Central City Autism Awareness Equipping Central Schools with More Special Needs Resources

Press Release

CENTRAL CITY AUTISM AWARENESS TO MAXIMIZE STUDENT POTENTIAL BY BRINGING SPECIAL NEEDS RESOURCES EXCEEDING STATE AND FEDERAL GUIDELINES INTO LOCAL SCHOOL SYSTEM

March 21, 2015, Baton Rouge – With approval from Central City School System Superintendent Mike Faulk, Central City Autism Awareness is proud to announce they will be equipping Central City schools with Special Needs resources exceeding state and federal guidelines. Therapeutic gyms for daily therapies will be built at Bellingrath Elementary School, Tanglewood Elementary School, and Central Intermediate and Middle School. There will also be a department located at Central High School to help Special Needs children learn everyday life skills.

Central City Autism Awareness strives to provide resources, support, and education to families touched by Autism, and to facilitate the introduction of services to the community. They aim to raise overall awareness of Special Needs to create a welcoming and supportive environment for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder or any other Special Need. CCAA was founded by Debbie Dougherty in March 2015 after her granddaughter was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

“What I quickly learned was that most therapy centers have between a one- and two-and-a-half-year wait just to have a child assessed and for that child to receive a course of individual therapeutic action best suited for him or her. This waiting period is unacceptable, as the need for Special Needs assessment and therapy grows exponentially everyday,” said Dougherty.

In an effort to help raise money towards accomplishing this goal of providing Special Needs therapeutic gyms in local schools, Central City Autism Awareness has been chosen to receive a portion of the proceeds raised from this year’s annual Cooking in Central Festival, the official festival of Central City, which will be held Friday, April 1, and Saturday, April 2, 2016. We invite everyone to come out and support the festival, as how quickly we can build these therapeutic gyms hinges directly on their monetary success!

Cooking in Central is held at Amazing Place, located at 10305 Blackwater Road. This year’s theme is a “Homecoming for Devon Gayle.” The festival will feature a crawfish boil, hamburgers and hot dogs, a greased pig contest, food cook-offs, dance contests, live and silent auctions, BREC park activities, kids’ entertainment, and live music by Henry Turner, Jr. & Flavor and by John Fred & Playboys Review. This year’s cook-off categories include Jambalaya, Pork Ribs, BBQ Chicken, Couchon-du-Lait, and Pork Roast & Brisket. For further Cooking in Central information, please visit www.CookingInCentral.com.

For more information on Central City Autism Awareness, please contact Debbie Dougherty or visit www.Facebook.com/CentralCityAutismAwareness. Our website is coming soon!