Statements

Mission

Since 1989, TNSTEP has provided vital support and advocacy training to families with children and youth receiving or eligible for special education services in Tennessee. The non-profit organization serves as Tennessee's only Parent Training and Information Center (PTI) and provides free training, workshops, Individualized Education Plan (IEP) review and strategy, and other resources to families, youth, and those who work with them through more than 100,000 contacts each year.

TNSTEP also provides self-advocacy and transition planning training and resources directly to teens and young adults who are making decisions about higher education, careers, living arrangements, independence, and other considerations that come with adulthood that are often more complex for people with disabilities.

In addition to supporting families and youth directly, TNSTEP offers training and up-to-date information on how to best support students with disabilities at school to medical professionals, educators, and School Resource Officers.

TNSTEP's Mission is to serve families of children and youth, young adults, and those who are involved in their lives. We provide accurate, timely, and relevant information and training related to special education rights, equal access to quality education, and connections to community resources. We believe that parents and caregivers are their children's best advocates and that youth with disabilities should be self-advocates. We know that families and youth who are informed, empowered, and engaged can effectively collaborate as part of a team for services and support that will lead to improved outcomes and success in life.

TNSTEP's vision is to ensure a brighter future for children and youth in Tennessee, with an emphasis on those with disabilities, special health care needs, and mental health needs.

Background

Over 30 years ago, the need for information and training for parents of children with disabilities was a concern of the board of The Arc of Tennessee. The board acted on that need and a grant was written to become a Parent Training and Information Center (PTI). The program has been continually funded since that time and in subsequent years became independent of The Arc of Tennessee and now resides with Support & Training for Exceptional Parents, Inc. (STEP, Inc. DBA TNSTEP), which holds multiple grants all focused on empowering parents and youth, to ensure a brighter future for children and youth with disabilities in Tennessee.

TNSTEP, Inc. provides training, information, and connections to community resources to parents and family members who have children and youth with disabilities, special health care needs, and mental health needs. The organization does this through:

•Early Childhood Support and Training
TNSTEP reaches families early, when they are often the most vulnerable, after having received news that their child may have special needs. We support families of young children by providing workshops with information on the rights of infants and toddlers to high-quality educational services and supports, and how to ensure a smooth transition from TEIS services to services provided through the local school district.

•Special Education Support
TNSTEP's services are designed to assist families of children and youth ages birth through age 26. Some main tenants of our work that families, disability organizations, and others who work with youth have come to rely on include * Training on IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) and 504 rights, *Equipping families and youth to be effective advocates through IEP and 504 review and strategy planning, and *Assistance in writing measurable goals and using data to make informed decisions to ensure children and youth receive equal access to high-quality education.

•Youth Transition Services
TNSTEP offers support to youth with disabilities as they begin planning for the transition from high school to adult life, beginning at age 14. Through workshops and one-on-one mentorship, youth identify higher education, community programs, careers, housing, and income opportunities available to them based on the type of diploma they receive. STEP Up To Plate youth program was launched to support and expand this mission.

•Professional Development to medical professionals, educators, and SROs

Impact

TNSTEP significantly changes the lives of children, youth, and families who experience disability for the better. While we provide a variety of services, our top priority is helping parents learn to advocate for their children receiving special education services in Tennessee and extending that same support and training directly to the youth, as they begin their journey towards independence and adult life.

TNSTEP Reach in 2022 - 2023
• Individual Assistance to Parents/Youth: 83,430
• Parent Workshop and Webinar Participants: 391,230
• Youth Transition Workshop and Webinar Participants: 3,021
• Website Views: 116,324
• Social media reach: 688,292
• Information Packets Distributed to Individuals: 221,691
• Individuals Received Imperative Special Education Updates: 194,963
• School Districts Receiving Services: 7

TNSTEP 2021-2022 Highlights
•Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion: TNSTEP's Family Equity Advisory Team (FEAT), comprised of staff and board members, reviewed and updated internal and external policies, procedures, practices, and programs to ensure the organization is being racially, culturally, and linguistically available to all populations across Tennessee. The FEAT team participated in quarterly DEI professional development and launched a social media campaign focused on the need for TNSTEP's proactive commitment to advancing equity and inclusion for ALL students in Tennessee. TNSTEP leadership serves on national DEI committees and provides training in this area to other organizations.

•Youth Development, Youth Led: STEP Up To The Plate (SUTP) 2.0 is underway and helping young people with disabilities plan for their lives after high school and gain invaluable experience and friendships with peers along the way. This statewide program for youth with disabilities has grown exponentially in the past year. In addition to recruiting and enlisting a new youth council and providing them with a 7-month curriculum of growth and social activities with peers, one-on-one transition planning, and advocacy project opportunities, TNSTEP launched its youth-transition-focused social platforms @tnstepyouth, and took the TNSTEP Youth Tour to one school district per region in Tennessee to talk with students receiving IEPs and 504 plans about self-advocacy, transition resources, and the SUTP council.

Needs

As Tennessee's only Parent Training and Information Center, TNSTEP serves thousands of families and youth each year, yet we know there are so many others who need our support who may not be aware of our services. As we seek to spread awareness and reach of our organization's services, we also strive to:
•Grow, support, and retain our staff by offering fair market salaries they need to stay with TNSTEP so that their needs are met, and we can use their expertise in this very specific field of working with families of children with disabilities. This is a significant need.
•Increase our donor base and unrestricted income to expand our services and become less reliant on federal and state funding
•Expand our outreach to youth with disabilities through our STEP Up To The Plate Youth Program and TNSTEP's transition to adult life services
•Continue building our Safe & Supportive Schools/Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) training program for parents, educators, and School Resource Officers
•Develop an accessible and inclusive website that that is more compatible with screen reading programs and translates information and resources in 4 languages that best represent the populations we serve
•Purchase updated technology and software to enable our team to be more effective

CEO Statement

I'm sure that you have heard the term "unprecedented time" enough over the past months to last you for your lifetime. TNSTEP truly has an "unprecedented TEAM". Each member compliments the other and our data show the incredible reach of this very small but effective team. The majority of the TNSTEP team are parents of children with disabilities or have a disability themselves. We know firsthand how hard it is to navigate education, health care, and social services for our children and young adults, all while working and taking care of our own physical and mental health needs. We do not want any family in Tennessee to feel they are alone in this journey or to not have access to the support they need for their children to become successful, happy, included members of their community. Our team members show up, even in hard times, with the attitude that we WILL be here to provide the training and support families need.

Service Categories
Primary Category:	Youth Development  - Youth Development Programs
Secondary Category:	Human Services  - Children's and Youth Services
Tertiary Category:	Education  - Special Education

Areas Served

TN - Tennessee (Entire State)