UNC professor's camp for children who cannot speak featured in Disney+ documentary

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (WTVD) -- A UNC professor known for helping children with complex disabilities that leave them unable to rely on speech to be heard and understood is featured in a new Disney+ documentary as part of the People and Places: Shorts.

Dr. Karen Erickson, director of the Center for Literacy and Disability Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, co-founded Camp ALEC a sleepaway camp in Colorado for children who use speech-generating devices. The camp is now featured in the Disney+ documentary series "People & Places."

Camp ALEC serves children who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) devices to express themselves. These devices translate composed messages into audible speech, allowing children to communicate in ways that would otherwise be impossible.

"Many of the campers that come might have a few words that their family would understand or are really familiar listeners," Erickson said. "But that technology, combined with literacy skills, really takes them to that place of being able to communicate about whatever they want, whenever they want, with whomever they want."

Erickson launched the camp in 2014. She says watching former campers thrive is one of the most rewarding parts of her work. Some now travel the world to help others understand the importance of literacy and access to communication.

"The kids come to camp already using AAC, and then we focus on trying to figure out how to help them learn how to read and write better," Erickson said. "It's a really unique camp because it is a hands-on, intensive professional learning opportunity for educators and therapists, like speech-language pathologists and occupational therapists. But it's also a traditional sleepaway camp for a group of children, many of whom have never spent a night away from home before."

Erickson says Camp ALEC is one of many initiatives supporting children, educators, and families who use AAC devices, alongside open-source learning materials and resources offered through UNC's Center for Literacy and Disability Studies.

The documentary "Camp ALEC" is now streaming on Disney+.