Stone Soup Group

Family support - designated family to family health information center and parent training and information center,helping provide families with comprehensive health-related information. Support is also provided through the short-term assistance and referral (ddrc) program, souper gaming name for children and teens and specific assistance mini-grants provided through the Alaska mental health trust authority. Star's goal is to eliminate or ease crisis situtations related to developmental disabilities by connecting families to all available state services. The mini-grant program provides opportunities for children and teens who experience developmental differences to socialize and have fun in safe and supportive environment.

Parent navigation clinics - with first hand knowledge of the programs and services available throughout the community, parent navigators assist families in finding their way through the overwhelming and complex issues that arise when caring for a child with special needs. They identify case- specific information, support, training and resources for each family. Parent navigators attend cleft lip and palate clinics held in fairbanks and anchorage that provide multidisciplinary assessment for children with cranio-facial disorders and neurodevelopmental disgnostic clinics held in hub communities around the state; the organization also receives direct referrals for families with newborns who have failed hearing screenings.

Parent training and information - designated parent training and information center (pti), helping to equip families with the tools necessary to understand the special education system, work with their local schools and educators, and advocate effectively for their children. School support ranges from personally accompanying parents to an individualized education program (iep) meeting to providing bullying prevention and iep training for parents and professionals.