LifeScape Live - June 2014

LIVE

2501 W. 26th St., Sioux Falls, SD 57105-2498

A Quarterly Publication for Families & Guardians of Those Supported by LifeScape June 2014

Quality KUDOS

•The children’s Residential Program (certified as an Intermediate Care Facility for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities or ICF) was recently reviewed by the federal Medicaid program (CMS) as well as the State of South Dakota’s Department of Human Services, for compliance with federal rules and state Administrative Rules. Both of these annual surveys were very successful! Thanks to the many people who have worked hard to ensure successful outcomes for the children and young adults supported in the Residential Program at our 26th Street location in Sioux Falls.

LifeScape Website and Social Media Update Our Marketing Department has been working hard on merging and updating our websites and social media sites. The new LifeScape website should be active later this summer. In the meantime, you will find a temporary landing page at www.LifeScapeSD.org. From there you can choose either the former Children’s Care website or former Achieve website to find information.

The former Children’s Care and South Dakota Achieve Facebook pages have been successfully merged and re-named as LifeScape. If you are on Facebook, please “like” our page. We are also on Twitter!

Follow us at @LifeScapeSD!

•LifeScape is a provider for the Family Support 360 waiver program in the Sioux Falls area, which is a state program that provides support to families who have children with special needs living at home. In a recent audit of our billing for this program, LifeScape received a perfect audit score of 100% - there were no billing errors during the audit period.

Our two Family 360 coordinators along with our staff who work “behind the scenes,” such as those in our accounting department, are equally important to providing quality in our services.

•Kudos to LifeScape adult Residential Services employees in Sioux Falls that manage the adult housing projects that are funded by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (or HUD housing as we usually say). Because of the special funding for these residences (we own and manage the properties, but HUD pays a portion of the rent for the people we support living in these homes), we are reviewed annually and receive a rating. Three HUD projects were recently reviewed, and all recieved superior scores.

Great job team!

•Accreditation Site Visit -The Council on Quality Leadership (CQL), a national accreditation agency, is spending the week of June 16th on-site at both our Western and 26th Street locations reviewing basic assurances related to all of the services offered

by LifeScape in our effort to have LifeScape nationally accredited. Children’s Care had initiated this accreditation prior to the affiliation. Achieve has been nationally accredited by CQL for the past 33 years, the longest of any organization in the nation.

Having all our services accredited through this organization will be quite an accomplishment, and will elevate the way we provide services.

Mission Statement

LifeScape is committed to promoting independence for children and adults with disabilities by providing specialized services, healthcare, community connections, and lifelong learning.

Values

Integrity • Compassion • Fiscal Responsibility • Collaborative Relationships • Excellence

Meet our Staff Jean Crowe, Vice President of Residential Services for Children and Adults In her role as Vice President of Residential Services, Jean Crowe has a goal to provide apartments to 26 people with severe autism and similar challenges for the Low Income Housing Project (LIH) by Spring 2015. She sees housing for this population as a critical need not being met elsewhere. Crowe joined the staff of South Dakota Achieve in January 2007. She has a BA degree from Mount Marty College in Yankton, South Dakota.

Her office is located at the 26th Street location in Sioux Falls, in the VanDeMark & Morrison Hall residential area. Her supervisor is Rick DiSanto, Vice President of Residential, Educational, and Employment Services. Others in her department include Kay Gollesch, Director of Residential Operations, and Liz DeBerg, Director of Residential Services.

Crowe provides leadership and oversight to all Residential Services at LifeScape. She is the Co-Chair of the Admissions Committee, Chair of the Safety Committee, and Member of the Public Transit Board of Directors. Crowe is married and has two grown children.

Crowe also has a goal to improve the city’s transportation challenges by working with Sioux Area Metro to find more alternative transportation for people going to and from work. She looks forward to working with the residential team and learning about children’s services, as this is her first opportunity to work with children in her professional career. She also hopes to continue to open homes and apartments for people who seek to further their independence and enrich their lives.

A Message from Anne Parents, Guardians, and Family members, We have been LifeScape for over 2 months now and so much has happened! I’m very proud of the work that has been accomplished to bring us together, as well as the wonderful work our employees do every day to ensure quality services are provided to the children and adults supported by LifeScape. I thought that sharing some of the highlights of the last couple months, as well as upcoming events, in a newsletter-type format might be appreciated. If you have any concern or questions about what’s happening at LifeScape – please contact me by phone or email, or drop by my office – I’m now located at the 26th Street location. My email is anne.mcfarland@lifescapesd.org and my direct line is 605.444.9515. My door is always open!

Upcoming Events July 12

LifeScape’s 5K Race with Family Wellness. This annual run/walk is for the whole family. All of the proceeds go to LifeScape! Register at www.allsportscentral.com.

July 22

LifeScape’s Big Cup Challenge Golf Tournament at Willow Run. Click on the Big Cup Challenge icon at www.achievesd.org or call 605-274-1355.

July 25-26

“Ascent” a mixed-ability theatrical production by LifeScape Center for the Arts and Flutter Productions. 7:30 pm both nights at the University of Sioux Falls Jeschke Fine Arts Center. Tickets $10 on sale July 7th at www.lifescapesd.org.

July 25-27

The 45th Annual Winner Elks Rodeo. Three nights of riding and roping to benefit outreach programs.

October 3 Anne Rieck McFarland, LifeScape CEO anne.mcfarland@achievesd.org 605-444-9515 2501 W. 26th St., Sioux Falls, SD 57105

GreenSTAR Symposium- A forum on creating better lives for people with disabilities. Register at www.achievesd.org. Early bird rate through August 15!

Students from LifeScape are participating in the Miracle League in Sioux Falls. Games are scheduled on most Tuesdays and Thursdays in June beginning at 6pm at Miracle Field. The Miracle League Picnic will be held at the Sertoma Park Shelter on June 29 from 4-6 pm.

www.LifeScapeSD.org

Thank you for giving us the opporunity to work with your family member!

Meet our Staff Robert Beringer, Vice Principal, Specialty School Robert Beringer was drawn to teach at Children’s Care because he felt that it was God’s purpose for him. Beringer, now Assistant Principal at LifeScape, has been with the organization since September 2006. He has bachelor’s degrees in Elementary and Special Education, a master’s in Special Education, and is currently enrolled in the Ed.S program for Education Administration at the University of Sioux Falls.

Beringer’s office is in the “little red schoolhouse area” in the Upper Education Department, where he oversees the day-to-day activities of the specialty school at 26th street, while providing insight and leadership to teachers and lead teaching assistants. His role is based on both creating relationships with educational staff and providing leadership through staff development and clinical oversight.

Originally from Rapid City, he knew from his junior year in high school that education was his passion. Beringer’s mother was in special education administration and his older sister is a teacher. His passion for teaching came from watching his mother come home from work always happy and in a good mood. His mother inspired him to be more and to serve others. This was the triggering factor to choose his profession, as he knew it would allow him to affect others in a way different career paths could not. Beringer married his wife, Becky, in October of 2006. They have two boys – Carter, 4 and Jasper, 3 months, and a dachshund named Curly Lambeau. They now live in Lennox, SD. Beringer believes the population that LifeScape serves is truly the 1% and therefore feels it just as important that LifeScape employs the top 1% of teachers, therapists and educational support staff in our school. “People from the ‘outside’ view us as leaders in our field, and I want to see us become leaders in every way imaginable”, says Beringer. He feels like the organization is well on its way to achieving that status with the level of organization wide training and support that is provided to our staff.