Basic Organization Information
Paws 4 Autism
- Physical Address:
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Lee's Summit, MO
64063
- EIN:
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27-3058379
- Web URL:
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www.paws4autism.org
- NTEE Category:
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D Animal related
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D60 Other Services
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G Disease, Disorders, Medical Disciplines
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G84 Autism
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B Educational Institutions
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B28 Specialized Education Institutions/Schools for Visually or Hearing Impaired, Learning Disabled
- Year Founded:
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2010
- Ruling Year:
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2011
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Mission Statement
Our vision is for all children on the autism spectrum and for those with spectrum behaviors to have access to specifically trained autism service and/or therapy dogs to assist with their peer interaction and improve social integration in their schools and communities.
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Impact Statement
Paws 4 Autism was created to assist children with Autism Spectrum Disorders connect with their peers and their communities through the use of autism service dogs. Our programs cover specific needs including the partial funding of a child’s service dog, training of teachers and staff in the child’s school, and the incorporation of trained social workers with autism service dogs as an added service to both public and private schools that demonstrate need for additional social skills integration for their students on the autism spectrum.
Revenue and Expenses
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Financial Statements
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Chief Executive
Kenneth Wible
Term:
Since
July
2010
Officers for Fiscal Year
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Highest Paid Employees & Their Compensation
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Program:
Community Outreach and Education
- Budget:
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$40,000
- Category:
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Animal-Related, General/Other
- Population Served:
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Other Named Groups
Program Description:
Paws 4 Autism staff and volunteer speakers are available to present assistance dog demonstrations for meetings and events throughout the region. A presentation can be done with or without a dog and can educate your guests about autism service dogs, disability awareness, assistance dogs and assistance dog etiquette. In addition, a Paws 4 Autism staff member will demonstrate some of the over 50 commands autism service dogs learn during their training.
In addition to our availability to present as guest speakers, staff and volunteers will help raise awareness and the need for autism service dogs in our community by having a greater public presence of our dogs in training.
Program Long-Term Success:
The use of autism service dogs in the treatment of spectrum disorders has been used for over five years, but is a relatively new concept here in the KC Metro. Our community education and outreach program will increase community awareness and understanding of the need for and benefits of autism service dogs for children with spectrum behaviors.
Program Short-Term Success:
Participants in our education and outreach seminars will leave with a greater understanding of what autism is and how service dogs can assist the children and families with whom they work.
Program Success Monitored by:
Participants will be requested to complete both a pre- and post-seminar survey to compare their perceptions on autism and autism service dogs. 80% or greater will leave with a more comprehensive understanding of the needs of autistic children.
Program Success Examples:
Mishel, a mother of a child with Asperger’s, found out about autism service dogs and their benefits through a support group meeting where we presented. She and her son are now in a training group for getting their own autism service dog. Her son used to have meltdowns multiple times a day. He is down to 2-3 meltdowns per week and does not yet have a full-time service dog.
Program:
Canine Assisted Social Skills In Education (CASSIE) Program
- Budget:
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--
- Category:
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Animal-Related, General/Other
- Population Served:
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Other Named Groups
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Children and Youth (infants - 19 years.)
Program Description:
Service Dogs for Classroom/Facility - These specially trained ADA compliant service animals are paired with autism specialists and/or special education teachers who specialize in working with children who have emotional or developmental disabilities.
Children with spectrum behaviors have a multitude of issues that they must cope with on a daily basis. Many are overwhelmed with sensory input, do not know how to interact appropriately with peers or authority figures, are easily frustrated and overwhelmed due to their lack of communication skills.
Empathy, moral conscience, respect and appropriate peer interactions are difficult at best to teach in a structured environment. Through the Paws 4 Autism Canine Assisted Social Skills In Education Program, service teams will work with the children on a one-to-one basis and/or in small group settings to focus on the skills needed to improve their ability to function appropriately in the school and community environments.
Program Long-Term Success:
Clients completing the CASSIE Program will have an increased ability to:
- socialize and communicate with family and peers;
- improve memory and recall;
- improve concentration and attention, and increase engagement;
- decrease manipulative behaviors;
- appropriately express feelings;
- reduce general anxiety;
- reduce abusive behavior;
- trust others; and
- demonstrate appropriate touch.
Program Short-Term Success:
Clients participating in the CASSIE Program will:
- practice teaching the animal something new;
- engage in play with the animal and other types of appropriate interactions;
- learn about and practice care, grooming and feeding of the animal;
- learn other information about the animal (breed, history, etc.);
- reminisce about the animal or past animals;
- remember and repeat information about the animal to others;
- take the animal for a supervised walk;
- receive and give appropriate affection and acceptance with the animal;
- discuss how animals may feel in certain situations;
- learn gentle ways to handle animals;
- follow a sequence of instructions with the animal;
- observe and discuss the animal's response to human behavior;
- interpret animal behavior as it happens; and
- generalize animal behavior to human circumstances.
Program Success Monitored by:
Through coordination with the Special Education Coordinators, Autism Specialists and the IEP team, individualized Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) based curriculum will be created for each child who has been recommended for the Paws 4 Autism's Canine Assisted Social Skills In Education Program by district staff.
The curricula and results will be tracked using the ReThink Autism Web-based Autism Treatment Platform (
www.rethinkautism.com). Full reporting and data will be available to evaluate the progress of each student and the program as a whole. Due to the nature of the reporting and tracking program, reports can be accessed at any time (ie: when needed for an IEP meeting) or during the periodic program review. The ReThink Autism website is fully secured and safeguards are in place to preserve confidentiality of students.
Program Success Examples:
This program will begin once sufficient funding has been acquired.
Funding Needs
- Donation of funds for purchase and training of an autism service facility dog to use for community outreach and education program
- Donation of funds for vehicle to transport large service dogs – Minivan or SUV preferred.
- Donation of funds to cover veterinary care services
- Donation of funds for dog food and supplements
- Donation of funds to cover training and seminars for volunteers
Request for In-Kind Contributions