Unlocking Potential: ACCESS of Little Rock

In the heart of Little Rock, ACCESS stands as a support system for individuals with learning and developmental disabilities. Through a unique, person-centered approach, ACCESS focuses on the genuine connections and opportunities that pave the way for children and young adults to thrive and develop a sense of belonging within their community. Krysten Levin, the Marketing Manager for ACCESS, has seen the authentic strategies that set ACCESS apart, dispelling stigmas and helping individuals meet their long-term goals so they can learn to become independent and be proud of who they are.

More Than Just an Academy

While many people know them as ACCESS Academy, ACCESS offers a variety of programs centered around goal setting and meeting social, developmental, and physical milestones. “We are a very broad organization,” Krysten says. “We offer comprehensive evaluation services, outpatient therapy, or full-time education and vocational training services to individuals with learning and developmental disabilities.”

“Research shows that individuals who are diagnosed with developmental or learning disabilities are often diagnosed with other conditions, such as anxiety and depression,” Krysten says. “That’s why it’s important for us to look at the whole individual from the very beginning and develop a plan that meets all of their needs. If we just treat the learning or developmental disability and don’t treat the other diagnoses along with that, then the program will not be successful for the individual in the future.”

We try to set the expectation that individuals should not set their standards lower because they have a developmental or learning disability. They can achieve almost any goal they set; we just need to change their path to reach that goal.

ACCESS offers seven programs for individuals with learning and developmental disabilities. “At the Evaluation and Resource Center, we offer comprehensive evaluations to discover an individual’s strengths and weaknesses, helping to identify developmental disabilities, learning disabilities, mental health diagnoses, and more,” Krysten says. The center also offers academic therapy, which is a highly specialized form of therapy where therapists one-on-one with a student at their school or at ACCESS. Students are taught different methods of learning based on their learning disability. The therapy focuses less on content and more on learning style, ensuring that the individual understands the best option for them to find academic success.

ACCESS also offers mental health counseling for youth and adolescents, teaching them to embrace challenges and enjoy their lives. The mental health experts tailor plans to each family’s needs and ensure that they’re meeting individuals where they are.

“Through ACCESS Therapy, we offer a plethora of outpatient therapy services, such as speech, physical, and occupational therapy, as well as a specialized feeding therapy program,” Krysten says. “Through these programs, we work to help individuals realize the skills needed to participate fully in their communities.”

For individuals who attend ACCESS full-time, the therapy programs are integrated into their school day. “Whether it’s the ACCESS Early Childhood program for children ages 6 weeks to kindergarten transition age or the ACCESS Academy program for school-aged children needing comprehensive special education options, we have a full range of educational services,” Kyrsten says. As students graduate into adulthood, ACCESS also offers various vocational training and adult programs such as ACCESS Life or Project SEARCH® Arkansas: ACCESS Initiative in partnership with Arkansas Rehabilitation Services.

A Patient-Centered Approach

Much like in the health care community, ACCESS takes a person-centered approach to meeting individuals’ needs. “There’s a two-part factor we try to keep in mind: there are the individual’s immediate needs and the long-term goals that they and their families set up for them,” Krysten says. ACCESS offers a comprehensive array of resources to ensure that they are individualizing the care they provide to meet the needs of each unique individual and achieve their goals.

“We try to set the expectation that individuals should not set their standards lower because they have a developmental or learning disability. They can achieve almost any goal they set; we just need to change their path to reach that goal,” Krysten says.

When students arrive here, they begin to come out of their shell because they see someone who is going through the same thing they are. They see each other in a positive way and embrace each other’s differences.

Much of the growth that ACCESS has experienced has come from focusing on the individual. “We attribute much of our success to parents in the community who let us know their child’s needs,” Krysten says. ACCESS started as a therapy center, but parents expressed that regular preschool was not an option for their children, so ACCESS opened a preschool program with a unique literacy and language-based curriculum. Once those children became old enough to attend elementary school, parents found that their children would not thrive in a typical school environment, so ACCESS founded the ACCESS Academy for school-aged children. “We worked so hard to help individuals achieve a level of independence by the time they graduated,” Krysten says, “but we realized that there weren’t many opportunities for adults with disabilities after graduation. College may not be the right option for them, so we added a young adult program,” she explains. “Our growth has been, and continues to be, a constant push by the community and their needs.”

