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Cornerstone Creates “Store” for Life Skills Practice
The “CornerStore” is officially open at our West Lafayette and Madison locations!
Clients can practice shopping, making decisions, counting money, understanding a budget and engaging socially with others. This includes asking store “employees” for help, finding items, asking for prices and much more. Their ABA therapist is there to guide them through these steps. The therapist can take on the role of the CornerStore “employee” when they are ready to check out their items.
Read the full blog post on our website by clicking here.
Fire Department Raises Funds for our Foundation
Fire Department Raises Funds for our FoundationSince 2018, the West Lafayette and Greenwood Fire Departments have wanted to raise autism awareness and give back to the community by donating to the Cornerstone Autism Foundation. This fundraiser each year takes place in April for Autism Awareness Month.
This year, the Greenwood Fire Department raised $350. They also wore a new design on their autism awareness shirts. The navy, red and white shirts were designed by Bryan Swift, Center Manager. The department was happy to wear these new shirts around the community.
Over 130 navy shirts were sold this year! We are so thankful to the fire department for supporting us and for the Cornerstone staff who purchased shirts as well.
New Playground at the Avon location
New Playground at the Avon locationThis month, the Avon location added a new playground to their fenced in outdoor area. Not only that, but they have a picnic table, a water table and a sensory sand table, too!
“The new playground is such a wonderful addition to the Avon location,” says Erica Bushnell, MA, BCBA. “The client’s love being able to get some fresh air and enjoy the new swings and slide!”
Thank you to these staff members for Maximizing Those Who Struggle, Embracing Those Who Love and Fulfilling Those Who Serve.
Aaron Gast, Therapist
I enjoy going to visit my friends and family. If I don’t go to see them, I like staying home and watching Hulu with my cat. I know now what I want to do with my life.
I plan to start my master’s degree in ABA therapy this fall!
My grandfather inspires me. He is the hardest working man I know. He supports me 100% of the time with my decisions. He checks on me all of the time to see how I am doing.
One of my favorite memories at Cornerstone is when a parent told me how thankful they were to have me work with their son. I felt so proud of myself in that moment!
Ashley Baldwin, Therapist
When first starting at Cornerstone, I was an intern for the Human Services capstone at Purdue University. After completing and graduating, I signed on as an employee. Currently, I am in the Master’s program at Ball State University for Applied Behavior Analysis. For personal goals/dreams, I hope to one day travel abroad for a backpacking trip and travel across the country in a campervan.
What inspires me is always striving for growth and improvement in all aspects of life. I recently came across the quote: “I don’t want to turn an autistic person into a non-autistic person. I want to help an autistic person who struggles become an autistic person who doesn’t struggle.” I am inspired daily watching past clients and others I haven’t had the opportunity to work with along with helping my own current clients master and achieve tasks to build a better quality of life.
My favorite recipe to make is Buffalo chicken dip with veggies and chips! The recipe can be found by clicking here. I usually add garlic and onion seasoning. Measure with your heart! Also it is great to just dump everything into a crockpot or instapot. My favorite thing about my job is the kids and my coworkers. I feel like it’s never a dull moment. My day isn’t the typical 8-4pm job of sitting at a desk, typing away on a computer. My day is always uniquely different and fast-paced. At the end of the day, I like to think of what the highlight of my day was. My favorite memories are usually the graduations I have attended. It gives me goosebumps to see them start a new, challenging yet exciting chapter in his or her life.
Victoria Johnson, Therapist
My dreams are to purchase a new car and go back to school. Since coming to Cornerstone, I have already achieved two dreams — passing my RBT exam and achieving the goals I challenged myself to for monthly evaluations.
My favorite quote is “live for the moment because everything else is uncertain.” My best advice I’ve ever received is to live each day in the moment because no one is promised tomorrow.
I enjoy working at Cornerstone for many reasons. I love that I’m able to be by my client’s side when they accomplish programs that they have been struggling with. The best moments are watching clients graduate!
Introduction to the Medicaid Waiver
Our blog highlights several basics of the Medicaid Waiver. For a copy of the necessary forms to apply for the Family Supports Medicaid Waiver, assistance in filling out the forms, or for questions, contact your local BDDS (Bureau of Developmental Disabilities Services) office by calling the appropriate office for your county, found at this link. Once forms are submitted, it takes about one year to receive approval. Learn more on our blog here.
Spring Signs
Spring SignsStephanie Dille-Huggins, BCBA and Sign Language Coordinator, covers several Spring ASL words you can use at home this season! Some of the signs include words such as grow, flower, grass and green. Watch the full Youtube video at this link.
Quick Guide to ABA: Positive versus Negative
Quick Guide to ABA: Positive versus NegativeHave you ever heard the words, “positive” or “negative” used within the field of ABA, but immediately thought positive meant “good” and negative meant “bad.” In ABA based therapy, this is not necessarily the case! Read our quick guide to understand this terminology more by clicking here: Positive vs Negative Quick Guide
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