YouthBuild

YouthBuild McLean County — a school serving low-income youth and adolescents — is getting $180,000 through the Lowe’s Homegrants program to transform two acres of its “backyard” into a sanctuary for staff and students, complete with recreational space, garden plots and a goose habitat.

Bloomington-Normal schools and youth-serving organizations are increasingly working sensory therapy concepts into child development — through sensory rooms. These are spaces equipped with a variety of tactile, auditory, visual and even olfactory tools that provide stimulation to assist with social and emotional skills.

For 30 years YouthBuild McLean County has had a subtle influence on the area — often without recognition.

When Megan McClure and Amarion Cleveland attended public school, they felt the environment didn’t support their goals. Feeling out of place and…