Who is Unicorn Children's Foundation?
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Unicorn Children's Foundation is an international non-profit organization dedicated to children and young adults with developmental, communication, and learning disorders through education, awareness, and research so that they have every opportunity to lead productive and fulfilling lives.Unicorn Children’s Foundation was founded in 1994 by Mark Rosenbloom, MD shortly after his three year old son was diagnosed with a severe communication disorder. Up until that time, he had been told by numerous professionals that his son, who was not yet speaking, would "grow out of it." But he didn't.
As a result of one misdiagnosis after another, many months of valuable therapies and intervention were lost. Out of his pain and frustration, and a wish to provide hope for all families with children who suffer from a developmental, communication or learning disorder, Unicorn Children's foundation was born. Unicorn Children's Foundation’s key initiatives include: promoting early identification of symptoms associated with ADHD, autism, bipolar, dyslexia and other learning disorders; developing and disseminating worldwide ground-breaking and extensive evaluation and treatment guidelines; fostering communication and collaboration between parents, professionals and policy makers to promote learning and increased awareness; and to provide adequate tools and resources to better meet the needs of our beneficiaries. Fulfilling Our MissionA few of the most important variables in determining the prognosis of a child with a disability is how early the disabilities are identified and how early treatment is initiated. Unicorn Children's Foundation has several programs that help to raise awareness of these disorders and their early warning signs. Unicorn's Mobile Community Developmental Clinics, currently operated in partnership with University of Miami and Florida Atlantic University, provide developmental screenings and parent consultations at no charge to families in the community. Unicorn Children's Foundation presents various vehicles by which parents and professionals can remain aware of the earliest warning signs and effective treatment programs, such as: Unicorn’s website and Unicorn’s Dare to Dream Weekly Radio Show. We are in the process of creating an Alliance of Service Providers and Organizations to foster communication and collaboration across disciplines so that the gaps in services and programs in our community can be more readily identified.
Unicorn Children's Foundation supports several programs designed to develop and disseminate evaluation and treatment guidelines. Among these include: Unicorn Children's Foundation’s Endowed Chair at Nova Southeastern University; helping to establish the Interdisciplinary Council on Developmental and Learning Disorders; publishing of Clinical Practice Guidelines; and sponsoring a multi-year research program at York University evaluating treatment protocols. Unicorn Children's Foundation hosts annual conferences designed to bridge the gap between knowledge creation and implementation through the assembly of nationally recognized experts and local professionals in the field of neurodevelopmental disorders to share what the research has shown to be most effective in remediating difficulties that children affected may experience. |
"I chose the unicorn as the Foundation's symbol because it is a beautiful, powerful, mystical, loving yet lonely creature. Appearing in the Bible, as well as in Far Eastern religious literature, the unicorn is a symbol of profound good luck. It's horn was believed to have contained the cure for all human illness. This symbol inspires us to understand and overcome learning and communication disorders."
Mark Rosenbloom, MD, Chairman & Founder of Unicorn Children's Foundation |
