Family Support Services
provides a variety of resources for parents of children who are visually
impaired or blind. It includes a parent newsletter, semi-monthly parent
meetings (facilitated by a developmental psychology consultant and our Family
Resource Coordinator), and a parent information center supplied with journals,
child development books and videos for parent education. Our Family Resource
Coordinator is also instrumental in helping families access appropriate care
and/or identify funding sources to best support the educational growth and
success of their child. The newest addition to this program is our Parent
Hotline where parents can discuss questions or concerns 24-hours a day.
The
Outreach Program
provides specialized vision services that are not available in these geographic
areas and need to be provided for children between the ages of birth and three
years prior to their receiving services from their local school districts.
Anchor Center for Blind Children also provides:
 Consultation
Statewide
The Anchor Center's vision/orientation and mobility staff provide functional
vision assessment and consultation for children who are blind, birth through
five years, to families, medical personnel, and other educational programs
throughout the state, including BOCES (Boards of Cooperative Educational
Services), Community Centered Boards, and all school districts. Collaborative
consultation for curriculum planning is seen as a valuable resource.
Cooperation with Universities and Colleges
Anchor Center for Blind Children provides students the opportunity to intern or
make observational visits. Special consideration is made for accommodating
student teaching requests. Staff members are frequently called upon by
university professors to provide their expertise to graduate students in the
fields of special education or vision instruction.
Cooperation with Other Programs Serving Children with
Blindness
Inservice training for service providers working with young children who are
visually impaired occurs on a regular basis.
Resources
 Books,
tapes, toys, and educational materials are available as resources to both
parents and professionals. The HomePort newsletter contains current activities
of Anchor Center as well as relevant topics of consideration to families who
have young children with vision impairment.
Collaboration with School Districts/Special Education Programs
Joint evaluations and teacher participation in student conferences are
encouraged. Follow-up services are provided to assure easy transition of
students to or from the Anchor Center to other programs.
Neonatal Hospital Visits
 Anchor
Center for Blind Children is involved in newborn centers at local hospitals.
Visits by staff are made and parent support is offered while the baby, who has
vision impairment, remains hospitalized. Resources are provided and appropriate
referrals are made and services coordinated. Inservice training is available
for hospital staff.
Contributions to the Education of Young Children Who Are Blind
Anchor Center for Blind Children is actively involved in research studies,
developing curriculum, and utilizing innovative approaches for working with and
understanding children who are blind. Participation in "Project Prism: A
National Collaborative Study on the Early Development of Children with Visual
Impairments", a 5 year grant from the United States Department of Education,
administered through the University of Northern Colorado.
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