Our daughter, who is now 10 years old, was born with cerebral palsy. We were told from the beginning there would be motor delays but of course no one could tell to what extent. We began the early intervention routine with physical, occupational and speech therapies. This "typical" routine resulted in very slow progress.

As I searched late one night on the internet just trying to understand and learn all I could about CP, I discovered Conductive Education. As I read multiple entries by parents of children who had experienced CE I found myself very intrigued and wanting to learn more about the program for children with motor disorders. After many emails and forum postings we decided to take Mackenzie to Dallas for a month long summer CE program. We were very impressed with the knowledge of the Conductors (teachers), the intensity of the daily routine, and the overall positive and encouraging atmosphere. Mackenzie began using her weaker hand much more, became toilet trained, began to sit alone for short periods of time, and overall had a new desire to be independent. We then had an opportunity to spend two and a half months in San Jose, California, attending their Conductive Education program. Again, we noticed the expertise of the Conductors as well as an overall program design that allowed for each child to progress at their own pace toward a common goal of independence. Mackenzie began sitting alone, standing with leg gators, she loved to sing in her own way, and was very driven by the group setting.

We then realized a move was in order to have Mackenzie in a full time CE program or we needed to at least attempt to start a school in Arkansas. In the summer of 2001 we ran a trial two month CE camp and we were very pleased with the response from parents as well as the progress our children made. In September 2001, we hired our first full time Conductor and moved into our permanent building in Springdale. In the spring of 2002 we formally became a division of United Cerebral Palsy of Arkansas.

In January 2006 we moved to a larger facility allowing us to open additional classroom space and serve even more children with motor disabilities. Today our classes are full of excited and determined boys and girls and we continue to grow every day to reach our highest potential of independence.

-Leslie Porter, Founder