Two key organizations on Eastern Michigan University’s campus will be closer than ever as the Fletcher School Building undergoes renovation, allowing for The Children’s Institute to move in by next fall.
The Autism Collaborative Center (ACC) already occupies Fletcher (on Cornell Road), but The Rackham Building, The Children’s Institute’s current location, will be needed for more academic purposes in upcoming semesters.
Both parties will share the building equally, as it has been divided in half. Construction to The Children’s Institute segment has already begun and will be move-in ready by the weekend after Aug. 15. The autism center’s half will then be restored and ready in September. All original classrooms will be restored to meet preschool safety standards.
Until then, the ACC will continue to adjust and offer services to families with Autism Spectrum Disorders throughout the summer.
“We have had to completely rearrange everything and work on consolidating into a smaller space,” Pamela Lemerand, director of the center, said.
Lemerand said usually 30-40 kids use the building 4-5 days a week. The summers are not as busy, but faculty is still taking extreme caution.
“The kids stay in a wing that is not affected by the construction process, so they’re not bothered by the dust, noise level and that sort of thing,” Lemerand said. “We let one child at a time enter the building.”
Teachers of the Children’s Institute are also adjusting.
“There are aspects of it [Rackham] that I’ll miss, but there are positive things to look forward to,” Wendy Fritz, a preschool teacher, said. “We’ll only be on one floor; it will be more secure.”
Lemerand is looking forward to the change as well, despite current difficulties with space.
“I think we’ll make it work well,” she said. “Having teachers and educational models from the Children’s Institute could actually be helpful to us with some of our kids.”
The Children’s Institute prepares EMU students to be early childhood education teachers by providing care and programs to the children (18 months to six years) of EMU students, faculty staff and surrounding communities. By using theoretical principles and evidence-based information with the collaboration of stakeholders, the Autism Center, opened in 2009, provides those with autism the skills for independent living.
