Easterseals’ Disability Awareness Program Goes
Virtual During The Stay At Home Order
Providing Lessons in Kindness and Inclusion to
students wherever they are
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[April 23, 2020]
A long-time program teaching children the
importance of disability awareness and kindness is going digital.
Easterseals Central Illinois Disability Awareness Program (DAP),
underwritten by CEFCU, has been taught in Central Illinois schools
for over a decade. Now the organization is encouraging caregivers
and teachers to participate in the program virtually. |
“These lessons are important, especially during
this time of isolation,” says Molly Hogeboom, Outreach Coordinator
for Easterseals Central Illinois. “Now, when students aren’t around
others every day, is the perfect time to help them understand having
a disability doesn’t change who a person is. Learning this from
parents and caregivers will be very powerful.”
A live disability awareness assembly will be hosted Friday, April 17
at 1 pm on Easterseals Central Illinois’ Facebook Page. Resources
for the Disability Awareness Program will be emailed to registered
families on Sunday, April 19 with the daily videos and activities
set to start Monday, April 20 and run through Friday, April 24.
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This program is designed to help kids ages 5-12 learn kids with
disabilities are just like them. Each lesson contains an activity to
help students understand what it might be like to have a disability.
The program is hosted by Hogeboom, who is also a former Easterseals
Ambassador. Hogeboom has Cerebral Palsy and offers a unique
perspective on inclusion for those with disabilities. Hogeboom
received services from Easterseals as a child and explains the
importance of those services in an easy-to-understand way. [to top of second
column] |
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A highlight of the program is ‘The 6 Bs of Being a
Good Friend’, which challenges students to be inclusive, be smart,
be kind, be patient, be brave and be yourself. A video of the 6 Bs
can be found here at ESCI.link/VirtualDAP
This annual program is taught in 15-20 schools every year and is
typically hosted in conjunction with Coins4Kids, a first lesson in
philanthropy for students.
“Miss Molly teaches us about different disabilities and how
Easterseals helps students. The money we raise helps other students
just like me get the help they need at Easterseals,” said Lola
Skolaski, a 3rd grade student at Kellar Elementary School in Peoria.
“She also teaches us to celebrate our friend’s abilities and not
focus on their disabilities.”
To register visit ESCI.link/VirtualDAP. For more information contact
Molly Hogeboom at
Mhogeboom@easters ealsci.com or call (309)686-1177.
[Megan Pedigo
Director of Marketing
Easterseals Central Illinois]
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