When young adults with autism and other disabilities age out of the school system, Els for Autism Foundation® wants to make sure they have a special place to go to, a place to grow, connect, and thrive. Upon completion in 2023, the Stoops Family Foundation Adult Services building will be the location from which the Foundation will deliver programs and services for adults that include:
Employment Training, Support and Placement – providing training/coaching and job placement with corporate and organizational partners. The building will contain vocational training labs focusing on retail, grocery, business and food services, including a café with drive-through service; and a gift shop area for the signature microbusiness, ‘Sea of Possibilities’.
Day Training – to build on each participant’s skills in areas of socialization, recreation, and community involvement to increase independence.
Supported Living – a two-bedroom suite serves a dual purpose as a vocational lab for the hospitality industry (hotel employment) and as a lab for teaching independent living skills
Post-Graduation – support in transitioning to life after school through vocational and independent living skills training post-graduation.
Microbusiness – Creating, marketing, and selling artwork to teach transferable business skills such as communications, customer service, money management, and product creation.
A special thanks goes to the Stoops Family Foundation and the Langenfeld family for their generous donations to cover the construction cost of the building. But the Foundation needs additional donor support to furnish the inside spaces. Additionally, the Foundation has an essential need for a business or restaurant partner to manage the café that will include a drive-through service.
On the days the charter schools are in operation, The Els Center of Excellence® campus welcomes approximately 800 people to campus, including:
• Els for Autism Foundation – staff, interns, clients, support organizations (such as the First Tee), and volunteers
• The Learning Center and The Learning Academy – teachers, school administration, support staff, students, and the student’s family/caretakers
People working on the campus are very excited to have a café service available to them and the café will be one of the important spaces on the campus where adults with autism can grow, connect, and thrive. For more information on donations for the inside spaces of the building or the café partnership, contact Dr. Marlene Sotelo – marlene.sotelo@elsforautism.org
[vc_video link=”https://vimeo.com/740073057″ title=”Adult Services Building Cafe Video”]
