Inclusive Preschool Classroom Opening on Campus in Partnership with Summit Center
Buffalo State University and the Summit Center—a leading provider of behavioral health and autism services—are collaborating to create an inclusive full-day preschool classroom for 16 students that will open on the Buffalo State campus in January. The integrated classroom will serve children with and without disabilities in the same space, addressing a shortage of inclusive preschool programs in Erie County and the city of Buffalo.
The classroom will be staffed by one general education teacher, one special education teacher, and two special education classroom assistants, who will be supervised by professionals at Summit.
“New York State has long supported inclusive preschool programing and encouraged the creation of classrooms that support young children of all abilities,” said Kathy Doody, a Buffalo State professor of exceptional education who serves on the boards of directors for both the Buffalo State Child Care Center and the Summit Center. “Buffalo State and the Summit Center have answered that call by creating a co-taught and integrated preschool classroom that will foster the growth of young children in all developmental domains. Social-emotional as well as academic learning are the focal points of our inclusive classroom. Highly trained professionals from both partners guide and nurture young children as they learn from their peers.”
Buffalo State students will play an important role in the inclusive preschool classroom, one of a kind on a college campus in the region. Additionally, the education and services provided by the Child Care Center are enhanced by contributions from the university’s academic programs, including early childhood education, speech-language pathology, psychology, music education, and art education, as well as Buffalo State’s unique educational facilities such as the Burchfield Penney Art Center, Whitworth Ferguson Planetarium, and greenhouse.
The benefits of integrated classrooms for students with and without disabilities are significant and lasting. Students with disabilities have peer models for academic and behavior skills, as well as increased opportunities for social interactions. At a young age, students without disabilities develop an awareness and acceptance of peers who may be pre-verbal, or who learn or behave differently.
Kathy Doody, professor of exceptional education at Buffalo State University
“The collaboration not only provides a rich learning environment for young children, but also provides applied learning opportunities for our Buffalo State students, interprofessional opportunities for general and special education teachers and related service providers while promoting student-centered learning,” Doody said. “These opportunities, combined with the renowned special education expertise of the Summit Center, result in a clinically rich and distinctive preschool classroom.”
The Buffalo State Child Care Center, located in Buckham Hall, currently serves about 80 children. About half are children of Buffalo State faculty, staff, and students; others enrolled are from the surrounding community.
“We have an incredible center for families, with big, bright, open classrooms, and supportive staff that strive to work with each family individually, while creating an inclusive community here,” said Shae Herron, executive director of the Child Care Center.
The center aims to provide quality, affordable child care in a safe, predictable environment for each child so they may develop their social, emotional, cognitive, and physical abilities. The Buffalo State Child Care Center is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), an accreditation earned by only 2 percent of child care programs in the region.
With a staff of 500 professionals and expertise in autism and social-emotional development, the Summit Center is Western New York’s leading provider of evidence-based educational, behavioral health, adult, and community programs, serving more than 1,000 children and adults each year with developmental, social, and behavioral challenges.
“We are very excited to have a presence in the city of Buffalo serving preschoolers with developmental disabilities,” said Amy L. Jablonski, president of the Summit Center. “Summit’s integrated program blends the best practices of early childhood education and special education so that all children can benefit.”
