TOLLESON, AZ, UNITED STATES, June 25, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards (IBCCES) proudly renews the City of Tolleson’s designation as a Certified Autism Center™ (CAC). To maintain this certification, at least 80% of community-facing city government staff completed autism and sensory training to ensure they have the knowledge, best practices, and skills needed to support and include autistic and sensory-sensitive community members and their families.
“Renewing our designation as a Certified Autism Center™ is a meaningful milestone for the City of Tolleson,” says Reyes Medrano Jr., city manager of the City of Tolleson. “It reflects our ongoing commitment to building a community where every resident and visitor feels welcomed, supported, and included. This achievement is not just about meeting standards—it’s about continuously improving how we serve individuals with autism and sensory sensitivities. We are proud to partner with IBCCES and remain dedicated to creating accessible experiences for all.”
Wendy Jackson, deputy city manager and employee resources director, says: “The training and certification provided through IBCCES have made a lasting impact across our city departments. Our staff are better equipped to recognize and respond to the diverse needs of individuals on the autism spectrum, which has strengthened the quality of service we provide every day. From parks and recreation to public-facing services, this initiative has helped us foster a more inclusive, understanding, and compassionate environment for our community.”
Since first becoming a Certified Autism Center™, the City of Tolleson continues to expand its commitment to accessibility and inclusion through new initiatives and enhanced accommodations across city services and events. All city employees complete annual autism and sensory awareness training to ensure staff remain knowledgeable and prepared to support residents and visitors of all abilities.
In addition to annual training efforts, the city implements more inclusive hiring practices by providing interview questions to applicants in advance, helping create a supportive and equitable interview experience for all candidates.
Tolleson’s Parks and Recreation Center also features a dedicated sensory room designed to provide a quiet, calming space for individuals who may need a break from overstimulating environments. The room includes books, blankets, noise-canceling headphones, and comfortable seating to help make visits more enjoyable and accessible.
To help visitors prepare for their experience, the Tolleson Library offers sensory guides, social stories, and other accessibility resources through its website. Information about available sensory-support tools and accommodations can also be found on the City’s website. Visit their Sensory Inclusion page to learn more: https://tollesonlibrary.org/243/Sensory-Inclusion.
The City also introduced a quiet room/sensory safe space at its Annual Tree Lighting Event and plans to continue incorporating sensory-friendly accommodations at future community events. Additionally, sensory boxes are available in City meeting rooms to further support individuals with sensory needs.
“The City of Tolleson continues to demonstrate that accessibility is an ongoing commitment, not a one-time achievement,” says Myron Pincomb, IBCCES board chairman. “By renewing its Certified Autism Center™ designation, the city is helping create more inclusive experiences and ensuring autistic and sensory-sensitive individuals feel supported throughout their interactions with city services.”
For 25 years, IBCCES has been a leader in providing autism, sensory and neurodiversity training and certification for professionals worldwide, including those in healthcare, education, public safety, travel, and corporate sectors. As the only credentialing board offering these programs, IBCCES provides training from subject matter experts and autistic self-advocates, along with long-term support, continuous learning, onsite reviews, and renewal requirements to ensure continued growth and lasting impact.
To further support inclusivity efforts, the City of Tolleson is featured on the IBCCES Accessibility App, which is free to download. This app provides individuals with a variety of disabilities real-time guidance on certified destinations, sensory-friendly spaces, and tailored recommendations. By connecting users to accessible locations worldwide, the app helps ensure seamless, enjoyable experiences for everyone.
IBCCES also provides access to resources such as AccessibilityCertified.com and AutismTravel.com, which are free online tools for families that list certified locations and professionals. Each organization listed on the site has met IBCCES certification requirements.
###
About the City of Tolleson
The City of Tolleson is a vibrant and diverse community located in the West Valley of the Phoenix metropolitan area. Committed to innovation, accessibility, and quality of life, Tolleson provides exceptional public services, inclusive programs, and community-centered initiatives for residents and visitors alike. As a Certified Autism Center™, the City prioritizes creating welcoming, supportive environments for individuals of all abilities through ongoing staff training, accessible resources, and inclusive experiences.
About IBCCES
Delivering the global standard for training and certification in the fields of autism, neurodiversity, and accessibility – IBCCES provides a series of certification programs that empower professionals to be industry leaders and improve the outcomes for the individuals they serve. For 25 years, IBCCES has been a global leader, setting the industry standard in autism and cognitive differences training. IBCCES works in over 125 countries and provides training in 8 languages, and its programs have been recognized around the world as the leading benchmark in training and certification.
In addition to individual certification programs, IBCCES partners with cities, destinations, and organizations on initiatives like the Certified Autism Destination™ (CAD) and Autism Certified City™ (ACC), ensuring autistic and sensory-sensitive residents and visitors feel welcomed and safe. Destinations that achieve the CAD designation have completed a specialized program that ensures a multitude of recreation, hospitality and entertainment organizations have completed an autism and sensory-sensitivity training, certification and IBCCES facilities review process. The ACC designation expands on that program and includes IBCCES training and certification for the public safety, education, healthcare and workplace sectors.
IBCCES also created the Accessibility App, AutismTravel.com, and AccessibilityCertified.com – free resources for individuals with a variety of neurodiversities and disabilities, listing certified locations and connecting individuals to other resources and each other.
Meredith Tekin
IBCCES
+1 904-508-0135
marketing@ibcces.org
Visit us on social media:
LinkedIn
Instagram
Facebook
X
Other
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
