The Arc Of Walker County

Programs: Adult services: services for adults include a day program, supported living, supported employement and residential services. Staff work to assist adults in all daily aspects of living in order to maintain or increase their independence. Daily living skills and training towards goals are presented in classroom and community settings. Through the supported living program, persons with intellectual disabilities are able to maintain their current private living situation. The supported employement program works with community partners to employ adults with disabilities into competitive, gainful employement and is the only program like this in the county. The residential program operates 18 homes in the community providing necessary 24-hour supervised living for adults who otherwise would not have a place to call home.

child services: services for children include an early intervention, early head start and pre-kindergarten. The early intervention program works with infants, toddlers and their families to overcome developmental delays and reach benchmarks. The program does not have a waiting list and serves more than 60 families a month. The early head start program serves children from age one year to age three to prepare them for head start. This is the only center-based early head start program in walker county. Through a partnership, uab staff works in the community serving families of the early head start students along with other children in the community. The pre- kindergarten program provides a classroom based program for children ages 4 and includes those with disabilities in a creative learning environment. All children who have completed the pre-k program at the arc showed improvement in skills and reached benchmarks.