School

Opening a World of Learning Opportunities
for Students with Special Needs

The original goal for Special LINKS was to open a private, non-profit school for students of all ages who have multiple disabilities and significant support needs, and accept them regardless of their ability to pay tuition. We opened what we believed was going to be our year-round school located in Lakewood, Colorado, but unfortunately there were a lot of factors that made it difficult to secure enough funding to keep it open. We thank our students and their families for taking a chance on us, our staff and volunteers for all their hard work, and all the friends, family and people within the community that did support our mission.

Special LINKS in the News Check out the story that Channel 7 News put together on our school. Thank you to Jennifer Castor and 7 News!

• We are not giving up! We just need to change our strategy. Our summer programs have been highly successful for the last two years so it makes good sense to keep them going, along with some additional services. Special LINKS Learning Center will now be focusing on providing quality After School & Summer Enrichment Programs specifically designed for kids with disabilities and significant support needs. We are organizing our 2009 Summer Enrichment Program and will be working on how and where to begin some After School Enrichment Programs.

• What about school? There are still a lot of students with disabilities who are falling through the cracks or who are just not succeeding within their current educational environment. What we have wanted to do all along was to provide a quality education where we "raise the bar" for special education and create a school where we have the highest of expectations for our students. The answer is to open a Charter School called Special LINKS Academy. Our Letter of Intent has been submitted to Denver Public Schools and we are in the process of completing our application, which is due to them on April 13th. We will keep you posted on our progress and if you have any questions, feel free to send us an email at speciallinks@att.net.

We are doing this because our Program Director and Special Educator, JoAnna Dean, has definitely "raised the bar" of special education and many of us who have kids that have been in her classroom won't be happy with just "settling" for anthing less. Ms. Dean not only fosters an atmosphere of high academic achievement, but also of respect and compassion toward others. Her classrooms are always based on an emphasis that everyone can succeed. The students not only achieve the goals laid out in their IEP's, but accomplish much more than most believe possible. Ms. Dean educates herself to each child's unique set of abilities and challenges and to spend a day in one of her classrooms is like watching a well choreographed ballet. It is inspiring and amazing! And that is what we wish to offer to students throughout the Denver Metro area through the Special LINKS Academy.

Thank you again to everyone for your patience and understanding while we work towards finding the solution that will work best for your kids.

Deb Winter
Executive Director