The 123 Autism School, the specialized autistic private school in Lebanon, founded by Sarrita Trad and Bachir Sarkis, had to shut down amid a collapsing situation.
This unique school in Lebanon was providing therapeutic intervention and specialized attention to the kids, as well as special ABA therapy, which isn’t available in the country.
In a call with The961, Sarrita Trad confirmed “that the news regarding the closure is true. In fact, the school already closed.”
However, unlike the news that spread around this past week, the school didn’t shut down because of the fuel shortage, as Trad explained to us.
“The main reason behind the closure isn’t fuel shortage in specific. It’s the inability to make external transfers to the NECC for autism (The New England Center For Children),” she said.
The school had secured a three-year contract with the NECC in a joint venture, which had the center training the Lebanese staff and providing the school with the proper guides and techniques.
However, due to the inability of the school to transfer its dues, the contract was terminated.
“We are a private school but, for the past years, I’ve been trying to move the school from a private one to an NGO to be able to accept funds, but unfortunately the papers aren’t done yet,” Trad told us.
Trad is hoping to reopen in order to continue providing this unique educational service to Autistic children who have no other alternatives.
However, that could only happen if the banks in Lebanon release their firm capital control on money withdrawals and transfers; an imposed crisis that has been further crippling the Lebanese and causing more hardships.
“The school might open again if there’s an ability to pressure the bank to let us proceed with the external transferring process,” Trad said, “or if a big fundraiser happens.”
Sarrita Trad and Bachir Sarkis had established their specialized school in 2019 because of their son, who is autistic and needed a specialized institution that wasn’t available in the country.
They hence decided to work on opening an Autistic school for all other children in Lebanon.
“Now, he and all the other kids in the school are bound to stay at home after the closure,” Trad said, expressing all other parents’ concerns.
Before closing down, the school, like all other institutions in the country, was also suffering from the economic crisis, as prices skyrocketed and expenses became high.
The fuel shortage added to the hardships of the families as transportation became another difficult challenge to deal with.
The school has posted on social media that, despite being closed, they are “one phone call away” for any inquires, at 81/095465.
“Autism, or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), is a serious neurodevelopmental disorder that impairs the ability of the child to communicate and interact with others. It affects verbal and non-verbal communication and social interaction, which adversely affects the child’s educational performance. It may also cause restricted repetitive behaviors, interests, and activities.” ~ Mayo Clinic
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