Children's Museum of the Arts, Inc.

The children's Museum of the Arts will implement an audience-informed professional development initiative for museum staff that will create a supportive and accessible museum environment for children with disabilities and their families. The "Art for All" project will combine several components, including: focus groups composed of children with disabilities and their families; staff training; a website with multimedia materials and a museum visitor guide for families that include children with disabilities, and an advisory group composed of professionals with expertise in occupational therapy, special education and museum accessibility, and parents. By equipping staff to design and implement programs that accommodate the needs of visitors of varying abilities, the museum will engage children with special needs and their families in making and learning about art, and encourage them to become participants in the museum community.