MOVE International
1300 17th Street
CITY CENTRE
Bakersfield, CA 93301-4533 USA
800-397-MOVE(6683)
move-international@kern.org

MOVE International is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization. 

MISSION STATEMENT: MOVE International seeks to improve the overall quality of life for people with disabilities and for the people who care for them, regardless of age or cause of disability. MOVE International promotes fuller participation in home, school, work and community life to encourage the dignity and hope such participation brings to each individual.

The mission statement is founded in the belief that the ability to move is the first foundation stone in building personal dignity. 

The MOVE Program originated in the 1980s in the Kern County Superintendent of Schools,  Bakersfield, California.  The MOVE Program is now used in many school districts and other facilities/organizations throughout the United States and many other nations.


MOVE Quick Facts/Program Overviews (Children & Adults)/Other Information & Resources

MOVE (Mobility Opportunities Via Education)® helps children and MOVE (Mobility Opportunities Via Experience)® helps adults with disabilities. The MOVE Program serves all age groups from birth to death. The MOVE Program uses a individual/family-centered planning approach to develop mobility programs based on current theory and research in education, psychology, biomechanics, and motor science.

Quick Facts

MOVE Program Overview for Children

MOVE Program Overview for Adults

ELIGIBILITY FOR THE PROGRAM

Exclusion from the program is limited to those individuals whose medical needs contraindicate the need to sit, stand and walk. Access to medical consultation and/or physical therapy is needed for students who have the following conditions:

  • Head too large to be supported by the neck
  • Circulatory disease which prevents the participant from being placed in a vertical position
  • Respiratory distress
  • Brittle bones
  • Muscle contractures
  • Curvature or rotation of the spine
  • Hip dislocation
  • Foot or ankle abnormalities
  • Pain or discomfort in any part of the body

  • People with paralysis or degenerative neuromuscular diseases can continue to participate to improve bone and joint health for as long as it is medically feasible

    OTHER INFORMATION AND RESOURCES

    Before the MOVE Program
    1984 . . . A Cold Hard Look at the Blair Learning Center in Bakersfield, California

    How did MOVE start? Linda Bidabe, MOVE's founder, talks about how MOVE began in The Story of Tommy - Our Beginning.

    Patti LaBouff, a physical therapist & MOVE International Trainer, wrote an article of special interest to physical therapists and occupational therapists titled: Motor Control Theory, Intervention Approaches, and MOVE. From a teacher's perspective, we learn about MOVE®: How Does Mobility Help?

    How can I help get MOVE started in our school? Two MOVE International Trainers who are physical therapists give some very good information about Starting MOVE at your site. Some strategies are suggested in this letter To: Parents and Professionals Interested in Starting MOVE.

    Can MOVE be used with infant programs? Two papers, The MOVE® Process and its Impact in Early Years and MOVE® with Early Intervention will give you some good information.

    How does MOVE relate to Conductive Education or a Traditional Service Delivery Model? MOVE and Other Approaches - A Comparison and Description of the MOVE Program include descriptions of Conductive Education and traditional motor improvement programs.

     


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