Newsletter
Volume 28 | 2005 | Number 1
Melmark: Expanding Life’s Options for Children
and Adults with Special Needs
by Bernadette R. McNulty, Ph.D.
Melmark, a comprehensive multi-service agency, provides residential, educational, therapeutic, and recreational services for children and adults with developmental disabilities. Our varied programs promote independence and increased self-awareness and confidence while offering opportunities for clients to make friends and develop personal interests. All programming occurs in the least restrictive environment possible. We are located just 18 miles west of Philadelphia, a two-hour drive from New York or Washington, DC.
Melmark utilizes state-of-the-art program models, educational methods, and therapeutic techniques. Along with our unique family emphasis that stems from a relatively small size, we remain committed to programmatic rigor for clients of every age and background. We differentiate programming according to clients’ ability and age, providing a multi-sensory stimulation program and hand-over-hand training for the most profoundly disabled; 24-hour nursing and in-residence programming for the most medically fragile; and speech, occupational, and physical therapy utilizing the latest advances in assistive technology and Hippotherapy. Other unique aspects of programming include animal-assisted activities, horseback riding, gardening, adaptive physical education, and a wide range of indoor and outdoor sports and recreation activities.
Children’s Services: Individualized, Collaborative Treatment Utilizing ABA Principles
The Melmark School, a Pennsylvania approved private school, offers day and residential special-education services to children and adolescents ages 5 to 21. Students face learning difficulties and/or challenging behaviors secondary to a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder; acquired brain injury; cerebral palsy; mental retardation, from mild to profound; or other neurological disorders. They require specialized education and training to address a wide range of multiple challenges, including developmental, physical, and learning disabilities. Many have AD/HD or serious behavior disorders; physical ailments such as seizures, asthma, diabetes, and heart disease; and psychological disorders such as anxiety and depression.
The school addresses each student’s multiple disabilities with personalized, innovative programming grounded in applied behavior analysis, collaborative clinical services, and functional curricula. Each student finds development and stimulation in his or her own manner, and we strive to reach them through state-of-the art computer technology; instruction in music, visual arts and performance; and the latest advances in therapeutic interventions. For those who are ready, we provide pre-vocational training and transition services.
The Melmark School’s residential option accommodates students at every phase of development. This program features a 24-hour learning model with high staff-to-student ratios. Individualized lessons, teaching methods, and goals remain consistent with day programming. Thus we ensure that students develop and practice essential self-care skills in the all the environments where they are used.
Well equipped for a variety of activities, Melmark facilities offer indoor and outdoor pools, a covered riding arena, gymnasium, multi-service recreation center, and an interactive playground. Students visit the surrounding community regularly for shopping, exercise, and entertainment.
In addition to our school, Melmark outpatient programs include consultation services for schools in the region that wish to collaborate with our master’s and doctoral-level behavior analysts to reduce students’ challenging behaviors. The ultimate goal is to increase learning opportunities for students, teachers, and families while serving children with learning or behavior challenges in the least restrictive community setting. Meanwhile, our Center for Adaptive Behavior, an outpatient clinic, provides assessments and treatment recommendations for children with significant problems at school and home.
Adult Services: Meaningful Work, Strong Relationships
Our adult programs ensure all participants learn, work, and build meaningful, independent lives. We accomplish this through careful evaluation of each person’s abilities and desires, focused skill enhancement, and ongoing support within workshops. We work to ensure that each person finds activities to match his or her abilities and preferences. With community inclusion a key component of all programming, adults volunteer for local churches and charitable organizations, help collect recycled goods, take frequent and varied field trips, and practice prevocational skills through shopping, banking, and using the public library.
Established in 1976 on our beautiful 77-acre campus, The Meadows at Melmark is an innovative, work-centered program for adults with mild-to-moderate disabilities. Participants live with friends in their staff-supervised homes, or in the community with their families. They perform creative, fulfilling work while enjoying a full range of social, recreational, and athletic activities.
For adults with a lower cognitive level or those who are non-ambulatory, Adult Day Workshop activities include multi-sensory stimulation, massage therapy, hand-over-hand training, and personal assistance. Workshops emphasize wellness, pre-vocational, daily-living, and communication skills. They also include varied enrichment activities to encourage social interactions and skill development. Additional services for adults include physical therapy, animal-assisted activities, campus employment, Special Olympics, and swimming.
