Rana AkkadPhoto: From Facebook
A woman went from school to school to get her autistic child admitted. But no one offered her any hope. One by one, 22 schools turned her away. Today, that woman has set up a school for children with special needs so that others like her child don’t have to go through the same experience.
The name of this Syrian woman is Rana Akkad. She lives in Dubai. In an interview with Gulf News, she said, “Yes, my son Jad Atassi was turned away from 22 schools. I tried all kinds of cheap, prestigious, low-quality schools. I even wanted to put him in a center for children with special needs. But there he was physically lagging behind. He had some speech and behavioral problems, but no physical disabilities.”
Rana, who came to Dubai 22 years ago, said she noticed that when Jad was one and a half years old, he didn’t mix with anyone, didn’t look at anyone in the eye. He could say hello to his parents, say hello, and hold his dolls, but suddenly they were gone. He saw that sparkle of joy in his son’s eyes again when he opened a center for children with special needs like his own. But sadly, two years later, Jad died suddenly. He was 11 years old at the time.
Children happily coloring Photo: From Jad’s Inclusion Center’s Facebook
Standing up for their own needs
Talking about the events that happened after her son’s death, Rana said, “Even though we understood it ourselves, it was clinically said that Jad was suffering from autism. Gradually, the family adapted to this situation. But getting him admitted to school was a tough battle. Rana said, after being rejected 22 times, he finally got the chance to get admitted to the school, but the struggle that followed was no less tough.
The school where Jad was admitted was closed down by the authorities a few years later. Rana said, he always shared his experiences about the school with others. Rana recalled the beautiful times of the first few years. He said, “Jad got used to going to class with his shadow teachers. The children always kept him with them. They knew Jad, this boy could speak English, what innocent children’s thoughts. But after a few days, it was seen that they were no longer mixing with Jad. One day, I was returning from school with him. As I walked, I saw that he had stopped after a while. He didn’t look at me even when I called him. He was looking away. I followed his gaze and saw that all his friends were going to their other friend’s house in a car. I was dying to see the pain I saw in my son’s eyes that day.’
This was the moment when Rana decided that he had to do something for Jad and other children like Jad.
Jad’s Inclusion CenterPhoto: From Jad’s Inclusion Center’s Facebook
Building a Safe Space
Rana said, “I realized that this fight for admission to mainstream school is not really for Jad; rather, I am fighting to protect my self-respect. I learned that a mother can do anything for her child, but she cannot bribe or force other children to be her child’s friend. I realized that my fight was actually wrong. That’s when I decided that I had to build a safe space for my son.”
After four years of education, planning and preparation, Rana opened the ‘Modern Alternative Education’ center for children with special needs in October 2016. There were a total of 11 students there, including her son. But Jad was at the peak of depression at that time. This new environment brought a smile to his face. He found others like him as friends there.
It boosted his morale
Sadly, Jad died suddenly two years later. He was 11 years old at the time. Rana said that Jad’s death had nothing to do with autism. He slept normally that day, like any other day, but never woke up. It was Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, which is rare in adolescence. But Rana turned the grief of his son’s death into strength. He started the center with renewed enthusiasm. He changed the previous name to Jad’s Inclusion. (Jad’s Inclusion.)
Rana said, “My gratitude towards this center is endless. Even after losing Jad, I was able to continue it. I kept telling myself that Jad was an angel, he came only to create a place for children like him. And after that, he left. And that’s why I never thought of closing this center. On his 12th birthday, on January 31, 2019, I renamed the center from Modern Alternative Education to “Jad’s Inclusion” and that day I planted an olive tree on the campus in his memory.”
Jad Atasi. He died in his sleep in 2018. Photo: From Rana’s Facebook
What’s at the center
Rana said that the center is open from 8:30 am to 2:30 pm every Monday to Friday from September to July. They are taught basic subjects like math, English and science until 12 pm. After that, they are given decision-making skills and vocational training.
There is an opportunity to keep a maximum of 40 students at a time. The center’s goal is not to keep students here for a long time; rather, to integrate them into mainstream schools or jobs. And this is done through ASDAN and internship programs.
The specialty of this center is its small classrooms and teacher-to-student ratio. Each class has six to eight students and three to four staff members with them. There is a special educational needs teacher, an assistant teacher and at least one or two shadow teachers. Currently, there are 20 staff members against 25 children.
Talking about the eligibility criteria, Rana said, “This centre is for children who are struggling to fit in with the mainstream system. We assess the children free of charge. We then advise the parents to keep the children in the mainstream education system until the child is not traumatised.”
“We also advise many children to be sent to other centres that are less academically challenging than ours,” said Jad’s mother. “The special needs sector is wide. And there is definitely not a one-size-fits-all approach here,” said Rana. “Just because Jad wasn’t considered a good fit doesn’t mean the school was bad. They just couldn’t accommodate Jad’s abilities. Jad’s Inclusion Centre works with children whose disabilities are not so severe that they need a special centre. The centre aims to address the things that mainstream schools don’t have.”
