The Children's Charities Foundation Awards $15,000 Grant

May 06, 2009

The River School Receives $15,000 Grant from the Children's Charities Foundation

Washington, DC: The Children’s Charities Foundation has disbursed a generous $15,000 grant to The River School in support of scholarship funding for low-income children who live with hearing loss.

When appropriate educational and therapeutic support is available, children with hearing loss can achieve age-appropriate speech and language skills and achieve academically in mainstream school settings. Traditionally, deaf children have had the poorest literacy rates of any group. The cost to society of not treating childhood deafness involves careful analysis of long-term impacts on educational and vocational outcomes and the financial impact of providing supports (e.g., interpreters and assistive technologies) to allow equal access to deaf individuals under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The River School strengthens the health and welfare of children who live with hearing loss by offering an inclusive educational program that integrates students with hearing loss into a hearing world. The River School supports and strengthens families. Traditionally, many people with hearing loss need long-term services. Over the last nine years, The River School model has proven very successful: Once they leave The River School, most students with hearing loss go back to their neighborhood schools where they attend with no or minimal assistance.