Our mission
We exist to fill the gap in quality inclusive early childhood education. Every child deserves to learn alongside their peers, regardless of disability status.
A system that says “no”
Across San Diego County, parents of children with developmental delays or disabilities encounter the same response when searching for childcare: “Sorry, we don't have the resources.” “Our staff isn't trained.” “No.”
The problem isn't a lack of love or good intentions—it's a systemic failure in how early childhood care is structured, staffed, and funded.
children in San Diego have developmental delays or disabilities
children under age 5 who may need additional support
more likely for parents of children with disabilities to leave the workforce
Care, broken into pieces
Even when families do find care, they face a fragmented system that treats education and therapy as separate domains. A child might attend a preschool in the morning, get pulled out for speech therapy across town, then travel to a separate clinic for occupational therapy.
This separate-setting model creates logistical burdens for families, disrupts the child's learning, and isolates therapeutic interventions from the social contexts where skills actually need to be applied.
Children end up spending hours in cars and waiting rooms instead of learning alongside peers. And they internalize a message: that their needs make them different, separate, other.
Care, education, therapy, and community under one roof
Includ(Ed) is building the first early childhood model in San Diego that gives all families—regardless of disability status—access to high-quality care, education, and therapeutic support in a single location.
Rather than forcing families to navigate a fragmented system of separate providers, Includ(Ed) integrates everything a child needs during the crucial early years into one cohesive environment.
Belonging starts here.
Six integrated components
The Includ(Ed) Center for Inclusive Teaching and Learning connects six interlocking elements.
Child Care
Full-day programming for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers in inclusive classrooms.
Early Childhood Education
Play-based, relationship-focused curriculum grounded in developmental science.
Disability Services
Embedded OT, PT, speech therapy, and music therapy delivered by licensed clinicians.
Family Support
Parent co-working, caregiver support groups, and sibling-inclusive spaces.
Professional Development
Training for external childcare providers on inclusive practices.
Community
A hub for connection—parent workshops, community events, and resource-sharing.
This integration is the core differentiator. No other provider in San Diego combines all six under one roof.
Embedded therapy: ending separate-room sessions
Traditional therapy models remove children from the classroom for clinical sessions in separate rooms or off-site facilities. This separate-setting approach creates a generalization gap—skills learned in a sterile clinical environment often fail to transfer to the dynamic, noisy reality of a classroom or playground.
Includ(Ed) uses an embedded therapy model. Speech-language pathologists, occupational therapists, physical therapists, and music therapists work directly in the classroom alongside educators. Therapy happens during circle time, lunch, art projects, and outdoor play—woven into the natural flow of the child's day.
Better skill transfer
Children practice communication during actual peer interactions, not simulated scenarios. Motor skills develop on real playground equipment, not clinical props.
Reduced stigma
Children aren't singled out or removed from their peers. Therapy becomes invisible—just another adult helping in the classroom.
Teacher capacity-building
Educators learn therapeutic strategies through daily collaboration with clinicians, building long-term institutional knowledge.
The social model of disability
Includ(Ed) rejects the medical-model approach that views disability as a deficit to be fixed. Instead, it operates from a social-model philosophy that focuses on removing environmental and attitudinal barriers to participation.
The goal is not to make children with disabilities “more normal.” The goal is to build environments where all children can thrive—and where typically developing children grow up understanding that human diversity is natural, not exceptional.
Join us in building inclusion
Whether you're a family seeking care, a professional looking to join our team, or a supporter who believes in our mission—there's a place for you at Includ(Ed).