Bosnia – 2019
In 2019, our team traveled to the country’s capital city, Sarajevo, to work with a team of Bosnian professionals who have built a special education program from the ground up. Historically, children with disabilities in the country have been institutionalized and their families ostracized and excluded from educational opportunities.
The Bosnian Project, initially established by Bay Area speech-language pathologist & board-certified behavior analyst, Anna Krajican, uses a “train the trainer model” wherein professionals and parents in three main localities (Sarajevo, Zenica, and Tuzla) were assisted with supplies and professional training by an American team of speech language pathologists in 2010 & 2012. The following summer, one representative from each program was brought to the United States to observe, train, and learn more about evidence based practices, primarily related to working with children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. These professionals then returned to Bosnia and Herzegovina to implement these evidence based practices and provide services to populations previously barred from educational opportunities.
BRIGHT was proud to bring a multi-disciplinary team of professionals comprised of a speech-language pathologist/board certified behavior analyst, special education teacher/board certified music therapist, occupational therapist, and physical therapist to work at one of the first special education classrooms in the country, founded and run by Dzevida Sulejmanovic. There, we provided hands-on training in evidence based practices while working with an ever-growing range of children with special needs. We also provided desperately needed therapy materials and equipment that are out of reach for families and professionals without international connections. We are excited to assist some of the most driven professionals and families in the world, as we work together to grow their knowledge base and assist in changing stigmas related to having or working with children with disabilities.
