Q – 1 : Please give our readers an introduction to The Focus Foundation. Please include what your business is all about, in which city you are located and if you have offices in multiple locations/ cities.
Ans: The Focus Foundation strives to increase awareness, identification, understanding and treatment of children with apraxia, dyslexia and x and y chromosomal disorders. This is accomplished by promoting scientific research related to these disorders. These conditions lead to language-based disabilities, motor planning deficits, reading dysfunction and attention and behavioral disorders.
- Through early identification we have been able to find not only syndrome-specific treatment but have identified biological treatment as well.
- The Focus Foundation helps these children by working with healthcare providers and parents first toward finding the proper diagnosis and then toward finding a special targeted treatment plan for each child. With the right intervention these children can perform better and school and become more confident, able and successful
- We are located near Annapolis, MD. We educate professionals throughout the US and abroad by attending and presenting at professional conferences. We have held conferences in Australia, the UK, and Italy.
Q – 2 : Please give us a brief description about yourself (it should include your brief educational or entrepreneurial background and list some of your major achievements).
- Ans: • I taught in Prince George’s County, MD for 30 years in grades 4 – 6. I earned numerous awards for teaching, worked on the science curriculum committee and was named Technology Educator of the Year.
- Upon retirement I worked for a local community newspaper and where I designed and published 4 pages for kids. I won the Newspaper in Education Award while in this employ.
- Dr. Carole Samango-Sprouse approached me to assist with her new venture to help these children. As an educator, I was excited to be part of the endeavor to finding treatments for children who had difficulties. Twenty years later, I continue to advocate to make significant changes for these children. I have seen them start as babies and go on to college.
Q – 3 : To what do you most attribute The Focus Foundation success?
Ans: The staff and professional team believe in the premise that all children can succeed. We are interested and committed to the families and children we meet. They can see we respect and are committed to their betterment.
Q – 4: Where did your organizations funding/capital come from and how did you go about getting it? How did you obtain investors for The Focus Foundation?
Ans: • Very difficult to find investors. When they hear ”sex chromosome disorder” they think only “sex” and do not want anyone to know.
- We received our initial start up from a parent whose son has 47,XXY and started to see us when he was an infant. He is now in college and studying abroad.
- Another family with a child with 47,XXY also started when he was an infant and is not a senior in HS planning to attend college.
- A third family has a son with 49,XXXXY and they continue to support us through a fundraising effort held in Philadelphia, Oktoberfest, *
- One family from NY has “A Rare Affair” fundraiser. Their child has 48,XXXY.
- The fundraising efforts have been in decline since COVID restrictions
