Addressing needs of kids with disabilities
Like many of the programs in Welcome Back Summer, Evolve Coaching launched a summer program during COVID. “It was a real inflection point where a lot of needs came to light,” recalls Joe Farrell, co-founder and program director of Evolve Coaching. “And a lot of folks stepped up to meet those needs.”
Evolve Coaching supports the needs of neurodivergent individuals in our community through education, employment and the arts.
As Evolve Coaching’s summer program continued to adapt and evolve over the years, Farrell and his team kept talking about the ideal “Future Camp” they all envisioned. Finally, they decided the future was here, and the name stuck. Future Camp was born.
Operated on the campus of Winchester Thurston School in Shadyside, Future Camp offers two-week sessions that include classes in writing, filmmaking, visual and performing arts, animation and music. Many of the career artists brought in to teach and mentor the campers are neurodivergent learners themselves.
Farrell discusses the specific challenges summer months present for the students they serve. “Neurodivergent folks particularly rely and thrive on routine and consistency,” Farrell says. “For some kids, summer is the time to relax. But for our kids, that unstructured time can be very distressing.”
That isn’t to say the curriculum is rigid. Just the opposite. Every morning, campers can choose the discipline they want to explore and learn about that day.
In one wood-paneled room with plenty of natural light, three campers are sculpting various props that will be featured in an upcoming Future Camp film. Meanwhile in the writers’ room, last-minute revisions to the script are being hashed out.
A daily all-camp lunch-and-learn brings in working artists from Pittsburgh and beyond to discuss their careers. “There are so many jobs in the arts, more than anyone can imagine,” Farrell says. “Today may be the first time one of our campers has swung a hammer, but you know what? Maybe they’ll be building a set for Netflix in a few years.”
The curriculum and environment of Future Camp have been thoughtfully designed to be an affirming space for campers. “The world we live in is really built for the neurotypical mind,” Farrell says, “so we craft our spaces for the specific needs of neurodivergent folks, taking into account sensory sensitivities and the social anxiety that comes with meeting with new people.”
Leaders at Evolve Coaching describe it as a radical, person-centered approach. “Our goal is to help campers find their voices and gain skills both in the arts and beyond,” Farrell says.