I have had a 21-year personal relationship with those who have special needs [because of our son, adopted at birth]. I do not know what my husband and I, both eggheads, would have done without the practical and research-based wisdom of the VKC. Nicholas’s first VKC program was TRIAD, a place where we all learned how to live with structure, what to attend to, what to let go. We also learned that we were not alone and that the professionals at VKC were actively working to make my family’s and other families’ lives better. That matters when your child is nothing like any other child you know. But my child could do more….The VKC has showed us how another way is possible. That our children can and will have another way.

Robbie Pinter - Parent

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The VKC has become a home to my family in the few short years since my daughter’s birth. We’ve benefited in countless ways from its research, professional training (I was a LEND Family Trainee), workshops, and other community programs. I also have the opportunity to learn and give back to the Center as part of the Community Advisory Council and the Public Policy Committee. The VKC has been an incredible resource to me as a parent but has also been critical in my development as a professional, helping me to become a voice for other families through special education advocacy. From both perspectives, I cannot overstate the importance of the Center’s role in creating more meaningful and productive lives for people like my daughter, and I am proud to be part of an organization that continues to lead this charge both locally and nationally.

Christine Sartain - Parent, LEND Trainee, and Disability Advocate

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Recently a mother shared with me that over four decades ago she gave birth to a baby girl with Down syndrome. The medical staff and others strongly encouraged her to give her daughter over to an institution as it was the best option at the time. While in the hospital a social worker from the Kennedy Center discussed services and resources available to her if she chose to keep her child in her care. As a result of their conversation she decided to raise her child with the support of her family and this Center. This family is currently thriving in their community. To work somewhere that touches people’s lives on such an incredible level is an experience I am very fortunate to be part of.

Sarah Harvey - VKC Disability Professional

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My interests in language and communication by young children with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) began when I was a postdoctoral fellow at University of Kansas conducting a study of children with IDD who lived in a residential treatment center. At the same time, I was taking advanced courses in linguistics and child language. The combination of observing how these children and youth communicated (or did not communicate) and learning about theories of language acquisition prompted me to start a series of studies on early language intervention in natural environments. I am still interested in effective early interventions that can be delivered in natural environments to promote the best possible outcomes for children with disabilities and their families. I came to Vanderbilt in large part because of the research support and opportunities that the VKC offered. I saw membership in a center as a wonderful way to be involved in IDD research nationally, to have access to colleagues with similar interests, and to conduct my research in a context where it would be valued and supported. Over the years, the VKC has provided many practical supports for my projects. The VKC offers opportunities to collaborate with researchers on campus who have similar interests and to meet with outstanding researchers from all over the country who visit the VKC. The VKC core services assist me in recruiting children and families and staying in communication with the community.

Ann Kaiser, Ph.D. - Special Education and Psychology

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