Our mission

The Joseph Robert Shaw Foundation dba Joey's Foundation is committed to improving the daily lives of children with brain injury and subsequently the lives of their families. We provide financial support for research, innovation, and education for the purpose of improving rehabilitation, recovery and activities of daily living.

What we do

The activities of Joey's Foundation include:

-created a Joey's Corner in a small library in West Virginia. Joey's Corner provides books for children with and without disabilities. Books that can be modified are adapted for children with movement disorders. "Some children may have limited movement, or may have involuntary movements that interfere with their ability to hold a book, turn the pages or keep from knocking a book to the floor. Providing these children with as much control of the physical book as possible promotes exploration of the environment, independence and choice making. For young children, these are all important developmental skills that foster learning" (MaryAnn Shaw, "Adapting Books to Increase Accessibility," n2y blog: https://www.n2y.com/blog/adapting-books-to-increase-accessibility/). To create these adapted books, we are sponsoring workshops which include occupational therapists, speech and language pathologists, physical therapists, special and general education teachers. As more books are adapted, we will be able to support Joey's Corner in more locations.

-continued sponsorship of a major clinical device development entitled PediaCORE, an immersive, interactive movement training system for toddlers and pre-school aged children created under the auspices of the Chief Science Officer of the Kennedy Krieger Institute and the Center for Bioengineering Innovation and Design program of Johns Hopkins University. The device was created to improve trunk stability in young children with cerebral palsy. Trunk stability is important for many day-to-day functions, including sitting, standing and walking.

-sponsorship of the Augmentative Learning Study Program, which has been created as an alternative setting of learning during the current COVID-19 pandemic when schools have replaced in-person teaching for the distance learning format. While distance learning is a significant inconvenience for typical students, it is a disaster for students with complex needs who receive special education and related services through an Individualized Education Program. The current situation is calling for an augmentative approach that will meet the needs of children with disabilities who cannot benefit from distance learning technology and need contact with other children. The Augmentative Learning Study Program re-imagines the one-room schoolhouse that provides differentiated instruction....one that meets the needs of children with and without disabilities so they all can learn with and from each other. The program will have a structured curriculum, emphasizing reading, math and communication, be inclusive and project based.

-sponsorship of a mid-Atlantic regional educational conference entitled "Neuroplasticity for Children" with nationally recognized physical therapist educator Dr. Karen Pryor.

-on-going sponsorship of presentations/publications on communication and the use of augmentative and alternative communication devices at professional education conferences and journals.

-co-sponsorship in 2018 of a Baltimore/Washington Tribute dinner for Judy Woodruff in honor of her 20 years of service on the board of the Kennedy Krieger Institute and her many contributions to organizations that support children living with brain injury.