Community-based exercise programs for people with neurological diagnoses

The Arkansas Colleges of Health Education (ACHE) have built a community-centered model of care and learning through SHIFT.AR (Support, High‑intensity Functional Training, and Recreation), a community-based exercise program for people affected by neurological diagnoses. Originating as an ACHE research study in March 2022, the program has delivered more than 100 exercise classes and served over 60 participants in its first two years, demonstrating both community need and program feasibility. To sustain and expand this work, ACHE secured two grants: a Parkinson’s Foundation Community Grant of $10,000 (June 2024–June 2025) that will keep Parkinson’s-related exercise classes free, introduce occupational therapy–led art classes, and support Fort Smith’s only Parkinson’s Support Group (which meets ten times annually to provide education on nutrition, medication, mental health, speech, and related topics); and a Craig H. Neilsen Foundation Creating Opportunity & Independence Community Grant of $200,000 (October 2024–October 2026) to scale SHIFT.AR’s offerings for people impacted by spinal cord injury. Together, these awards enable the program to continue providing no‑cost group exercise sessions in Fort Smith and Central Arkansas, deliver online routines for up to 150 individuals, and broaden recreational programming to include arts, kayaking, cooking, and other activities that foster connection and purpose. The SHIFT.AR model emphasizes more than exercise alone: it intentionally integrates recreational and supportive elements to address holistic needs—physical, social, and psychosocial—of people living with Parkinson’s disease and spinal cord injury. ACHE’s School of Occupational Therapy will contribute therapeutic art classes acknowledging how Parkinson’s affects daily engagement, while the Parkinson’s Support Group will supply recurring, topic‑specific education and community connection. For students, SHIFT.AR provides high‑value experiential learning opportunities. Under the leadership of PT and OT faculty, students plan and run exercise sessions, adapt and modify activities for diverse functional abilities, and learn the practical, safety, and social dimensions of community rehabilitation. Faculty note that student involvement both enables program delivery and fosters an inclusion mindset as participants present with varied movement patterns, needs, and goals. The program’s scale and scope are unique nationally and that student contributions are essential to its existence. The grants therefore serve dual purposes: expanding access to rehabilitative and recreational services for people with neurological diagnoses across the River Valley and Arkansas, and creating authentic clinical education experiences that prepare future clinicians to deliver person‑centered, community‑based care. By sustaining free programming, broadening the range of recreational and supportive offerings, and extending reach through online routines, SHIFT.AR aims to enhance quality of life, increase social support and belonging, and provide meaningful training for students—positioning ACHE as a regional hub for inclusive, community‑driven rehabilitation for people affected by Parkinson’s disease and spinal cord injury.