The Gordon Hartman Family Foundation has awarded OLLU $10,000 for Camp Unidos, a no-cost, two-week summer camp for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

Camp Unidos provides a recreational outlet tailored to the needs of boys and girls, ages 7 to 18, with ASD. The camp, to be held in the summer of 2020, empowers parents and caretakers with skills needed to help these children reach their potential.

The camp will be open to all participants diagnosed with ASD, with an emphasis that caters to the Latino community. As a bilingual resource, the camp will dismantle the language barrier that often keeps Spanish-speaking families within the ASD community from fully engaging with available resources.

Tony Bobadilla, PhD, assistant professor of social work and an expert on Autism research, applied for the Gordon Hartman Family Foundation grant. Camp Unidos will replicate another successful project, Camp Amigos, which Dr. Bobadilla started in El Paso.

Camp Unidos will be held primarily at OLLU. It will be organized and supervised by faculty, and largely facilitated by OLLU psychology, education, and social work students. Activities will include swimming, sports, arts and crafts, music, sensory activities, and more.