Capital Campaign
The Vista School enrolls students diagnosed with an Autistic Spectrum Disorder and whose symptoms require the intensive intervention provided by our program. During the 2006-07 school year, The Vista School’s old facility was stretched to the limit. Our ability to grow to meet the demands of the public school and parent communities was effectively curtailed by the lack of additional classroom space. Given the fragile nature of the children in need of our services and the critical need for children with autism to receive services without delay, Vista secured a lease for its new facility located on Cocoa Avenue in Hershey, PA which would meet its expansion needs for the next five years.
Vista’s new facility, 34,000 square feet in size, is capable of serving more than 72 children. The graph below shows Vista’s historic and anticipated growth in terms of students served by our program and illustrates why we are and will remain in need for additional space in which to serve our students.
The Cocoa Avenue facility, designed by Cornerstone Design Architects in Lancaster, PA, includes space dedicated as a pre-vocational training room, occupational therapy room, instructional labs, a fully equipped exercise room, and a cafeteria. The space was specifically designed with the needs and interests of Vista’s students in mind. From a state-of-the-art access control system to additional sound-proofing, we have endeavored to create the ideal environment in which our students can succeed.
While The Vista School’s operational costs are adequately met through government reimbursement, such funding cannot be used for capital improvements. The children served by our programs require a high staff-to-student ratio in order for their needs to be met, which in turn requires that school facilities be designed to accommodate a large number of employees. As mentioned above, Vista’s ability to expand the number of children served by its innovative programs is only limited by the capacity of its school facility. Vista relies on the generosity of contributors and charitable organizations to ensure that it has sufficient space in which to serve its students.
During the 2007-08 school year, The Vista School® launched a five year campaign to raise $500,000 for construction costs involved in designing our new facility with the special needs of our students in mind. Capital campaign gifts can me made as one-time contributions or can be paid over time as pledges.
To make a Capital Campaign gift, please send your contribution payable to The Vista School® to:
The Vista School® Capital Campaign
Attn: Jim Bouder, COO
1021 Springboard Drive
Hershey, PA 17033
To make a pledge, either download and complete the pledge form or contact Jim Bouder at (717) 583-5102 ext. 2012 or via email at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) to have a pledge form mailed to you.
