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SARC describes Paiute inclusive preschool and a $20,000 award to continue operations
Summary
Beatrice Orr of the Southwest Autism Research and Resource Center told the commission the Paiute community-school is an inclusive preschool serving children with and without autism (48 children in 2024–25; 32 with autism), staffed with registered behavior technicians and supervised by behavior analysts; SARC said it received $20,000 to support the Paiute campus.
Beatrice Orr, representing the Southwest Autism Research and Resource Center (SARC), briefed the Human Services Advisory Commission on Aug. 28 about SARC’s programs and the Paiute campus in Scottsdale.
Orr said SARC, established in 1997, combines research with direct services and has expanded to several campuses. She described the Paiute campus inclusive preschool as serving children with and without autism in the same classroom, staffed to provide applied behavior analysis. "Our Scottsdale location has four age-assigned classrooms," Orr said, and SARC staff the preschool at a 4:1 student-to-teacher ratio with registered behavior technicians and licensed behavior analysts supervising classrooms.
For the 2024–25 school year SARC reported serving 48 children at Paiute (32 with autism and 16 without), with 12 of those children living in Scottsdale and program staffing supported by 28–33 full-time positions. Orr told commissioners that SARC became a five-star Quality First-rated preschool and that the organization was awarded $20,000 for continued Paiute program operations for 2025.
Commissioners asked about research credentials, caregiver training and public-safety partnerships. Orr described a SARC research department that has developed virtual diagnostic models and said caregiver training (about five hours monthly) embeds safety and behavior goals; she also discussed a virtual-reality training program developed with Virtra to help police recognize and de-escalate encounters involving people on the autism spectrum.
Orr noted SARC’s broader service footprint — diagnostic services, community school programs and clinical hours — and said most of the organization’s revenue now comes from services and insurance authorizations rather than grants. She told the commission SARC uses outreach and word-of-mouth to recruit families and offers staff discounts and employee tuition assistance to help fill enrollment.
The commission thanked Orr for the presentation and asked staff to continue coordination where appropriate.
