Some STAT Clarification

Hi everyone!  Based on the discussion we had in class today, I just want to make sure everyone is clear on a couple facts about Southern Tier Alternative Therapies.

First, the Strides Program (that's the program that uses the speech producing technology we would be funding) is only a small portion of STAT.  Much like Thrifty Shopper is a specific program within the Rescue Mission and the preschool is a smaller portion of Mom's House, Strides is a program that is encompassed by STAT.  They have several other programs in addition to Strides and I encourage everyone to take a quick look at http://www.statinc.org/Programs.html for an overview of all the programs STAT currently offers.  I think we've all been using the terms Strides and STAT interchangeably and I apologize for not clarifying this earlier.

Next, I want to clarify the point about only eight children being enrolled.  As I said in class today, eight to twelve children are enrolled at a time in the 8-week Strides Program and everyone on the waitlist gets into the program eventually (it's a matter of when rather than if).  Many more children work one-on-one with the horses and speech pathologist and in the other programs STAT has listed on the website.  A direct quote from their application (which is also restated on their website) reads: "We started in 2007 providing 12 families with 20 weeks each of program.  Today, we provide no cost services and proprietary programs to 200+ families each year."  They are based in Binghamton, but their programs span a "12-county region" and they serve individuals with "Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Down Syndrome, Muscular Dystrophy, visual impairments, cognitive and physical challenges, learning disabilities, hearing impairments, traumatic brain injuries, emotional disabilities, PTSD, paralysis, Multiple Sclerosis, sensory integration issues, ADHD, various developmental disabilities, emotional or physical trauma, and others."  Their Strides Program does target children, but they are more than willing to help teenagers and adults in other capacities.

Finally, I wanted to mention that the funding cuts they experienced came from their major funder simply because the United Way had less money to distribute to Broome and Tioga Counties for 2014-2015.  They are still receiving funds from the Hidy Ochiai Foundation, from their sponsored golf tournaments, and from their smaller fundraisers.  Based on the numbers given on their application, STAT itself has other funding sources, but I only saw the budget for the Strides Program specifically.

If there are any further questions or clarifications needed, please don't hesitate to ask.  I felt like there was quite a bit of confusion when discussing pros and cons in class today, and I think this should help clear some of that up.  I encourage everyone to take a look at the websites (and even the applications) for all of our finalists before Tuesday so that we can eliminate any lasting confusion and make the best decisions possible.  Have a nice weekend!