The Special Needs Education Resource Center:
A Pioneer in Special Needs Education
"I didn't know my child could learn until he came here."
Parent of child with developmental disabilities
In 1999 JF&CS partnered with Bet-Hana Jewish Teacher Training College in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine to develop the Special Needs Education Resource Center (ERC). JF&CS is responsible for administration of the project. Located at Bet-Hana Jewish Teacher Training College, the Special Needs Education Resource Center serves children with a variety of physical and mental disabilities and their families from pre-school through high school. These disabilities include cerebral palsy, autism, and other developmental disabilities; learning disabilities; failure to thrive; and complex healthcare needs.
But the Center is more than just a school for children with disabilities. It is also an after school tutoring center for children with learning needs who attend other schools; a family support, training, and referral center; and a teacher and student teacher training center. The Center also provides opportunities for adults, children, families, and organizations in the Boston area to participate in the revitalization of Jewish life in Dnepropetrovsk.
Since its inception, the Special Needs Education Resource Center has quickly become a unique and widely known resource for families and children with special needs in Ukraine and for the education and medical professionals who work with these children. Through their participation in community-wide events, the children, their families, and the Special Needs Education Resource Center are fostering disability awareness throughout the Jewish community of Dnepropetrovsk and the community at large.
"The Resource Center has attracted children who have never been educated anywhere else. We created a school with a new environment, and can proudly say that we are making a door to the surrounding world for them."
Tamara Olshanytska, Director of Bet-Hana Jewish Women's
Teacher Training College and Resource Center Coordinator
- We provide developmentally appropriate education, social services, and support to children with disabilities.
- We focus on the whole child and his or her academic, social, emotional, intellectual, and physical development in the context of family, community, and society.
- We believe that parents are partners. They are included as active members of the school team and are respected as teachers, experts, and advocates.
- We use a multidisciplinary approach including speech and physical therapy, art, and music with the integrated collaborative efforts of teachers and psychologists.
- We train tomorrow's teachers by introducing new special needs education training standards and providing student teacher opportunities at our center.
- We provide leadership in special needs advocacy and training by building a model for including children with disabilities more fully in their community and by enabling and empowering parents to advocate for their children in an emerging democracy.
- We are part of a worldwide movement to support the human rights of individuals with disabilities and to build an inclusive civil society where diversity is celebrated as strength.
On A Visit You Will Notice:
- Children actively and happily engaged in a wide variety of educational and therapeutic activities
- Parents and professionals collaborating to enhance children's development
- A variety of teacher-made and commercial curriculum materials
- A computer station bookmarked with important Internet sites to support work with children with disabilities
- A multimedia resource library with a variety of books, journals, and other materials for parents and professionals
- Artfully orchestrated teaching addressing group and individual learning objectives
- Student teachers learning about special needs education
- A child-centered, family-friendly environment
For more information, call 781-647-JFCS (5327) or email your questions via our contact us page.
