Melissa Kane

Special education curriculum developer.

She has worked with developmental disorders and knows sign language. Since she has knowledge of special needs she is developing a “disabilities guidebook” for Kenya and the US. It will cover all the disabilities that children Kupenda assists have with only two pages for a summary of each disability type. This will be geared specifically towards disability in Kenya and used to educate the Kenyan community as to the identification and causes of disabilities. It will include what can be done to help these children function in society. It will be translated into Swahili and distributed upon Kenyan review and completion. It will also be posted (in English) on the Kupenda website so people can gain a better understanding of disability in Kenya. She has been to Kenya and while there lead, with another volunteer, a two day workshop for special needs teachers. She picked up on Kenyan sign quickly and was able to communicate with the children. She will be assisting with future sign language guidance to special needs teachers in Kenya.