Fortezza is a non-profit corporation, called “Corporation for the Rehabilitation and Education of the Disabled,” which is aimed at people who have various relationship and communication disorders, as well as cognition and motor skills.
Its action began in 2002 when a group of parents needed a space where children who had different learning needs and who required specific care and treatment (speech therapy, kinesiology and psychopedagogy on a persistent basis to achieve progress) could be cared for. They met and began to work on this project, which managed to open its doors in March 2003 with an enrollment of 7 children. Over time, the Fortezza Center has grown in infrastructure, teaching materials and therapeutic care, and today, it provides educational and clinical therapeutic support to 27 children from La Serena and Coquimbo.
In 2023, Corporación Fortezza was awarded the Descúbreme Fund with the “Connection for Rehabilitation” project, whose main objective was to encourage and enhance communication in children, young people and adults with disabilities to connect with their environment, allowing them to acquire significant learning in a equality and enhance their autonomy, respecting their self-determination and individuality.
Connection for Rehabilitation
In this regard, María Fernanda Leyton, Early Childhood Educator, Differential Educator and director of the Fortezza Center pointed out that: “This project seeks to ensure that our users can access their communication and learning process equally in relation to their peers, having the same opportunities for growth, recognition and well-being. We have been able to develop this through the use of ICTs, which allow them to learn according to their interests and respecting their different times. These technologies also allow them to communicate through different software that facilitates the communication process of children, young people and adults.”
And he added: “One of the first steps we implemented after receiving the Discover Me Fund was education for parents and future professionals in the occupational therapy career, through training,” since environmental education is essential to achieve the goals.
