This program will explore creativity through service. I plan to partner with the UNC Autism Society to write cards for adults for special needs for Valentine’s Day. Participants will split up into 5 groups and each writes 2 cards as well as bag candy to give to the home for autistic adults in Chapel Hill. After everyone is done, they will turn in their cards, and we will begin the next section of the program, The Great British Bakeoff. We will provide a premade cake for every team (5 teams total) and provide frosting. Their jobs will be to decorate the cake most creatively. In the end, the judges will judge the cakes and award one team the award of “Star Bakers!”. We will then break into a discussion about the inclusion of students who have special needs in our programs and how we can ensure that there are as few barriers as possible for getting people to participate in programs. I will provide program scenarios and we will go through as a group how the programs can be made more inclusive. I will use The Great British Bake Off as an example of an inclusive program because there are no financial barriers to participation.
