My New Role at Collaborative Corner For Exceptional Children

Posted on by Amy Nielsen

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of interviewing Jessica Barisano, founder of the nonprofit organization Collaborative Corner for Exceptional Children on the Big Abilities podcast. I met Jessica when I needed special education advocacy representation for my son. She went above and beyond to help our family get our son’s IEP (Individualized Education Plan) goals to reflect his needs and also to help us find an appropriate educational setting. I am excited to announce that I will be joining Jessica and her team at Collaborative Corner.

What is Collaborative Corner?

Collaborative Corner for Exceptional Children is a nonprofit organization that in addition to special education advocacy, offers families impacted by disabilities access to top industry professionals in a variety of disciplines. Currently the panelists include the following experts:

  • Special Education Advocates
  • Speech Language Pathologists
  • Board Certified Behavior Analysts
  • Feeding Specialists
  • Special Education Teachers
  • Occupational Therapists
  • Physical Therapists
  • Registered Behavior Technicians
  • Licensed Clinical Social Workers
  • Parent Advocates
  • Early Intervention Specialists
  • Hearing Loss Specialists

Parents can email panelists directly to ask questions free of charge and usually receive a response within 24 hours.

How Can Collaborative Corner Help Your Family?

In addition to special education advocacy and access to top industry professionals here are some other services Collaborative Corner offers to families at no charge:

  • Family Support Groups
  • An active blog featuring highly valuable content related to the issues our families are currently experiencing.
  • A directory of resources that has gone through the scrutiny of our panelists to ensure they are accurate, informative and up-to-date.
  • A safe place to get your questions answered and guidance and direction to finding the best resources for your loved one from trusted experts who truly care.

My Role at Collaborative Corner

I will be serving as a Parent Advocate and as the Early Intervention Specialist at Collaborative Corner for Exceptional Children. As Parent Advocate I am here to support the caregiver in any way they need. One of those ways, is a weekly virtual meetup on Friday’s at 10:00 am called Coffee Talk.

As Early Intervention Specialist, I help families from initial concerns about their child not reaching developmental milestones within the expected time frame, to connecting them with the professionals who can conduct early evaluations and then bridging that gap from diagnosis to starting services for the child.

Where Can you Find Collaborative Corner?

You can find Collaborative Corner at www.collaborativecorner.org You can also follow them on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn. To learn more about Jessica and the backstory of what led her to creating Collaborative Corner for Exceptional Children check out our chat on the Big Abilities podcast. To learn more about my role at Collaborative Corner read “Collaborative Corner Announces New Panelists Erica Clark and Amy Nielsen.”

My interview with Jessica Barisano.

It is my hope that, together, we can provide the families of children with exceptional needs a sense of community and understanding; and in addition, arm them with an abundance of credible resources, all in one place. – Jessica Barisano, founder of Collaborative Corner for Exceptional Children

Published by

Amy Nielsen

Amy Nielsen is a former children's librarian of nearly twenty years. She now spends most of her time obsessively pounding on a keyboard. She is the author of It Takes a Village: How to Build a Support System for Your Exceptional Needs Family, Goldilocks and the Three Bears: Understanding Autism Spectrum Disorder. Her upcoming YA Worth it debuts in May of 2024. She is also a freelance writer for The Autism Helper. When she's not writing, she and her family are most likely crusing the waters of Tampa Bay.