Summer Programs
New Day Camp Support
To apply for day camp support, parents of a child with autism (most programs are for ages 5 to 12) should register their child for a summer day camp at either St. Clair College or with Parks and Recreation at the Atkinson Community Centre. Children must meet the registration requirements as outlined by the facility. When registering you must indicate that your child has autism and requires support.
Eligible children will be provided with support for a two week period (may increase depending on demand). There is no cost for the support worker but parents are responsible to pay the summer day camp fee as outlined by the facility. This program is available until August 13, 2010.
For more information please call the ASI office. For summer day camp listings please refer to: St. Clair College Summer Campus for Kids and City of Windsor Summer Activity Guide.
Bruce Awad Summer Program Overview
Since 1984, Autism Services Incorporated has provided a Summer Progam for persons with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). It offers seven weeks of daily
support to individuals between 6 to 21 years who have a psychiatric diagnosis of autism. A director oversees the program that employs a staff of supervisors and support workers. Post secondary students are recruited and trained to work in this hightly specialized program. As a show of appreciation to Bruce Awad, the creator of the program, the Board of Directors of ASI officially named the program "The Bruce Awad Summer Program" on June 14, 2010.
An attempt to provide a staff to client ratio as close to one-on-one as possible is critical to the success of the program. The number of persons accepted into the program each year depends on the amount of funding received from provincial and federal government grants, donations and proceeds from various fundraising events sponsored by the Board of Directors of ASI. Due to the tremendous need in the community, there is often a waiting list of families who wish to enroll their child into ASI's Summer Program.
The Board reviews criteria for admission into the seven-week program annually. An Admissions Committee that consists of the Director of Summer Programs and several members of the Board of Directors determines admission into the program. Family needs as they relate to the admissions criteria are considered on a case-by-case basis. The high staff to client ratio is necessary and also very costly. The family's fee for seven weeks of Monday through Friday full day supports or for seven weeks of Monday through Friday morning or afternoon supports, covers a small portion of the high costs and assists ASI in its efforts to serve as many families as possible. ASI's attempts to lobby the Ministry of Community, Family and Children's Services for additional funding to meet families demands for the summer program is an ongoing effort aimed at reducing costs so more families can be served.
Our Program is a highly structured one and individuals and their families have expressed their satisfaction and happiness with the program. Some of the fun daily activities include aerobics, arts and crafts, music time, cognitive activities, food preparation, housekeeping duties, daily living skills, swimming, and a variety of appropriate community outings. The high staff to client ratio enables us to provide the people we support with the attention they need to help them reach their highest potential when practicing skills. This ratio is essential to ensure the safety of individuals who have more challenging behaviours associated with autism, such as aggression and/or self-abusive tendencies. Safety for the people we support, for staff and for others is our highest priority; consequently, ASI provides a ratio as close to one on one as possible to ensure a safe and pleasant environment.
The Autism Resource Team at Windsor Regional Children's Centre and Thames Valley Children's Centre, assist with extensive training for the staff including topics such as behaviour modification techniques, understanding family stress and coping with autism. A communication and case review on individual clients is also a component of the training.
An Annual Open House is held in August and is open to the general public. Announcements are prepared and distributed with the assistance of the summer program students and staff.
The Board of Directors carefully reviews the Program Director's final report, staff performance evaluations and most importantly the families' program evaluations in an effort to continuously improve the program.
Read the history of ASI here.