Our adult residential program offers an array of alternatives for living on campus and in the community. This program engages leading therapeutic methods to assist individuals to achieve their maximum potential. Programs feature a strong multidisciplinary clinical team approach that focuses on individual strengths, interests, needs, and choices. We provide a range of medical and healthcare services at each site, including 24-hour nursing care on campus.
A History of Loving Care, Progressive Services
For 40 years, Melmark has remained at the forefront of services for individuals with special needs. Our warm and caring environment grew out of the love and leadership shown by two special parents, Paul and Mildred Krentel. In 1963, the Krentel’s sixth child was born with Down syndrome. On their doctor’s recommendation, they placed Melissa in a facility in Maumee, Ohio—but they were unhappy. They wanted their daughter to grow up in a home-like setting, with peers for playmates. Yet no such place could be found close to where they lived.
In 1966, they courageously sold their home and purchased a 35-room mansion in Berwyn, PA. They created a loving home for Melissa and her friends, christening it Melmark. In less than a year Melmark was providing loving care for 51 children. The unique program featured intensive staffing, nursing care, and special education classes. Residents enjoyed drama, music, and other activities emphasizing happy lifestyles.
In 1968, Melmark obtained private school licensing and began building classrooms; in 1972, a gymnasium and pool were added, along with three cottages to accommodate 45 more residents. Melmark was serving 130 residents and still growing. Throughout the mid-seventies and eighties, several freestanding homes were built on the campus, and programming was differentiated by age, ability, and healthcare needs.
In the nineties, Paul and “Miggy” Krentel retired and leadership transitioned to others. In 1996, Joanne Gillis-Donovan, Ph.D., joined Melmark’s team, and in 1997 was appointed President and CEO. Under Dr. Donovan’s leadership, Melmark programs widely diversified the populations they served, as well as how long and where they served them. In 1997, the first of a continuing series of community homes for adults opened.
In 1998, the agency celebrated the opening of Melmark New England, an approved private school in Woburn, MA. This program provides community-based educational, clinical, and residential services to students with autism, brain injury, and challenging behaviors.
Today, with a combined staff of 653 people in Pennsylvania and Massachusetts, Melmark serves 278 children and adults with a wide range of developmental disabilities. Staff also provide consultation to public schools in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey.
As one of the premier organizations in the country offering services to those with special needs, Melmark continues to encourage individuals to achieve their maximum potential through progressive clinical programs provided with loving care—just as it did in the very beginning.
A Staff of Professional Leaders: Opportunities
for Employment and Training
Our talented and renown clinical staff hold appointments at numerous universities in the Philadelphia and Boston regions, where they continue to develop their reputations as both scholars and clinicians. Melmark’s leadership supports and encourages its staff to pursue research projects and contribute to professional fields by pursuing research and training projects and publication and presentation opportunities. Our clinical staff members specialize in training and mentoring teachers and therapists in the field of special education, and we continually seek talented, enthusiastic professionals and students to join our team. Meanwhile, staff at entry-level positions are encouraged to continue their formal education and training by taking advantage of numerous Melmark-sponsored learning opportunities.
We offer opportunities for individuals with a variety of professional backgrounds, including: certified special education teachers; board-certified behavior analysts; licensed clinical psychologists; clinical social workers; licensed physical, occupational, and speech therapists and aides; certified nurse practitioners, registered nurses, and nursing aides; direct-care providers for classrooms and residences; and administrative support personnel.
In addition, training opportunities at Melmark provide undergraduates and graduate students with a chance to gain valuable experience in clinical settings tailored to an area of interest. Internships, practica, and student teaching assignments not only help students meet degree requirements, but also provide contacts and experience that can be invaluable when seeking employment or career advancement.
To be considered for an internship, simply mail or e-mail a completed application for employment, cover letter, resume, and three references to Stephen C. Luce, Ph.D., Vice President of Clinical Programming, Training, and Research. Most student teaching, internships, and practicum assignments are provided without reimbursement; however, in some rare cases where an intern provides essential functions, stipends or other compensation may be available.
This section of the newsletter introduces ABA’s new organizational members. Each new member has prepared a description of its work and services so that it can introduce itself to the larger ABA community. The inclusion of this material is not an endorsement, authorization, sponsorship or affiliation by ABA of these members or their work and services or of the content of the material they present.