Ski-hi Institute

 Logan     Utah

http://skihi.org     << Visit Website

Categories:  Children, Community Service, [ View All ]

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SKI-HI Institute Charity Profile

We are the SKI-HI Institute - a group of dedicated individuals whose goal it is to enhance the lives of young children with special needs, their families, and care givers. Our name is adapted from Sensory Impaired Home Intervention and is pronounced sky-high. "Sky high" is, for us, a destination of hope and fulfillment, supporting the family unit as they strive to meet the challenges and expectations for their child of differing abilities. Our training and services, begun in 1972, focus on early intervention and early childhood programming for infants and young children, ages birth to five, with hearing and vision impairments and other disabilities. We dedicate our work to encouraging discovery, learning, and the growth of self-esteem, thereby setting the stage for individuals with special needs to become able participants in society. The SKI-HI Institute is a unit of the College of Education's Department of Communicative Disorders and Deaf Education at Utah State University, Logan. Our outreach programs to Utah citizens, and to families and professionals in nearly all 50 states and Canada, are a vital asset to the university's role as the state's land-grant university. Utah State University is also a Carnegie I research university, and the SKI-HI Institute is a strong contributor to that ranking. We are one of three research units for human services within the College of Education - unique among colleges of education and universities in the scope of its research and development emphasis beyond traditional teacher training.

The Institute's primary purpose is to identify and respond to real needs of young children who are deaf/hard of hearing, blind/visually impaired, deafblind, multi-disabled, or who have any special needs. Our principles are based on recognizing the family as the most vital element of a child's development and understanding the home as the most natural of learning environments. Significantly, our scope has expanded to reach outside the home into children's day care and other natural settings.

Our innovative family-centered, home-based programs meet the unique needs of each child while providing valuable family support services. SKI-HI programs and educational materials are used by service providers, families and parents, early interventionists, paraeducators, teachers, child care providers, early childhood specialists, related service personnel, and others involved with young children who have special needs. Resource materials include delightful, user-friendly program manuals, videotapes, assessments, print materials, and much more. These materials are disseminated by HOPE, Inc. For more information on these materials, see Resources & Materials.
Many of the SKI-HI Institute programs are implemented throughout the United States and Canada via trainings which are conducted by national and local trainers. Training is available in the following program areas:

Deaf/Hard of Hearing (Projects: SKI-HI, Deaf Mentor, HELP, PREPARE)
Blind/Visually Impaired (Projects: VIISA, USU/Hadley Courses in Blindness)
Deafblind (Projects: FIPSE, SPARKLE, STRIPES, Preservice Training Program in Deafblindness)
Multidisabled Sensory Impaired (Project: INSITE)
All Special Needs (Projects: AHEAD, Child-to-Child, SEED)
Paraeducation (Projects: USU/Hadley Courses in Blindness, STRIPES, Preservice Training in Deafblindness)
Training Models, Strategies, Materials for Adult Learners
Grandparents of Children with Special Needs (HERITAGE)
More information about these and other projects can be found by selecting Projects. Additional information can also be found by selecting Outreach and Training. Testimonials from families and service providers supporting the effectiveness of the Institute's projects can be found by selecting Testimonials. The effectiveness of SKI-HI Institute trainings and materials are also evaluated. Select Map for a listing of states that use SKI-HI Institute projects. Our network of users is kept informed through a newsletter published three times a year. The most current issue can be accessed by selecting Newsletter.

The SKI-HI Institute, along with a national group of professionals working in the field of early home-based intervention for young children with special needs developed a non-profit, organization called AAHBEI (pronounced ah-bee). The American Association for Home-Based Early Interventionists provides practical, useful information to its membership through sponsored regional meetings, newsletters, and national satellite video conferences. For more information on this organization, select AAHBEI.

The mission of the SKI-HI Institute can be found by selecting Mission, a listing of staff members with their phone numbers and project assignments can be found by selecting Staff, and information about making contributions to support our training and services can be found by selecting Giving. To contact the SKI-HI Institute directly write, fax, or e-mail us