UW-Madison Supports Scholarship Fund for Children with Special Needs (WI UCEDD/WECP)

August 28, 2017

The Athletic Department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison designated the Waisman Center's Early Childhood Program as the recipient of proceeds from the Spring Football Game in April. Game receipts were directed towards the Scholarship Fund to provide tuition assistance for children enrolled in WECP, an inclusive program for children ages 1 through 5 located in the Waisman Center's UCEDD.

The WECP was established in 1979 through state legislation that designated a preschool for children with special needs at UW-Madison in the newly established Waisman Center. Currently, the program enrolls 80 children, one-third of whom have a disability or a special education need, and has an interdisciplinary staff that includes regular and early childhood special education teachers, as well as therapists.

WECP children, families and staff participated in several game-related events: a visit from team mascot Bucky Badger at school, a field trip to the Field House to meet the players, and lining up on game day as players entered the field. The event was an opportunity to publicize the importance of inclusion and to partner with the University to provide tuition assistance for families with children with special needs to access inclusive early education. (More information at: https://www.waisman.wisc.edu/news2017-spring-football-game.htm.)