Jerusalem, Israel – The country’s youngest university, Ariel University, first started a special program six years ago to provide additional assistance for two of their students who had special needs. Today, the university has 30 students under the program, and has a string of success stories of students who have received assistance from them.
Dr. Dorit Ortal, Ariel University’s late president who had a granddaughter who was diagnosed with autism, led the initiative to set up the then-college’s program for students with special needs. The program aims to provide students with pervasive developmental disorder (PDD) the necessary skills needed for them to achieve their full potential.
The students in the program had mentors who provided them with assistance not only on academics, but also on basic life skills.
Since the students lived far from home in a dormitory, their mentors lived with them and gave them round-the-clock assistance. They were taught fundamental skills such as learning how to clean up and purchasing things at the supermarket.
Students at Ariel University’s special program are free to choose university courses of their liking; there are no limitations on the courses they are allowed to take.
Since the program has started, a number of its students have become a living testimony that catering properly to the students’ special needs can do wonders in helping them reach their full potential.
One of the first two students under the university’s special program is now nearly finished with his master’s degree in quantum physics; while the other student is pursuing an advanced degree in theoretical mathematics.
The original post on The Jerusalem Post website can be read here
Contributed by Althea Estrella Violeta