CAPITAL CAMPAIGN

THE LEADING DIAGNOSTIC AND EDUCATIONAL CENTER FOR YOUNG CHILDREN WITH HEARING LOSS

A CLINIC TO THE WORLD:BECOMING JOHN TRACY CENTER

HOPE | GUIDANCE | ENCOURAGEMENT

WHAT’S INSIDE

www.jtc.org | 32 | John Tracy Center

MISSIONJTC’s important mission and history of ser-vice to the community

PROGRAMSInternationally acclaimed services and programs

IMPACTPowerful stories about what JTC means to families

04

06

08

FUTUREHow a new campus will serve children and their families

OUR NEW CAMPUSFeatures and plans

YOUR IMPACTDonor recognition and giving opportunities

14

15

16

“It’s helpful to know that I am not alone in this world, to know the teachers are around me.

We are a team at John Tracy.

ANTJE GERMARPARENT, GERMANY

At its founding in 1943, JTC offered one of the nation’s

very first spoken-language education and support

programs for parents of children with hearing loss.

Today, JTC is recognized as the leader in early

childhood deaf education, as one of the top three

centers for pediatric audiology in the Los Angeles area,

and as the world’s largest private provider of services

to young children with, or at risk of, hearing loss.

To provide parent-centered services locally and globally to young children with

hearing loss, offering families hope, guidance, and encouragement.

4 | John Tracy Center www.jtc.org | 5

The leading diagnostic and educational center for young children with hearing loss.

MISSION

76 YEARS

250,000 +children served since 1943

families served annually

of service

3,200 +

JTC was established by Louise Treadwell Tracy after

she witnessed the lack of care and education available

to children like her son John, who was diagnosed with

hearing loss at an early age. She taught herself how to

help children with hearing loss navigate the hearing

world and founded JTC in response to a desperate call

for help from other mothers — offering education and

emotional support.

Mrs. Tracy inspired nearly 80 years of service to a community in need of dynamic, interactive, family-focused care.

When a family comes to JTC, they find more than a building; they receive the family-centered education, encouragement, guidance, and support they need for their child.

By encouraging parents to act as their child’s best

advocate, the Center has enabled countless young

children to master listening and spoken language

on par with their hearing peers by the time they reach

elementary school.

SERVING THE COMMUNITY

HISTORY OF SUCCESS

6 | John Tracy Center www.jtc.org | 7

WORLDWIDE PARENT EDUCATIONParents of children with hearing loss, residing

anywhere in the world, can take part in John Tracy Center’s educational programs as either a virtual online

or mail-based experience.

John Tracy Center offers internationally acclaimed services and programs. For more information about each, please visit jtc.org/about-us/primary-programs.

PROGRAMS

AUDIOLOGYJTC is one of the top three centers for pediatric

audiology in the Los Angeles area.

PARENT-INFANT & AVT SERVICESJTC’s Parent-Infant Program helps parents of newly diagnosed infants and toddlers navigate the initial

stages of the early intervention process.

COUNSELING AND CHILD DEVELOPMENTWe practice an approach that is centered on the family

and oriented toward the whole child.

GRADUATE PROGRAMProvides an opportunity to earn a Master

of Science in Education and a Preliminary DHH Education Specialist Credential.

“The support has been instrumental through [the] first couple years with our daughter. Once we found John Tracy, I knew I’d found the right place to be.”—Elizabeth Larson, Parent

“Because of what I gained from John Tracy, I was able to go to a

mainstream school.” —Young Jae Ryu, Alumnus

IMPACT

“In Germany we felt lost and [didn’t] know how to help Lilli. But JTC provided the first deep empathy with knowledge we found. We never felt so safe.”— Antje Germar, International Parent

“Witnessing the transformative power of love in a parent . . . is awe-inspiring.”

—Angie Stokes, Program Director

PRESCHOOLOnly preschool in LA that is focused on helping

children with hearing loss develop listening and spoken language skills.

8 | John Tracy Center www.jtc.org | 9

When we got her diagnosis, we wondered if she would ever be able to hear and talk,” Elizabeth says, “And now she never stops talking and singing.”

“

Matthew and Elizabeth Larson were still in the hospital after the birth of their second child, Everly, when their infant was diagnosed with profound hearing loss. Unsure of what to do or where to turn, they recall feeling “terrified of the unknown.”

“Everything happened so fast,” Elizabeth says. “We wanted to take action quickly—find the right doctors, get the correct services, do the right things. It was all-consuming and I felt like I didn’t have the proper time to process and grieve our new situation. JTC helped us through that process.”

“Going the first time to JTC, I was full of nerves and low expectations. However, every time I left,” she remembers, “my mind was positive and my heart was full.”

