Mom asks Fort Worth Zoo to change summer camp policy to accommodate son with special needs
When Lo Farmer went to sign her 4-year-old son up for the Fort Worth Zoo’s annual summer camp, some website verbiage left her confused.
Farmer noticed the zoo’s website section on the camp’s inclusion and behavior policies said the program is “designed for children who can remain in a group setting without one-on-one assistance.”
Farmer, whose son has special needs and has his own one-on-one aide, contacted and had a meeting with the zoo’s education director about this, since she envisioned sending the aide to camp with her son.
However, Farmer said the zoo reiterated its policy that zoo employees would have in-house staff that could be with her son.
“I don’t feel comfortable leaving my son to be with aides who aren’t trained and aware of his specific needs,” Farmer told the Star-Telegram in a phone interview.
Farmer’s viral Instagram post
After meeting with the zoo, Farmer posted an Instagram video on March 11 about the experience. As of March 21, the video has been viewed more than 584,000 times.
In the video, Farmer mentions how other Texas zoos, including the Dallas, Houston and San Antonio zoos, allow outside aides to accompany campers. This is something she relayed to the Fort Worth Zoo in hopes that it would align with its fellow Texas zoos.
A spokesperson with the Dallas Zoo told the Star-Telegram in an email the zoo works with families to accommodate having a child’s one-on-one aide at summer camp, and have done it several times. Likewise, a Houston Zoo spokesperson told the Star-Telegram in an email that special arrangements can be made for a full-time care provider to accompany a child during its summer camp.
The San Antonio Zoo allows professional aides to accompany summer campers, since they do not have an applied behavior analysis therapist or special education teacher on staff, a spokesperson told the Star-Telegram in an email.
“I really thought if the leadership at the [Fort Worth] zoo saw what all of the other zoos were doing and how they were accommodating people in our community, they would say, ‘Oh my gosh, we had no idea. Yes, let’s work on this together,’” Farmer said.
Fort Worth Zoo’s response to Farmer
The Star-Telegram contacted the Fort Worth Zoo for comment in response to Farmer’s claims.
“We want every child to have the opportunity to experience zoo camp,” Fort Worth Zoo director of marketing and public relations Avery Elander said in an emailed statement. . “We understand that every child’s needs are different, and we regularly provide individualized accommodations for campers, which includes providing a qualified 1:1 aide, when requested, who is employed by the Fort Worth Zoo at our expense.”
Elander continued that the zoo has made a “tremendous investment” in its education team and that team’s training.
The zoo’s education team includes applied behavioral analysis professionals, four special education teachers and 21 certified schoolteachers. Elander said the team works with children of varying abilities daily and have experience teaching campers with autism.
“We have a 15-year history of providing such assistance and care,” Elander said. “In fact, in just the last two years we have welcomed and assisted nearly 300 campers with special needs of varying abilities, including 50 campers with autism.”
Zoo camper safety
Elander said the staff is also familiar with the “specific nuances” of operating an education program in a special setting like the zoo.
Elander said outside adults are not permitted to enter the camp to ensure campers’ safety. There are necessary safety protocols critical to maintaining the integrity of the program and ensuring the best possible experience for campers throughout the zoo’s 64-acre park, she said.
If there were a zoo-wide emergency, staff can access and navigate areas behind the scenes that do no interfere with animals, Elander said. Staff also know where designated quiet areas are around the zoo.
Elander said the zoo told Farmer on March 14 that it would be happy to facilitate another meeting between the camp director and a zoo aide with her and her son’s aide to make a tailored plan for his camp experience.
“We understand that this may not be her preferred solution, and we will always welcome the opportunity to re-evaluate the child’s readiness for camp with a Fort Worth Zoo aide in the future and look forward to hosting them at a later date,” Elander said.
Farmer comments back
Farmer confirmed that the zoo contacted her on March 14 and said she believes the zoo is trying, but they’re still at an impasse since they won’t allow her son’s aide to tag along at camp.
Farmer said the zoo is under the assumption that the accommodations they’re making are sufficient for her son. However, Farmer said that she and her son’s care team do not view them as reasonable.
What’s reasonable in Farmer’s mind is sending her son’s background-checked aide, who she is paying for, to accompany him to camp.
“I was very specific about the fact that his aide would not be interfering with the program, and was strictly there to shadow him and ensure his safety,” Farmer said.
Farmer said she doesn’t want to publicly peer pressure the zoo or make the zoo feel like she’s after them.
In fact, Farmer said she and her family are zoo members and live within walking distance of the campus. They’ve been to the zoo many times over the last few years, with her son and his aide.
Nevertheless, Farmer said she’s a member of the community the zoo serves and is telling them that things could be better. And she’s not alone. Farmer said she’s heard from “hundreds of moms” facing similar issues at other zoos.
At the end of the day, Farmer said she wants the Fort Worth Zoo to reflect accessibility standards that other Texas zoos already have in place, especially since the Fort Worth Zoo is a certified autism center and located just a couple miles from Cook Children’s Medical Center.
“If someone’s going to have to make changes, and someone’s going to have to be uncomfortable and someone’s going to have to adjust, why is it the 4-year-old with a sensory processing disorder?” Farmer said. “Why is it not the staff of the number one zoo in Texas?”
Farmer said she contacted the zoo on March 18 and presented ideas on how they could work together to update the policy. As of March 21, she is waiting to hear back.
This story was originally published March 21, 2025 at 2:26 PM.
