Las Vegas Down syndrome self-advocacy program to expand nationwide

As part of her capstone project at Touro University of Nevada, Sara Gudiel crafted a curriculum to promote self-advocacy in individuals with Down syndrome.

The program was designed in collaboration with Gigi’s Playhouse Las Vegas, which offers free therapeutic and educational programs to individuals of all ages with Down syndrome, and will now be expanded to the playhouse’s 62 locations around the U.S. and Mexico.

For Gudiel, who graduated this month, this outcome exemplified why she decided to pursue occupational therapy in the first place.

“It felt like what I was doing was actually making an impact,” Gudiel said. “In the short amount of time you spend with individuals, you start to see such a big growth, and that’s so rewarding.”

Gudiel’s Empower program focuses on transitional readiness to address what she described as lack of support for individuals with Down syndrome when they are progressing from their teenage years into adulthood.

Throughout the six-week program, participants met once a week for hour-long sessions that were divided evenly between a lecture and activity. Each week focused on a different topic, from self-care and personal hygiene to leisure and self-advocacy.

Justine Chevalier, the site manager at Gigi’s Playhouse Las Vegas, said the organization frequently relies on capstone projects from occupational therapy students to develop new curriculum.

“The programs that capstone students come in and create are making our adults become extremely successful in a world where they might need a little more assistance,” Chevalier said.

The Empower program was a departure from what Gudiel initially imagined. When first brainstorming for her project, Gudiel wanted to focus on health literacy for immigrants and refugees. But when she was placed with Gigi’s Playhouse, Gudiel pivoted.

Gudiel said that working with Gigi’s Playhouse was the first time she had ever met an individual with Down syndrome, but she welcomed the opportunity to engage with the community.

In a presurvey of parents with Playhouse attendees, Gudiel learned many of them worry about a gap in education relating to self-advocacy and health management.

While she said the curriculum she developed is difficult, she hopes that participants still get something out of the program.

“I hope that they just gain a little bit,” Gudiel said. “I feel like you’re not gonna learn it all in the six weeks that I gave, but I definitely feel like it’s a start.”

For her part, Chevalier said it was invaluable to watch program participants at Gigi’s Playhouse more broadly feel empowered to build successful and “meaningful” lives.

Chevalier, whose daughter has Down syndrome, joined the organization in 2021 while they were working to open the location in Las Vegas. She added that she was immediately drawn to the organization when she initially met the startup team.

“It was the first time that I walked in somewhere and everyone said, ‘Congratulations,’” Chevalier said. “No one said they were sorry. No one looked at me and my family like they felt bad for us.”

Contact Sophie Baker at sbaker@reviewjournal.com.