APRIL 21 • 2022 | 35

O

n a daily basis, Stephanie 
Zoltowski is the special needs 
director at the Jewish Community 
Center in West Bloomfield, helping those 
with autism and other developmental and 
learning disabilities. That passion, though, 
doesn’t end with that role. 
Zoltowski has put her background in 
those areas to use for the past two years, 
starting a business that helps train first 
responders (police, fire departments, 
emergency medical services personnel and 
dispatchers) with strategies for situations 
in which they encounter the special needs 
population.
In just the past year with her busi-
ness, Spectrum Training Solutions LLC, 
Zoltowski has trained about 20 depart-
ments and 1,200 personnel in Michigan.
Zoltowski has worked with the special 
needs population for almost 20 years and is 
also a psychologist and former member of 
the military police.
It was during her time as a military 
police officer that she learned firsthand 
how vulnerable the special needs popula-
tion is and how important it is for them to 
get comfortable with first responders and 
vice versa.
“Both of these populations are really 
important to me, and I realized there’s 
such a disconnect between them and 
there wasn’t really a bridge between them,
” 
Zoltowski said. “So I thought it was a good 

opportunity to take my background and 
experience and education and connect the 
two.
”
The first department Zoltowski worked 
with was the West Bloomfield Police 
Department. After that session was well 
received, her services spread via word 
of mouth to other departments across 
Michigan. Over the last six months or so, 
Zoltowski has been invited 
to speak at some conferences 
about her work.
Zoltowski’s training sessions 
with the departments typically 
last four hours. 
“One of the things we talk 
about are myths vs. facts when 
it comes to special needs,
” she 
said. “We go over how to com-
municate with them effectively, some of 
the red flags and behaviors to look for, and 
some techniques when it comes to working 
with the non-verbal population.
” 
Of the departments Zoltowski has been 
working with, a lot of them are starting to 
incorporate sensory bags equipped with 
tools to help first responder personnel 
when they respond to someone with special 
needs. The bags contain items designed to 
help calm the individuals by providing a 
sense of comfort.
“Departments are having these in their 
patrol cars, and officers are starting to carry 
more tools and activities beneficial for this 

population because they learn differently 
and process information differently than 
neurotypical people do,
” Zoltowksi said. 
“By having these, they’re able to address the 
needs and challenges of the special needs 
population and maximize the effectiveness 
of that interaction with them.
”
Zoltwoski is seeing a cultural shift in how 
police officers are approaching situations 
with somebody that has special 
needs, a change close to her 
heart being so close to both 
populations. 
“
Autism is the fastest growing 
developmental disability in the 
United States. It’s diagnosed in 
one in 44 kids now. So this pop-
ulation is expanding in our soci-
ety, and it’s important officers 
get this training so they’re fully prepared 
and know what to expect and look for 
when they respond to a call from someone 
who has special needs,
” she said. 
Zoltowski feels good being able to train 
the first responders, especially with many 
reaching out afterwards informing her of 
situations where the training was helpful to 
them.
“Knowing they feel safer and more con-
fident responding to calls is really import-
ant to me,
” Zoltowski said. “
And it’s nice 
to see the special needs population being 
approached in the respectful way they 
deserve.
” 

JCC staffer trains first responders to better serve special needs population.
Helping to Serve and Protect

DANNY SCHWARTZ STAFF WRITER

Stephanie Zoltowski

LEFT: A police officer gets hands-on at one of Zoltownski’s training sessions. RIGHT: More than 1,200 first responders have 
completed her training