SAU Tech to host ʻRocket Dayʼ for disabled students

CAMDEN — Southern Arkansas University Tech is hosting “Rocket Day” from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday on the main campus in East Camden.

The event is focused on providing a carnival for special needs students from area public schools. SAU Tech Honors students planned and are hosting the event. The College expects over 100 special needs children to be in attendance at the event. Jenny Sanders, Dean of Enrollment Services and Honors Program Director, said, “So often this population of children are left out of activities due to their unique needs and abilities. This event, all created and planned by SAU Tech students, is intended to be an environment where the children can enjoy themselves and have fun with games, crafts, a bouncy house and food.”

In 2010 the US Census reported that of Arkansas’s population of school-age children, 7.6 percent were disabled.

The majority of these families depend on public health funding such as Medicaid waivers to care for their children’s needs. Many children are on waiting lists for years to obtain these waivers which help cover the cost of caretakers and medical expenses. Even with the help of Medicaid Waivers, many needs often go unmet. SAU Tech is providing this event as an opportunity for its students to learn more about serving disabled children and to expand understanding and knowledge about the needs of this very special population. Learn more about the needs of Arkansas’s special children by going to http:// www.aradvocates.org.