CARD News
Summer 2014
International Spotlight: Zemi Yenus Zemi Yenus, founder of the Joy Center for Children with Autism and Related Disorders in Ethiopia, recently visited CARD to learn more about research and treatment provided by Kennedy Krieger Institute. Ms. Yenus is the mother of an adult son with autism. While at CARD, she shared her story and talked about her experiences trying to find appropriate services for her child in Ethiopia. In 1999, Ms. Yenus actively assisted in introducing the country to autism and decided to open a center which would provide services for children with autism. Prior to this time, the public was not tolerant of children with disabilities. Many children were expelled from schools, and often parents of children with disabilities felt they had to hide their children or risk being cast off from society. In some cases, children were left at home, tied up with ropes in the dark while their parents went to work. In 2002, Ms. Yenus opened the first autism center in Ethiopia, the Joy Center, and provided care for four children. Currently, the center serves 80 children and has a waiting list of over 500. The Joy Center offers a variety of services, including diagnostic, behavioral, and educational assessment, as well as therapies, research, family support groups, and training. The center provides care for children ages 3 to 22, and focuses on teaching self help and social skills. Specialists and volunteers from around the world visit the Joy Center, which will soon be expanding to include a research center, a training facility, a guest house, and a therapy center. Last October, Ms. Yenus was one of the 100 women featured on the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) for her inspiring work to increase autism awareness and provide services for children with autism in Ethiopia. Due to her advocacy, the Melanie Pinkett-Davis, CARD clinical director; Zemi people of Ethiopia are now more aware of autism and its symptoms Yenus; Dr. Brenda Harris, CARD developmental pediatrician; Dr. Hanan Moussa, pediatrician visiting and additional facilities have opened to provide services to those from Egypt; and Tiffany Thomas-Brown, CARD with autism. In order to enhance the Joy Center, Ms. Yenus is clinical services coordinator hoping to hire more professionals and receive financial support. If you are interested in learning more about this incredible organization, please visit their website at ethioautism.org or check out their Facebook page.
New Train Set All aboard! We are excited about the new addition to our third floor waiting room! The train set was donated by Jenifer and Pranas Pauliukonis and their children, Max and Lucas, in honor of Pranas’s brother, Andy, who has autism.
CARD News
Summer 2014
Visit from Chinese Research Professionals CARD was recently honored to be visited by research professionals from China. These inspiring guests included directors of organizations, as well as professors affiliated with hospitals and universities. The China Women Development Foundation (CWDF) and All-China Women's Federation (ACWF) were represented by Hailiang Guo and Peijun Zhang, the director and co-director, respectively, of these important institutions. We were also honored to host Xiaobing Zou, MD, director of Child Developmental & Behavioral Center (CDBC), which is the third affiliated hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University; Professor Kun Xia, PhD, director of the State Key Lab of Medical Genetics at Central South University; Xiu Xu, MD, PhD, director of the Child Health Care department at Children's Hospital of Fudan University, and Xiaoyan Ke, MD, PhD, director of the Child Psychiatry department at Nanjing Brain Hospital. In addition, we also welcomed esteemed guest Professor Lijie Wu, PhD, professor in the department of Children and Adolescents Health and Maternal Care in the school of Public Health at Harbin Medical University. Our respected guests presented CARD with a jade medallion (image above) as a token of gratitude to CARD for hosting their visit.
Dr. Landa Receives 2014 SPHSC Distinguished Alumna Award Dr. Landa was recently named the University of Washington’s 2014 Speech and Hearing Sciences (SPHSC) Distinguished Alumna. This annual award is presented to an outstanding former graduate who continues to excel and innovate in the Speech and Hearing Sciences; Dr. Landa received her doctorate degree from the University of Washington.
Visit from Alpha Xi Delta Sorority This group of undergraduates are all members of the sorority Alpha Xi Delta. They have come from universities all across the country to complete a one-week internship focused on policy and autism. As part of their internship, they visited CARD to learn about the state-of-the-art work being done here. We wish each of these women great success as they pursue leadership roles in the field of autism.