First Step, Inc. is a non-profit organization serving children and adults with developmental disabilities in Arkansas, with locations in Hot Springs, Malvern, Fordyce and Glenwood. This policy explains what information we collect through this website, why we collect it, and who we share it with.
1. Who we are
If you have a question about this policy, or about information we hold about you, contact us at sara.brown@fstep.org or write to First Step, Inc., PO Box 2440, Hot Springs, AR 71914.
2. Information you give us
Most of our forms ask only for what we need to reply to you: your name, email address, phone number, how you would prefer to be contacted, and whatever you choose to write in the message box. Our children’s enquiry form also asks your relationship to the child and the child’s age.
Two forms collect considerably more, because the programs they support require it:
- The REDI referral application asks for date of birth, gender, ethnicity, home address, Social Security number, guardianship details, government benefits received, education and employment history, and primary and secondary diagnoses, including mental health and medical conditions. It is signed by the applicant and, where applicable, a legal guardian.
- The household meals application accepts a completed form as a file upload.
We ask for this information only where a program requires it to determine eligibility. We do not sell it, and we do not use it for advertising.
3. Information collected automatically
When you visit this site, some information is collected by the services we use to keep it working and to understand how people find us.
- Google Analytics counts visits and shows us which pages people use. It sets the cookies _ga and _ga_2ESCRMGJ95.
- CallRail shows a phone number matched to how you reached the site, so we can tell which of our efforts help people find us. It sets the cookies calltrk_landing, calltrk_referrer and calltrk_session_id.
- Cloudflare and WP Engine host the site and protect it against automated attacks. They set the cookies __cf_bm and cf_clearance.
- Vimeo plays embedded video and sets its own cookies when a video loads. We use Vimeo’s do-not-track setting.
- CleanTalk checks form submissions for spam before they reach us.
We also record the page you arrived on and the site that referred you, so we can understand which pages are useful. You can clear or block these cookies in your browser; the site will still work, though our figures will be less accurate.
4. Phone calls
Calls to our main office number may be recorded and transcribed. We do this to review the quality of our service and to train our team. Before your call connects you will hear an announcement telling you so.
Recording is handled by CallRail, our call tracking provider, which also records the number you called from, the time of the call, and how you found us. Recordings and transcripts are used only for the purposes above.
Calls placed directly to our Malvern, Fordyce or Glenwood numbers do not pass through this system and are not recorded by it. If you would prefer your call not to be recorded, you can reach us on one of those numbers, or use the contact form on this website instead.
5. Who we share information with
We share information only with the service providers that help us run this site and respond to you:
- iProv, our website partner — general enquiry and newsletter submissions are copied to iProv so they can keep the forms working. Referral applications are not sent to iProv; they go only to First Step staff.
- Mailchimp — if you sign up for our newsletter or download the autism spectrum disorder guide, your name and email address are added to our mailing list. Every email we send includes an unsubscribe link.
- Google, CallRail, Cloudflare, WP Engine, Vimeo and CleanTalk — in the ways described in sections 3 and 4.
We do not sell personal information, and we do not share it with advertisers. We may disclose information where the law requires it, or to protect someone’s safety.
6. Children’s information
Because of the services we provide, some of the information we receive concerns children. It is given to us by a parent, guardian or referring professional, not collected from children directly. We do not knowingly collect information online from a child.
7. Your choices
- Ask us what information we hold about you, and ask us to correct or delete it.
- Unsubscribe from our emails using the link in any message.
- Refuse or clear cookies in your browser settings.
- Turn on your browser’s Do Not Track setting, which our embedded video player honors.
- Use our contact form, or call our Malvern, Fordyce or Glenwood numbers, if you would prefer not to be recorded.
To make any of these requests, contact us at sara.brown@fstep.org.
8. Changes to this policy
If we change how we collect or use information, we will update this page and change the date below.
Last updated: September 29, 2026
