Posted by Karla Cosgriff on November 27, 2001 at 11:54:35:
Every Child Counts
Eleuthera Branch
A special education and literacy initiative for the Family Islands
ECC is literacy and special education project that provides assistance and training to exceptional children and their teachers and parents in the Family Islands. Headquartered in Abaco, the project's mission on Eleuthera is to provide innovative educational programs to children with special needs and to build local capacity through professional training for teachers, parents, and volunteers in all districts on the island. ECC's vision is to ensure that children with special needs on Eleuthera and Harbour Island have access to instruction and materials that can help them reach their full academic and personal potential. Through collaborations with Bahamian and American educational organizations, ECC will have trained professionals on Eleuthera who can accurately assess students and solve potential learning difficulties.
ECC is currently assisting 70 children in three schools in the North Eleuthera school district. The project also assists the efforts of other teachers on the island with classroom and professional materials.
If you would like to help us accomplish any of our objectives either by volunteering during school hours, as an after-school tutor, by participating in a training seminar, or with a financial contribution, we would be grateful.
the need
In conjunction with St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church (Abaco) and professors at Florida International University (FIU), research was conducted on Eleuthera, Abaco, and Harbour Island to determine the need for educational services for children with special needs. The research indicated that an estimated 25-30 percent of children experience some form of learning difficulty. In addition to learning disabilities, many environmental factors adversely influence the progress of these children. Children with mild disabilities are often enrolled in school only to face extreme frustration, humiliation, and failure in the current system that is directed toward a specific student profile. Most of the children with severe physical and mental disabilities do not even attend classes because no schools are equipped either in staff or facility to educate them. The only schools dedicated to special needs are in Nassau and most families cannot afford to send their children to the capital or abroad elsewhere.
In response to the great need illustrated by the research, an alliance was formed between FIU and St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church to facilitate the development of special education services in Abaco. Two years ago, with the help of St. Gregory's Church and the Ministry of Education for the Eleuthera District, an ECC project team began to implement similar programs and services for schools in North Eleuthera.
goals in progress
The goals in progress in Harbour Island and Eleuthera:
* Assess physical and neurological impairments that may be interfering with a child's academic progress.
* Conduct daily, in-school, special education sessions with learning disabled children in need of critical attention.
* Build local capacity through monthly training seminars that integrate literacy-building and teaching strategies for working with children with special needs. Teachers and parents are invited to attend.
* Provide free assistance and materials for special education resource rooms in Eleuthera.
* Assemble specialized libraries in each district of Eleuthera to aide in the professional development of parents, teachers, and volunteer community members. Such libraries will be complete with professional journals, text books, instructional materials and best practice video tapes.
* Train volunteers to assist with in-school and after-school tutoring sessions, as well as clinical diagnosis and remediation.
* Initiate an on-going learning community in which teachers, parents, and volunteers can independently continue personal/professional development.
These goals, successfully implemented with the help of teachers, administrators, parents, volunteers, and community leaders, will foster and sustain an independent, student-supportive special education initiative in Eleuthera.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Every Child Counts has the support and assistance of Florida International University, St. Francis de Sales School (Abaco), and St. Gregory's Church (Eleuthera).* The Ministry of Education for the Eleuthera District strongly endorses the program and its goals. Several other local organizations are collaborating with ECC in Eleuthera.
ECC is a completely volunteer-driven initiative that depends on generous financial contributions from private foundations and individuals in the Bahamas and the United States. To sustain ECC's activities for children with special needs, outside and local community support is vital. Funds are needed to:
* establish a resource room to serve the southern settlements in Eleuthera;
* plan and present monthly seminars on special education strategies for parents, teachers, and the community at-large;
* provide a modest stipend to the volunteer teachers living in the community;
* underwrite the participation of teachers and volunteers in larger professional development opportunities, such as clinician training and remediation strategies for special needs students;
* purchase and ship additional educational materials for ECC learning centers.
If you would like to make a tax-deductible financial or in-kind contribution, you can do so through the Bahamas Missions of Florida. For more information on how you can help, please contact ECC at 242-333-2006 or visit one of the resource rooms.
Every Child Counts
Eleuthera Branch
Currently working in partnership with:
Gregory Town Primary School 242-335-5017
Harbour Island All-Age School 242-333-2261
North Eleuthera Primary School 242-335-1233
Administrative Office:
Lang Fincher (Harbour Island)
Karla Cosgriff (Gregory Town or Bluff)
PO Box EL 27194
Harbour Island
Bahamas
Tel: 242-333-2006
Fax: 242-333-2638
Email: hana9@aol.com or kcosgus@yahoo.com