PATHS Project Expands Support for Parents with Intellectual Disabilities

Nicole Rambeau and Kyle W. Beam

The Institute for Human Development continues to enhance support for individuals with disabilities through its innovative project, Providing Accessible Training and Home Support (PATHS) for Parents with Intellectual Disabilities. Funded by the Arizona Developmental Disabilities Planning Council, the PATHS Project seeks to increase access to high-quality parenting support for Arizona parents with intellectual disabilities (ID) who are raising children up to five years of age.

Approximately 4.1 million parents in the United States have a disability, with 1.6 million having a cognitive disability (1). To address the unique needs of these parents and their families, PATHS staff collaborate closely with home visiting programs across Arizona that provide parenting education and child development support through regular home visits by trained professionals.

Over the past year, the PATHS team has made significant progress, conducting 13 in-depth interviews with home visitors across Arizona to better understand how ID affects service delivery and identify potential barriers or opportunities for improvement. These interviews, along with input provided by a supervisor and parent advisory board, informed the development of a three-part training series designed to equip home visitors with the tools they need to work more effectively with parents with ID. Trainings covered foundational topics such as what intellectual disability is, common myths and challenges, and practical strategies for home visitors. Recordings and slideshows from the series are available under the “PATHS Presentations” tab on the project website.

To date, more than 50 home visitors and service providers have participated in the training sessions. A key focus this year has been on expanding outreach to professionals serving Arizona’s Indigenous communities. This includes a new partnership with Family Spirit, a national evidence-based home visiting program developed by the Center for Indigenous Health and Johns Hopkins University. This collaboration has helped reinforce culturally responsive, individualized support for Indigenous parents with ID.

Bringing unique and valuable perspectives to the training series, three parents with intellectual disabilities co-presented during each session held this fall, helping participants better understand the realities faced by parents with ID. These sessions received overwhelmingly positive feedback, and the PATHS team plans to continue integrating parent voices into all future presentations.

As part of its research component, the team is currently preparing a journal article based on interview data with Arizona home visitors.

Through research, training, and partnerships, the PATHS team continues to build the capacity of Arizona’s home visiting workforce to better support parents with intellectual disabilities. By offering practical tools, culturally responsive strategies, and parent perspectives, the project is making a difference for families across the state.

For more information, updates, and resources, visit the PATHS Project website.

1. Sonik, R. A., Parish, S. L., Mitra, M., & Nicholson, J. (2018). Parents with and without disabilities: Demographics, material hardship, and program participation. Review of Disability Studies: An International Journal, 14(4), 1–20. https://rdsjournal.org/index.php/journal/article/view/822