Contact: Carol Brejot, carol@carolbrejotpr.com, 713-503-3885
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The Center for Pursuit and Social Motion, Inc. create “Center of Excellence” to serve those with autism and intellectual/developmental disabilities
HOUSTON, TX (April 30, 2021) – The Center for Pursuit (TCFP) and Social Motion, Inc. (SOMO) announce a strategic alliance to bring expanded autism and life span services for those with neurodiversity and intellectual and developmental disabilities in the Houston community through the “Center of Excellence.” Each organization will remain focused on serving its core clientele, while the alliance will allow expanded services to be provided to a broader range of clients.
The Center for Pursuit provides residential, day and employment services to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD), while Social Motion, Inc. is a non-profit that helps individuals with autism and similar special needs reach their full potential, offering a life path of solutions from childhood through adulthood. The alliance will realize synergies through shared services and other partnerships. Continued focus on social skills, employment readiness, job placement, independent living skills and a residential facility will remain top priority.
“We are excited to align with a well-known leader in the field of autism services to serve younger individuals and provide expanded focus on employment and residential options for neurodiverse individuals as we move into the new Harrisburg Boulevard facility in Houston’s East End,” says Charles C. Canton, CEO of The Center for Pursuit.
Wendy Dawson, founder of Social Motion Skills, notes that, “This alliance is a natural, synergistic fit between partners who want to create a “Center of Excellence” in Houston to support those with neurodiversity and developmental disabilities.”
As part of the collaboration, the Aspire Accessories workshop, founded by Denise Hazen and under the umbrella of Social Motion, will move to TCFP’s Harrisburg campus. There it will provide a modern and expanded workspace for the Aspire artisans, individuals with autism and other special needs who create, embellish and package quality home and accessory products, which are sold to customers in Texas and beyond.
The partnership between The Center for Pursuit and Social Motion, Inc. ensures program sustainability and growth opportunities, access to a state-of-the-art modern campus-style facility and the expansion of lifespan services through a strategic combination of programs. The “Center of Excellence” will:
- Expand comprehensive lifepath services for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and neurodevelopmental disabilities, including autism.
- Combine expertise of both entities to strengthen the provision of early intervention, transition, employment, residential and correlated, person-centered “wrap-around” services.
- Provide a trusted and credible all-in-one provider for clients and families.
Founded in 1950, The Center For Pursuit promotes the pursuit of choice, growth, and independence for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities though day, residential and employment services, as well as health and behavioral services. Social Motion, Inc. was founded in 2010 to inspire and empower individuals with autism and similar special needs to achieve their full potential. Aspire Accessories operates as an entrepreneurial workshop employing artisans with autism.
For more information, visit www.thecenterforpursuit.org, www.socialmotionskills.org and www.aspireaccessories.com.
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Link to photos here.
Photo caption: The Center for Pursuit (TCFP) and Social Motion, Inc. announce a strategic alliance to bring expanded autism and life span services for those with neurodiversity and intellectual and developmental disabilities in the Houston community through the “Center of Excellence.”
Photo credit: Social Motion, Inc. and The Center for Pursuit
Link to campus photos here.
Photo credit: Shannon O’Hara
About The Center for Pursuit
For more than six decades, The Center for Pursuit (The Center) has empowered individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) to live meaningful, dignified lives filled with opportunity. Through innovative programs and services in areas like employment training, community living, and day habilitation, we help our clients develop the skills and tools necessary to grow as individuals and participate fully in their community. Always growing and changing, The Center currently serves over 450 adults with I/DD in the Houston area. We tailor the support we provide to the varied needs of the people and families we serve. Each day, in each program, we witness breakthroughs, tender moments, and everyday victories that affirm our steadfast commitment to our guiding principles of choice, growth, and personal independence, and the humanity within us all.
About Social Motion, Inc./Aspire
Executive Director Wendy Dawson founded Houston-based nonprofit Social Motion, Inc. in 2010 for her stepson, to teach social and vocational skills to individuals with autism and similar developmental disorders. Denise Hazen founded Aspire Accessories in 2011 for her autistic son – providing social and job skills training and a sense of community to young adults with similar special needs. In 2016, Aspire became a program of Social Motion, and together these mothers lead a novel approach to social skills training and a path forward to allow neurodiverse individuals to achieve their full potential.