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Rise, Evolving with Your Help

The RISE Center’s innovative programs and facilities enhance learning for young children with special needs and their peers.

The RISE Center is a nationally recognized program that provides an early childhood education to enrich the lives of infants and preschoolers with and without special needs.

In October 2019, RISE broke ground on the addition of a state-of-the-art sensory suite. Construction was completed over the summer, and the space was occupied in Fall 2020. The suite includes an infant classroom, a multipurpose therapy room and a sensory room.

The new wing was made possible by the generosity of a College of Human Environmental Sciences’ graduate, Dana Garmany, whose family has developed an appreciation for RISE’s inclusive early childhood special education program. Garmany and his wife, Amanda, have a special needs grandson, Mason Ray Garmany, for whom this addition is named.

“We’re excited to see the RISE Center evolve and meet the needs of children in our community,” said Andi Gillen, director of UA’s RISE Center. “We will be able to serve more children with the addition of a new classroom, provide state-of-the-art therapy in the new sensory room and be creative with additional therapy options in the multipurpose therapy room.

Gillen adds, “The latest research in early intervention, child development and early childhood special education is guiding our decisions about what the children in our community need to reach their maximum potential.”

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