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Their feet did not leave the ground, but they took flight in so many ways.

Soaring confidence, rising self-esteem and rocketing social skills–students experienced all of this and more at Agility Camp, a brand new 6-week summer program.

Click here for video highlights from our YouTube channel.

In partnership with the school, this project was ran by volunteers from Agility Angels and, the stars of the show, their team of agility dogs.

Agility Angels is a 100% volunteer organization that partners individuals with autism, coaches and therapy dogs to improve motor movement, build social skills and foster confidence. (The title of this post is their awesome tagline!)

At the start of each session, a volunteer coach gave students a walk-through of the obstacle course. Students were shown when to give commands–like “jump,” “tunnel,” and “tire”–and how to lead the dog through the obstacles by hand signals and positioning.

When it came time for the real thing students started by offering a small treat to their dog to gain attention. Then they were off, dashing through the obstacles and re-routing the dog if any wrong turns were taken.

On the final day of Agility Camp students were presented with a certificate of completion and a t-shirt. They left with other more lasting take-aways, too.

Improved confidence, physical health and new friendships!

The school is tremendously grateful to all the volunteers and agility dogs from Agility Angels. Plans are in the works for future projects that will continue to put smiles on the faces of students in our community.

If you’d like to support the incredible mission of Agility Angels click here to make a donation…thanks!

The July, 2021 Autism Model School board meeting will take place Tuesday, July 20th, 2021 at 5:30pm.

The board will be meeting at the office of Mark Greenblatt at 7150 W. Central Ave Suite 100 Toledo, Ohio 43617.

The Public is invited to attend.

The next bold adventure has begun for Mary Walters, as she completed her last day of work at the Autism Model School on Wednesday, June 30th, 2021.

In addition to serving as director for more than two decades, Mary is also one of nine founding members of the school.

Launched in the late 90s, Multiple Options for Development and Educational Learning (MODEL, as it was known at the time) grew from a handful of students meeting in an old office building to more than 100 students, 18 classrooms & over 50 instructional staff.

The focus of Mary and the other founders, who were all parents of a child with autism, was to create a caring place for students to receive a personalized, evidence-based education. The success of Mary’s tireless efforts are evident in the school’s waiting list, which has topped 50 individuals for most of the program’s history.

Help us continue to brighten the lives of students by making a donation in honor of Mary’s incredible legacy. Thank you!

Mary captured some of her feelings upon retirement in a letter sent home to families.

“Because the school is in such terrific hands, I am particularly comfortable and happy with the transition taking place.”

She thanked and acknowledged the entire school community, including staff, students, families & board members.

“It has been my pleasure to work with all the students and families over the years to build and develop such a wonderful resource serving all our children.”

Joel Vidovic, who has been working in a leadership role a the school for 10 years, has assumed the role of director.

Joel’s background in behavior science and passion for providing life-changing programming for all students will build upon Mary’s successful leadership. In advance of becoming director on July 1st, 2021, Joel worked alongside Mary in a transition role for 3 months.

Mary had this to say about Joel in her letter.

“Joel has done an incredible job of overseeing the curriculum and programming, as well as being highly involved in administrative issues…he is more than ready to take over the operations at this time.”