VIA Centers for Neurodevelopment

Lynchburg VIA Day School received a visit from a local rescue squad to help our learners become more comfortable with emergency personnel. Damien Murtagh, Director at Lynchburg VIA Day School, provides regular trainings and visits for our first responders to help build a bridge and increase awareness around the people we serve. Students practiced riding in the gurney and getting vitals checked, and were thrilled to turn the sirens on and meet the EMS team. People with autism are more likely to need emergency services, and training can help first responders recognize certain signs that may indicate someone is on the spectrum and that could help adjust their method of treatment.

Our older learners at our Lexington VIA Day School loved preparing healthy snacks for our school, building both skills and confidence! Using VIA's evidence-based programs, our staff use kitchen instruction to help with food sensitivities and create excitement around meal times.

We've loved welcoming back our learners across our VIA locations! Our JCH-Westwood class celebrated the start of the new school year with a collaborative poster-making session full of conversation, creativity, and goal-setting. We're excited to see our learners shine!

We love seeing our learners in our Pediatric ABA Services (part of VIA's Behavioral Health Services) develop essential communication skills. This center-based program provides specialized support for children with autism and neurodevelopmental disorders, focusing on developing communication, social interactions, cognitive skills, and behavior regulation.

VIA is thrilled to welcome our newest board member, Alicia Milligan! Alicia Milligan has lived in Charlottesville since 2004 and brings both legal and nonprofit expertise to the board. She currently serves as the Chief Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney for Albemarle County and has volunteered as a CASA advocate for children in foster care as well as a former board member of Ready Kids, a local nonprofit serving children and families in our community. Her passion for helping children extends to her personal life as well–she has volunteered and held leadership roles within the schools her children attended. Alicia joined the VIA board to help broaden awareness about our mission, services, and impact to help create a more inclusive community where everyone can reach their potential and thrive. We are excited for Alicia to join us and share her legal expertise as well as passion for and experience working with other nonprofits supporting youth in the community.

We're welcoming our newest class of interns this month! VIA partners with local universities and colleges to provide internships for students interested in behavior analysis, psychology, and education. Our interns work closely with our program directors and supervisors to gain valuable experience and knowledge, and many of our interns are seeking graduate degrees in related fields. Pictured here is one of our new interns accompanying an adult participant in our Charlottesville center on an outing to a local bookstore.

Our JCH-Westwood "helpers" were all smiles last week while working on skill building in a fun, hands-on way! VIA's evidence-based programs apply lessons to real-world experiences. Our learners are modeling following instructions, communicating, time management, and task analysis while enjoying time together outdoors. Thank you to our VIA staff for organizing such creative and interactive curriculum!

We're thrilled to announce that Dr. Ethan Long, VIA's President & CEO, received a Commonwealth Fellowship, a year-long scholarship for nonprofit leaders to attend UVA Darden’s The Executive Program (TEP), which is historically attended by corporate leaders and entrepreneurs. “The evolution of what’s needed with this growing organization – how we scale, what types of business opportunities we want to take advantage of, and how we evaluate those – all of those things are big pieces that I’m looking forward to learning about, not just from the faculty but also having [TEP] colleagues that I’ll get to work alongside, basically having a network of folks,” said Ethan. Under Ethan's leadership that began 14 years ago, VIA has grown from serving 24 students in Charlottesville, Va., to over 300 individuals and families throughout 33 school districts and other services in four Virginia cities. Congratulations, Ethan Long!

This week VIA welcomed Dr. Patrick McGreevy, founder of Essential for Living (EFL) curriculum, to host an extensive workshop for our entire staff as part of our commitment to professional growth. EFL is a well-regarded curriculum, based on research, that is consistent with the values and goals of VIA. It offers systematic tools to focus on skills important to quality of life across the lifespan. The mission of EFL is to provide children and adults with moderate-to-severe disabilities, including but not limited to autism, a comprehensive curriculum referenced to ‘quality of life’, rather than typical development or academic standards, along with evidence-based teaching ‘and measurement‘ strategies and procedures, that result in the dignity and quality of life these children and adults deserve.

Inclusive volunteering brings individuals with and without disabilities together to make a difference in their communities by recognizing each person's individual gifts and talents. VIA's Club & Hub programs volunteer regularly with a variety of nonprofits throughout Virginia. Our Roanoke participants recently served lunch at Straight Street Roanoke Valley, a local community partner. Many people perceive people with disabilities as the ones in need of service. However, people with disabilities are a key part of civic engagement across the country. Thank you to Straight Street Roanoke Valley for being a part of our mission at VIA!