Students at Gateway Academy are Twice-Exceptional, which means they are academically smart and are diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. They are bullied, teased, and humiliated in a traditional school setting. At Gateway, they are safe, heard, and supported. Our students have good hearts, great brains, and are the kindest, nicest kids you will ever meet! Gateway Academy is the only school in the State of Arizona that specializes in this pure population. The students were promised an adaptive playground, focusing on their sensory needs, but our benefactor backed out, AFTER he had given the go ahead to purchase the equipment! We are a small non-profit school, and do not have disposable funding to cover the cost of the playground equipment. We want to do the right thing, and live up to our promise to our students, as well as the company, who we owe $68,000. We have created a Legacy Project, where individuals can purchase one piece of playground equipment, and Gateway students will create a unique plaque in the donor(s) name(s), which will appear on the equipment. Individual donations of any amount will help move the project forward! The items in need and their cost is as follows: Cozy Dome - $3,600 - Achieved! The Cozy Dome offers kids a place to escape the hustle and bustle of a busy playground, take time by themselves or socialize together. Rhapsody Animato Metallophone - $3,800- Achieved! Larson Legacy Rhapsody Kettle Drum - $1,200 -Achieved! The Kettle Drum provides children with a very rich low tone. The Metallophone provides a full musical range of notes that children can explore alone or in small groups to learn to work together to make music. Roller Table - $9,600 The Roller Table is a favorite of many children that engages their arm muscles. The rollers provide a child with a unique tactile and auditory experience while the upper bars encourage children to build upper body strength and motor coordination to roll across the table. OmniSpin Spinner - $6,700 The OmniSpin Spinner is a great place for a group of children of all abilities to explore movement together. An updated version of the traditional merry-go-roung, the Spinner is designed so children can enjoy the rotation that comes from a merry-go-round experience. This element encourages social play as riders and pushers make this a fun vestibular experience. The Spinner helps children work their muscles, and work on motor planning and coordination through the proprioceptive receptors in their muscles and joints. We-Saw - $8,600 The We-Saw provides children with movement up and down in space. Children can find the just right movement experience by sitting in molded seats or on the center platform. The design allows for two children or a group of children to participate in the We-Saw experience. Swings - $2,400 - Achieved! Children have the opportunity to develop their vestibular system on the group of swings. This ensures that a group of children of all abilities can experience the thrill of swining. Garett Legacy Our playground has many opportunities for play for any child regardless of their medical diagnosis. Children will find their just right fit on this playground, as it is designed to support their physical, sensory and cognitive needs while it provides them with a world of fun to acquire new skills in all of these areas. It provides them with great space to work on their socialization and self-esteem, as they walk, run, roll, slide climb, swing and spin together at the Gateway Academy Playground! Your donation will impact every single one of our  wonderful 90 students, who love to swing, spin, twist, and turn, and your legacy will live on for years to come. Thank you in advance for helping our children!

Anonymous

Emily  kilby 

brad pringle

Amy Schauer

Joseph Lortie

Jeremy Killpack

Megan Shockro

Amber's Family 

JoAnne  Garrett

Erin Garrett

Kathy Leal

Jessica and Robert Wolfe

Terry and Mike Smith

Jim & Kay Phillips

siva talluri

Christopher Sewade

Linda Weiss

Autistic  Students Want to Play!

Autistic Students Want to Play!

Still $48,057 to go. Help us build momentum.