Inclusion Matters by Shanes Inspiration

TThe Catalyst Program: Through the Catalyst Program, Inclusion Matters by Shanes Inspirations SVP of Design/Certified Landscape Architect and Chief Executive Officer/Co-Founder provide comprehensive Inclusive Playground design and development support to communities, municipalities, and families interested in creating inclusive play environments in their communities. The team provides assistance and guidance from conception through completion, including: building a stakeholder base, choosing the appropriate site, inclusive playground design, community outreach and fundraising, project and construction management, vendor selection, fiscal oversight, and comprehensive resource development. Once the playground is open, the program development team works with the community to implement Inclusion Matters by Shanes Inspiration's successful inclusive play programs at that playground, ensuring impact and full utilization by the community. In addition to this vast array of services, the playground design and development team advocate and train organizations globally to ensure the inclusion of children with disabilities in community and school environments. Key accomplishments over the past twenty-five years include*Providing fundraising guidance that assisted communities in generating over $75 million in support of the development of Inclusive Playgrounds, as well as community and educational programs nationally and internationally;*Opening 80 Inclusion Matters by Shanes Inspiration Inclusive Playgrounds throughout the United States, as well as in Russia, Ecuador, Israel, Mexico and Canada *Partnering with Too Small To Fail, a Clinton Foundation literacy initiative, to integrate early childhood literacy components into each inclusive playground design that Inclusion Matters by SI develops. *Creating an online training course that supplements the Social Inclusion Education Curriculum, which is now in 67 countries;*Securing international partners that are working toward establishing the first inclusive playgrounds in South Africa, Japan, Argentina, Armenia, and more;*Olympic/Paralympic Partnership - Designing three inclusive playgrounds in conjunction with the 2010 Olympic/Paralympic Winter Games in Canada and with the Olympic/Paralympic Winter Games in 2014 to create the first inclusive playground in Sochi, Russia;*Advocating for and training partners in inclusive play/social inclusion best practices. This program, Together, We Are Able, has been in 250 schools, impacting over 55,000 students within Los Angeles County. Inclusion Matters by Shanes Inspirations global advocacy impact includes countries such as Ecuador, Argentina, Russia, the Netherlands, and at the United Nations;*Transforming Los Angeles into the most playable city/county in the nation by working with city leaders to develop an inclusive playground initiative, part of which helped secure $9.5 million through Proposition 40 allocation. Inclusion Matters by Shanes Inspiration has designed and developed 44 playgrounds in the Los Angeles region, serving millions of people annually.*Ecuador: Partnered with the U.S. Embassy to integrate the Together, We Are Able education program into university curriculum at universities throughout Ecuador. Partnered with MIDUVI (Ministry of Urban Development and Housing) to develop a modular design that will create over 40 inclusive playgrounds throughout the country of Ecuador.*Supporting the City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks in developing and promoting new, inclusive recreation programming through their PlayLA initiative, supported by a $160M investment from LA28.*Receiving United Nations Special Consultative Status, creating a deeper opportunity for global advocacy.

Education: For 23 years, Together, We Are Able, the education program provided free-of-charge by Inclusion Matters by Shanes Inspiration, offers powerful, life-changing lessons for students with and without disabilities. It teaches character development skills that address the core issue of exclusion and bullying of children with disabilities in the school environment by bringing students of all abilities together through transformative, play-based social/emotional learning (SEL). The program has served more than 60,000 students in over 275 schools since its inception and reaches over 3,000 students in the Los Angeles region annually. The program includes the following steps: Step 1: A 60-minute classroom conversation explores how students define and perceive disabilities. Through a combination of activities, students gain a new awareness of the common ground they share with their peers with disabilities as well as real-world tools on how to engage with children who have cognitive/sensory/physical/communication differences.Step 2: Participating students with and without disabilities are paired at an Inclusion Matters playground in Los Angeles or on their school campus for interaction and play. This gives them the chance to learn from and with each other, overcoming misconceptions and strengthening social/emotional skills through play. Locally, in Los Angeles, the organization supports the cost of bus transportation for the field trips for public schools that serve children with complex disabilities, which can be a significant barrier to participation for them.Step 3: A wrap-up 45-minute workshop allows students to synthesize their new awareness and identify simple actions they can take each day to create inclusion in the hallways, cafeterias, and on the playgrounds.Step 4: Their team provides additional support via professional development, inclusion planning, and facilitating inclusive recess events to continue the interaction throughout the school year. Over 8,000 teachers, parents and education professionals have been trained by their team.The program has been replicated in the U.S. and as far away as Ecuador. Program milestones include:2012: A teachers guide and training video were released online, reaching 67 countries. The resources include:oStep-by-step instructions for facilitating the 3-step programoA detailed inclusive play guide for the interactive play eventsoA modular education DVD that shows a day-in-the life of 3 students with students with disabilitiesoSupplemental literacy support to continue the inclusion conversationoA 60-minute, modular video training2022/2026: A university inclusion training program was launched in partnership with the US Embassy & Consulate in Ecuador, reaching over 1,900 university students, professors, and practicing teachers and 5,000 children throughout the country. The organization developed its powerful curriculum and training tools into an online course in Spanish that teaches future and practicing teachers how to facilitate social inclusion on their campuses and continues.2023/2026: Via a partnership with the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), the organization continues to co-host the largest Inclusive Schools Week celebration in LAUSD, an annual, national celebration held during the first week of December. During the past three years, over 200 Pre-K-12 schools have participated. The weeklong series of events feature inclusion celebrations on campuses that vary from adaptive sports, Paralympic athlete presentations, to the arts and beyond. The organization has directly facilitated inclusion for over 2,500 students during those events. This initiative has parlayed into partnerships that expand mission impact through increased services, community/school donations, corporate sponsors, and much more.2024-2026: The organization developed Inclusive STEPS: an early childhood inclusion training program. The self-paced, online course gives educators tools to facilitate inclusive social/emotional learning through play, serving a growing population of young students with disabilities. The course was launched in August 2024 and has had over 200 participants engaged to date. Thanks to a partnership with Lakeshore Learning, educators can access interactive social/emotional learning toys and books. In addition, via a partnership with the Dell Pro Bono Grant Program, Dell employees created an outreach strategy that will allow the initiative to scale up statewide throughout California in 2026. With the guidance of key Board Members, Inclusive STEPS will be implemented throughout school districts and local education agencies via a Google Ad grant program, featured speaking engagements at conferences, and continued outreach.