Thanks to a grant from the Area Board VII of the State Council on Developmental Disabilities, the Scotts Valley Library will be opening the Special Needs Resource Center on June 2, 2012. Funds for Grants were allocated by the State Council on Developmental Disabilities to the 13 Area Boards. The granting of funds was a result of the decision of Area Board VII which serves the Counties of Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Benito and Monterey.
Scotts Valley residents Susie Christensen and Peter Mclean are the local representatives on the Area VII Board and were instrumental in securing the grant and advocating for education and services in our community. The original donation to the collection was made by Peter and Maureen Mclean who donated over 70 special needs resource publications to start the collection. The Scotts Valley Library will be home base for the collection of books and materials for the special needs community.
Starting June 2, the collection will include reference books, legal manuals, videos and DVDs either purchased as part of the grant or donated. Conditions addressed in the Special Needs Resource Center collection include Autism, ADD, ADHD, Tourette’s syndrome, Asperger’s Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, Visual Impairment, Pervasive Developmental Delays, Dyspraxia, Bipolar disorder, sensory processing disorders, Down syndrome, Anxiety, Depression and OCD. It is the only collection of its kind in Santa Cruz County.
Parents, educators and individuals with special needs throughout the Santa Cruz Public Library System will be able to access these resources, which will be housed at the Scotts Valley Library. Internationally known therapist, author and lecturer Michelle Garcia Winner donated copies of all the publications produced by her company, Social Thinking Publishing. Other available resources include addressing legal rights for those with disabilities, obtaining appropriate educational placement, dealing with siblings of a special needs child and much more.
The Special Needs Resource Collection is being made available through a $15,000 grant from Area Board VII written by Elizabeth Walch, president of the Friends of the Library – Scotts Valley Chapter.
“We are so pleased that the library’s commitment to providing resources and education to the community now includes the special needs community,” said Elizabeth. “We hope to obtain similar grants in the coming year so that we can continue to build on the Special Needs Resource Collection and provide even more support to our special needs community.”
