A woman has moved from school to school to enroll an autistic child. But nowhere did anyone give her a message of hope. One by one, 22 schools turned her away. That woman herself today has set up a school for children with special needs, so that others do not have to go through such an experience like her child.
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 turned away from 22 schools. I’ve tried cheap, reputable, inferior schools. I even wanted to put him in a center for children with special needs. But there she was falling far behind physically. She had some speech and behavioral problems, but no physical disability. ’
Rana, who moved to Dubai 22 years ago, said she noticed that when Jad was one-and-a-half years old, he didn’t mingle with anyone, he didn’t look him in the eye. He could say mum and dad, say balls and hello, hold dolls, but suddenly they disappeared. She saw that sparkle of joy in her son’s eyes again when she opened a center for children with special needs like her own. Sadly, two years later, Jad died suddenly. He was 11 years old at the time.
Talking about the previous incident after the death of her son, Rana said that even though they understood themselves, at one time it was clinically said that Jad was suffering from autism. Gradually, the family adapted to the situation. But getting him into school was a tough battle. Rana said that after being rejected 22 times, he got the chance to enroll in the last school, but the struggle after that was no less difficult.
The school where Jad was admitted was shut down by the authorities a few years later. Rana said he always shared his experience with the school with others. Rana recalls the good times of the first few years. “Jad got used to going to class with his shadow teachers. The kids were always with him. They knew Jad, this boy could speak English, what innocent children’s thoughts. But after a while, it was seen that they were no longer mixing with Jad.
I was coming home from school with him one day. As I walked, I saw that he had stopped after a while. He didn’t look when he called. He looked the other way. Following his gaze, I saw that all his friends were going to another 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.