Giving Back

Inside Choice Living Community

STRUCTURE AND SUPPORT FOR CONTINUED SPECIAL EDUCATION

BY: JACQUELINE GONZALEZ PHOTO BY: LILLIAN REITZ

Teaching is a work of heart, and when Dr. Jennifer Scott was working as a special education teacher in Houston, she noticed a lack of resources for adults with special abilities who had aged out of public education.

The lack of resources didn’t sit right with Scott, so while working on her doctoral degree, she began researching which area had the greatest need. This brought her to the Coastal Bend, and in 2019 she founded Choice Living Community, a day habilitation facility that delivers innovative and individualized programs to its clients, based on their needs.

Scott explained that the impetus for creating this facility was to give these adults the opportunity to be active in the community by supporting and advancing their vocational, social and life skills. Now, she has created a learning haven for anyone ranging from higher functioning special needs adults who can hold a job but need help with social skills to those who are non-verbal and need assistance with certain life skills.

To get involved with Choice Living Community, you can attend fundraising events, donate gift cards for groceries, visit its Amazon Wishlist and share the organization with others.

“When you come down and tour our center, you won’t see a standardized program,” says Scott. “You’ll see the individual and what they’re working on based on their needs. We even do barbecues and outdoor activities.”

The facility is located at the Annapolis Christian School campus, and it too has expanded its program in the special education arena. Coastal Bend residents have the option to send their children to The Rise School until the age of 6, followed by Annapolis until the age of 18, then transfer to Choice Living Community and continue to work toward achieving their maximum potential.

Since its inception, the facility continues to grow. Although the nonprofit was created in 2019, the pandemic halted the full opening until January of 2021. By August 2021, there were two clients, and now, it’s standing strong at 16.

Scott and her team are excited for what the future holds for Choice Living Community. They are proud of what they provide for their clients, but they would like to expand — not only to fill their facility with more clients, but also to include a residential component.

The center has monthly and yearly fundraisers, and every Thursday it hosts a Grounds for Success event when local businesses can come tour the facility and meet everyone. Scott guarantees, “Once you come and see what we’re doing and how we’re doing it, I promise you’ll fall in love with our organization.”

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