The Children’s Institute Announces Partnership with The Giving Hope Network

The Children’s Institute and The Center for Independence have announced a new partnership with The Giving Hope Network and its Hear Me Now Project.

The partnership was announced at a special ceremony at The Children’s Institute in Livingston earlier this month when foundation representatives presented gifts of 20 iPads and 2 Mac minis to students from The Children’s Institute and adults from The Center for Independence in Livingston.  TCI matched the donation by purchasing 10 iPads for students in its high school and young adult programs. 

The Children’s Institute serves children from pre-school to age 21 on the autism spectrum on two campuses in Verona and Livingston. TCI’s Center for Independence, located on the Livingston campus, serves adults ages 21 and up on the autism spectrum. Both programs serve more than 260 individuals, making it one of the largest programs of its kind in New Jersey.

TCI Executive Director/Superintendent Bruce Ettinger thanked the Giving Hope Network for its generous donation, which will directly benefit students on the autism spectrum. Ettinger noted that TCI’s Center for Independence receives 75 percent less funding than TCI’s schools. “A critical need for our young adults is to enhance their communication skills and the iPad, which has many communication Apps, will provide a powerful tool to achieve that.”

“We appreciate you being our guardian angel,’’ Director of Development Diane Berry told foundation representatives at the ceremony at the TCI High School on January 16. “We look forward to a long-term relationship.”

“On behalf of the Giving Hope Network, we are proud to have TCI as our next partner,” said Bev Rosella, a Hear Me Now project member from Branchburg. “We are happy to be here.”

Rosella invited students to come up and accept the gifts from the foundation. Students from TCI’s High School, Young Adult Program and its Center for Independence program for adults enthusiastically opened the wrapped gifts of the iPads, cases and charging stations.

“This is a great opportunity to work with groundbreaking technology for people on the autism spectrum,” said TCI Film teacher David DiIanni, who was instrumental in arranging the donation. “The Giving Hope Network is a cutting edge organization. The foundation is looking for opportunities to make donations that get results.”

Other foundation representatives attending the event include Marybeth Lynch, Brian Cain, Moish Tov and Stella Kadatskaya and procurement lead Ted Neuberger.

The Giving Hope Network is a charity established to help disadvantaged youth and children with autism. The Network established its Hear Me Now project to create opportunities for young people to communicate and learn in ways that would not otherwise be possible, said Marybeth Lynch, a project member. “Our commitment is to transform the lives of  10,000 people on the autism spectrum through our Hear Me New Program!”

The Children’s Institute is the third partner school to work with the Giving Hope Network.