Massachusetts Autism Center to Open School in Abu Dhabi

The New England Center for Children Signs a Long-Term Agreement with the Health Authority of Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi, UAE – June 27 2007:  The New England Center for Children (NECC®), a school located in Southborough, Massachusetts serving children with autism, has signed a long-term agreement with The Health Authority – Abu Dhabi (HAAD). Under the terms of the agreement, the world leading Massachusetts-based institute will establish a comprehensive education program and other needed services for children and their families affected by Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD).  The signing ceremony took place at the Sea Palace in Abu Dhabi, in the presence of His Highness General Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Vincent Strully, Jr., Founder and Chief Executive Officer of NECC.

Later this year, NECC will open the first of eight initially planned classrooms where each child will receive intensive behavioral instruction based on Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA).  Over the next two years NECC will add the full spectrum of services that it provides in the USA including early assessment and intervention to achieve best possible outcomes, preschool programming, residential services for severe cases, family support services, professional training and development, and a research center to support clinical best practices in education and treatment. Initially, the program will be fully staffed with professionals from The New England Center for Children in the United States.  Over time, NECC will also train and qualify a number of nationals to provide services in Arabic.

After the signing, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan met with affected children, their parents, and supervisors attending the ceremony who thanked him for his tremendous personal engagement on their behalf.  After the moving encounters His Highness Sheikh Mohammed commented: “These children and their families deserve the best and most professional attention we can provide for them, and thanks to this agreement this will soon be available here at home in Abu Dhabi. This is a major step towards implementing the vision of His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE and Ruler of Abu Dhabi, to establish world-class facilities and services for all children with special needs within our country.” 

The ceremony was attended by the NECC leadership team and the US Ambassador.  The two signatories were H.E. Dr. Ahmed Mubarak Al Mazrouei, Chairman and CEO of The Health Authority - Abu Dhabi and Member of the Executive Council, and Mr. Vincent Strully, Jr.

Mr. Strully stated that “autism has become a major public health problem around the world.  For over 30 years, The New England Center for Children has provided state-of-the-art education and individualized treatment for children with autism dedicated to promoting their independence.  We look forward to working with children, parents and teachers in Abu Dhabi and transferring as much of our knowledge and experience as possible to bring out human potential and help create productive lives.”

"H.E. Dr. Ahmed Mubarak Al Mazrouei emphasized that this partnership is of great importance for the people of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.  “The Health Authority – Abu Dhabi is bringing another world-class partner to the Emirate.”

About The New England Center for Children

NECC® is an award winning non-profit organization serving over 350 students between the ages of 18 months and 22 years diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder.  Students receive education and treatment in a full range of research-based programs including preschool, home-based, residential, and academic programs in Massachusetts.  Founded in 1975 NECC has an annual operating budget of $40 million and has a staff of over 700.  NECC also operates model Partner Classrooms and provides consultation to 30 school districts.

NECC is the recipient of two national awards, one from the U.S. Department of Education and the other from the Society for the Advancement of Behavior Analysis. In the last 15 years, 690 full-time employees of NECC have received master’s degrees in one of three on-site graduate programs.  Approximately 500 of these now work with students with autism in public schools across the United States and around the world.   NECC faculty has made more than 692 conference presentations and has published 142 research articles in scientific journals.  NECC maintains strategic partnerships with UMASS Medical Center, Northeastern University, Simmons College, Western New England College and Boston’s Children’s Hospital.  For more information, visit www.necc.org.

About The Health Authority – Abu Dhabi

The Health Authority – Abu Dhabi is responsible for ensuring excellent quality healthcare for the people of the Emirate.  It defines the strategy for the health system, monitors and analyzes the health status of the population and performance of the system, shapes the regulatory framework for the health system, inspects against regulations and enforces standards, encourages adoption of world-class quality and performance targets by all providers of healthcare services, plans capacities and service levels, drives programmes to improve societal health, defines minimum standards for health service providers and health professionals, and regulates scope of services and premiums and reimbursement rates of providers and insurance payors.

For further information please contact:

New England Center for Children

Bethany McCann

Tel: 508 481-1015

Fax: 508-485-3421

E-mail: bmccann@necc.org

Health Authority – Abu Dhabi

Mohamed Hassan Nujumi

Tel: +971 2 4193 316

Fax: +971 2 4490 556

E-mail: mnujumi@gahs.ae