One former student, Drew Aston, attended the Project SEARCH Arkansas: ACCESS Initiative program in partnership with Arkansas Rehabilitation Services, a nine-month, on-the-job internship program hosted at various business sites across Arkansas. The program teaches young adults with developmental disabilities transferable job skills, helps them find competitive, integrated employment upon graduation from the program, and offers follow-along services to work through various work-related issues new employees may be experiencing. “I was involved in the Project SEARCH program 10 years ago, and I learned how to get and keep a job, how to fill out a resume, how to work with a team, and how to work with all sorts of different personalities,” Drew says. He has since gone on to mentor and train other young adults in the program after he graduated.

Drew Aston progressed through ACCESS's Project SEARCH team, where he learned skills important to finding and keeping a job. Drew returned to ACCESS to mentor other students in the program after he graduated.

“Having a job coach available that I could talk to when I was having problems at work helped me overcome many challenges. There were always staff around me who could help, no matter what I needed,” Drew says.

Teamwork as an Avenue for Success

No matter what program an individual is involved in at ACCESS, staff maintain a close relationship with parents and doctors along the way to ensure that they set up a plan for each individual that specifically meets their needs and sets them up for success. “We are in constant contact with doctors, parents, and other professionals involved in an individual’s life,” Krysten says. “Even on our campus, we have a team that is very collaborative. A teacher may pass a therapist in the hall and say that they noticed someone is really struggling with something. They will communicate with one another about what they’re seeing and how to address it,” she says. Doctors are also very involved with the ACCESS team, reading reports on each individual and even referring patients to ACCESS for further evaluation if the doctor believes they have a learning or developmental disability or may need further evaluation.

As soon as an individual is enrolled at ACCESS, the staff meets with the parents to set goals for each individual. “We have periodic check-ins with the parents and constantly communicate to ensure that clients are not only achieving their goals but also that their growth is transferring into the home environment and the community outside of our walls,” Krysten says. “We think about what needs to change to ensure that the child and the parent understand, work toward, and achieve the same goals.”

Research shows that individuals who are diagnosed with develpomental disabilities are often diagnosed with other conditions, such as depression and anxiety. That's why it's important for us to look at the whole individual from the very beginning and develop a plan that meets their needs.

Fostering a Sense of Belonging

One of the most important aspects of ACCESS is the way that the staff establishes a sense of togetherness among the individuals they are helping. “At ACCESS Academy, students don’t progress through the grades. They progress through certain levels of learning,” Krysten says. This means that students may stay in a class for more than just one school year. They are with their peers, teachers, and therapists for much longer than a traditional school program before they move to a new class. As a result, students develop a sense of belonging with each other. The curriculum includes several opportunities for students to interact with one another, including after-school activities, volunteer work, social interactions, and even the Special Olympics program, all of which foster a sense of teamwork and togetherness.

“Children who have a learning or developmental disability are often singled out in the wrong ways outside of ACCESS,” Krysten says. “When they arrive here, they begin to come out of their shell because they see someone who is going through the same thing they are. They see each other in a positive way and embrace each other’s differences,” she says. “Together, they are able to encourage and accept the uniqueness that comes with their disabilities. They learn to be proud of who they are and the joy that comes from that.”

For Drew, ACCESS changed his life. “ACCESS is such an amazing organization,” he says. “They continue to teach people with disabilities to cope in the world, and they keep in touch with graduates after they leave the program.” Even after he’s graduated, Drew says he’s learned to be confident in who he is. “At ACCESS, they brought people together and taught me that I’m not alone. I have others to support me,” he says.

After graduating from Project SEARCH, Drew attained a full-time job in patient transport from Crothall at UAMS and has worked there for 10 years, serving the community and meeting amazing people along the way.

Through Project SEARCH, Drew was offered a full-time position in patient transportation from Crothall at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Drew has been working at Crothall full-time for 10 years and has had the opportunity to train other Project SEARCH graduates. In 2012, Drew served as an Arkansas delegate at the National Democratic Convention. He often thinks back on the impact ACCESS has had on him and the sense of belonging he has developed in his life.

For more information about ACCESS and the services they offer, view their website.

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