusion Specialists who will now train fellow volunteers, leaders, and staff on including children with and without disabilities in their programs, helping to assure that every girl is welcome and supported at Girl Scouts Council of the Nation's Capital.

On the Road Again!

Typically, we don't do as much traveling and training in the summer. This is mostly because all of you are busy with your summer programs. The fall things get pretty busy, and this fall is no exception. In fact, we started early this year with the NIRI conference (National Inclusive Recreation Institute) in Eugene, OR where Mary Shea and Nili Mathews both presented workshops. Now it is Torrie and Alissa's turn to travel. This week, Torrie will be in Memphis to work on a project and Alissa will be in the Washington DC area to train the staff and volunteers from Girl Scouts of the Nation's Capital and the staff from Imagination Stage. We are all excited to be back on the road, as the best part of this mission is talking to the dedicated people in our trainings who are working hard to ensure that children learn and grow in their programs.

Oh, and if you see us in an airport or a Starbucks in your city, please say Hello! You'll know us by our KIT shirts.

Heartland Adventure

I will never forget the training I facilitated last night with staff and volunteer leaders from Camp Fire USA Heartland Council. As we created inclusion action plans, a tornado warning had us retreating to the basement. Luckily it passed quickly and everyone was okay. The thunderstorms carried on throughout the night along the Kansas/Missouri line and the excitement of the lightning and thunder brought me back to my days as a young girl in New England.

I really enjoyed getting to know the staff at Camp Fire USA Heartland Council, one of KIT's national affiliates sponsored by Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation (that's them in the picture above), and learning about all the diverse programming they provide in their community. I went on a site visit to a Kid Zone after school program (a collaboration between Camp Fire USA and many agencies in the area). I also had the chance to visit camp Shawnee in Parkville, Missouri and do some training with the camp counselors and directors. What a beautiful place! I was so impressed with the camp staff's creative ideas for accommodations and suggestions for including all kids in games in activities.

If we can make it here...

We'll make it anywhere! Isn't that what Ol' Blue Eyes sings about NYC? KIT has a new national affiliate, sponsored by the Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation, whose offices are headquartered in the heart of Times Square. The After School Corporation (TASC) serves 125 after school programs in all 5 boroughs of New York City. I spent two days at their offices participating in planning meetings and presenting training to site supervisors of the after school programs and TASC staff members. It was fun to call my mom and tell her that my childhood dream had finally come true and I was working on Broadway! OK- it was just for two days...but still...it felt great to be walking along Broadway not as tourist, but on my way to work just like thousands of others those mornings.

Before the visit to NYC, I spent several days working in Bethesda, MD with one of our other new affiliates. Imagination Stage has a long history of serving children with disabilities and they are looking to strengthen their processes when it comes to inclusion. They have an amazing facility, a visionary founder/executive director, a talented and dedicated staff and wonderful children and families that they serve. While I was there I saw their beautiful production of Looking for Roberto Clemente, a work they commissioned about the baseball legend. I saw a performance that was held for school kids- this day all 6th graders- that included a talkback with the actors at the end of the show. One of the characters in the play has a disability and in the storyline he wants nothing more than to play baseball in a league with his brother and friends. He is allowed to be the bat boy and is repeatedly given the message that winning the games are just too important to let him play this time. The 6th graders were fascinated with this talented actor and asked him most of the questions in the talkback. "Can you really play baseball?" they wanted to know. It was great to see inclusion demonstrated in such a powerful way for hundreds of young people. The talented actor, JP Illarramendi, answered their questions with honesty and humor.

Both of these dynamic organizations have made a commitment to improve their service to children with disabilities. It is a delight to work with them and I know they will make great strides in their journey to inclusion. Next up- news from Nili's trip to visit Family YMCA in Blackhawk County, Iowa and Alissa's trip to see the Camp Fire USA- Heartland Council, Kansas City (which is in Missouri- funny story about that so watch for future posts!).

North Carolina Providers Trained on KIT Curriculum

Nili and I are back from our trip to North Carolina. We sure had fun on the East Coast, especially with our parters from Community Partnerships, Inc. It was amazing to see individuals from all types of programs (YMCAs, Boys & Girls Clubs, Girl Scouts, early childhood, school age after-school programs, and parks and recreation) together to become trained to present KIT's Opening Doors to Inclusive Programs series. We were excited to try our first glass of "Sweet Tea" - boy, they are not kidding, it is sweeeeet! We also had the pleasure of zooming around Raleigh in a bright yellow rental car. Until next time...Alissa