Redwood’s Board of Trustees made history on Tuesday night when they approved a plan to expand Redwood’s Services by opening a satellite location in Hebron, Kentucky.
Redwood has been providing all of its services out of their current location in Fort Mitchell for 50 years. Program expansions over the years have resulted in periodic additions onto the original building. However, Redwood is now operating at full capacity.
There is very little space within the existing facility to add staff or expand services. Making another addition to its 86,000-square-foot facility in Fort Mitchell is no longer realistic or desirable.
The Boone County site will primarily house the Early Care and Education program.
In this program, Redwood will provide childcare and preschool for more than 60 children with and without disabilities annually. Embedded in this program is Prescribed Pediatric Extended Care (PPEC), which helps children with special health care needs stabilize and improve their health while benefiting from typical childhood experiences.
PPEC allows Redwood to serve children with disabilities or medical fragility who could not be realistically served in a typical childcare center due to Redwood’s onsite nursing staff.
Redwood’s mission is to guide children and adults with severe and multiple disabilities to achieve independence and to reach their highest potential by providing enriching educational, therapeutic, and vocational services.
Redwood empowers children and adults to flourish, prosper and achieve the quality of life they deserve.
The organization offers the most comprehensive range of rehabilitation services and range of ages served in Greater Cincinnati / Northern Kentucky, serving more than 750 individuals a year in their Fort Mitchell, Kentucky facility. Redwood is an accredited facility through CARF (Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities) and NAEYC (National Association for the Education of Young Children) helping children and adults with disabilities.
Boone County Judge Executive Gary Moore stated, “Redwood’s creation of a Boone County campus will enhance critical services to children and adults with severe and multiple disabilities. Since 1953, Redwood has been a staple of the Northern Kentucky region as a pioneer in the field of educational, therapeutic and vocational services and I am delighted to welcome them as they develop a permanent presence in Boone County, further enriching our wonderful community.“
Redwood Executive Director and CEO, John Francis, is excited about the opportunity to expand services. “Redwood wants to support our communities’ needs for goods and services, and we have been so fortunate to receive the strong support from our Board and key stakeholders in and around Boone County. We hope to start serving clients in August or September.”
Redwood’s Boone County Expansion Project means Boone County residents will have easier access to a high-quality program that must continuously meet rigorous standards. The Redwood Early Care and Education program is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children and has a 4-star rating (on a scale of 1-5) from the Kentucky All STARS, the state’s rating system, where programs are assessed on factors such as staff: child ratios; group size; and curriculum.
Even the lowest 1-star rating exceeds minimum licensure requirements. This places Redwood’s program in the top tier of early care centers in Kentucky.
The Boone County site will include office space for two Community Employment Supports specialists to help higher functioning adults with disabilities get and keep jobs in the community. Each employment specialist can serve approximately 25 clients at a time.
Redwood will also have space for at least one occupational or speech therapist on-site. However, the Early Care and Education program is the primary reason for, and focus of, the expansion.
Those interested in applying for services or seeking employment, may contact Redwood’s Fort Mitchell office at 859-331-0880 or visit the website.www.redwoodnky.org
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