For parents like Elizabeth and Matthew, the first step in their journey is JTC’s Parent-Infant Program, an initiative that helps more than 150 parents each year nurture listening and spoken language development in their child with hearing loss. Elizabeth and Matthew began services at

LARSON FAMILYlearn firsthand from hearing loss professionals.

“I will always be learning on this journey, but JTC gave me the basic knowledge and understanding to get me started,” Elizabeth says. “That education has been so important.”

John Tracy also provided the emotional support that the family needed. The ongoing connections with families with similar questions and struggles helped give them hope that their daughter could learn to listen and speak just like her hearing brother.

The Larson family has undergone an unexpected transformation. Today, Everly is a smart, strong-willed four-year-old, listening to the world with cochlear implants and “trying to keep up with her brother in everything”—and attending a main-stream preschool, where she loves to talk with her

friends, sing songs, and explore.

The family remains in contact with those they met at the Center. “These connections are priceless,” Elizabeth says.

Matthew and Elizabeth are prepared, confident advocates for their child. Everly will attend kinder-garten at the neighborhood public school this fall, and her parents are ready to work closely with the school district, teachers and therapists to ensure that she has the accommodations and services she needs to reach her potential.

“JTC has been instrumental in our journey with Everly and as a family. The services, support and education we received from JTC helped guide us to a successful path to spoken language for our deaf child,” Elizabeth says. “Our family will always be grateful.”

John Tracy Center when Everly was just four months old, starting a three-year journey with JTC in which their daughter would learn to listen and speak.

In addition to weekly therapy appointments, the Larson family found the confidence they needed to become Everly’s teachers—and to “confidently advocate” for her through JTC’s parent education services. Elizabeth and Matthew felt it was important to become “experts” in Everly’s disability and took advantage of being able to

(continued on page 9)

(continued)

10 | John Tracy Center www.jtc.org | 11

JTC builds up parents,” Antje says. “With John Tracy, I’m not worried. I know she can do it.”

“Because of what I gained from John Tracy,” he explains, “I was able to go to a mainstream school.”

“

Diagnosed at two years old with hearing loss, Young Jae Ryu learned to listen and speak with hearing devices in preschool at John Tracy Center. “Because of what I gained from John Tracy,” he explains, “I was able to go to a mainstream school.”

Young Jae excelled academically and, as a young adult, became very active in his community, serving as a teacher for No Limits for Deaf Children to help underserved children with hearing loss through after-school educational programs. He is the winner of JTC’s Alumni Award for resilient determination and academic achievement, the recipient of the AG Bell College Scholarship, and a Gates Millennium Scholar.

Today, Young Jae is an active spokesperson for JTC and a college student pursuing his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, with a minor in economics, at Columbia University. Set to graduate in 2020, he is a Dean’s List student, the president of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and an active undergraduate researcher who aims to explore hearing technologies and continue to advocate for others with hearing loss.

YOUNG JAE RYU GERMAR FAMILYThe Germar family first discovered JTC in the summer of 2008 while looking for help for their preschool-aged daughter, Lilli. “With the hearing loss, everything changed. Our whole life changed,” Lilli’s mother Antje says.

They started JTC’s distance education program that fall. “With the first letters we got so many ideas,” Antje remembers. “I knew they [could] help us.”

The family visited JTC in Los Angeles for an international summer session, a two week-long intensive learning program that explores childhood hearing loss, auditory-verbal techniques, language development, emotional support, educational services, and hands-on learning experiences for both children and parents.

Worried that time was running out, the family made the difficult decision to relocate to the U.S. so Lilli could attend JTC’s Ross Preschool at the Los Angeles campus. “In Germany we felt lost and [didn’t] know how to help Lilli,” Antje says. But JTC provided “the first deep empathy with knowledge we found. We never felt so safe.”

During their time at the preschool, they saw dramatic changes in Lilli’s communication – and in their own confidence to help her. Antje says, “It’s helpful to know that I am not alone in this world, to know the teachers are around me. We are a team at John Tracy.”

Two years after beginning the program, they moved back to Germany with a self-confident, talkative child ready for mainstream kindergarten.

Lilli, now in sixth grade, continues to do well in school. The family returns to JTC each year to maximize her bilingual listening and spoken language skills — and to share their expertise as alumni with parents new to the program. The family feels “full of memories, strategies, knowledge, and confidence.”

12 | John Tracy Center www.jtc.org | 13

I am honored and proud to belong to the JTC organization and movement,” she says. “JTC is my family.”

“

ANGIE STOKESAlthough it’s impossible to imagine John Tracy Center without Angie Stokes, the program director and veteran teacher had a very different plan in mind for her life when she arrived at JTC’s gates over 30 years ago.

It was a chance meeting—she had agreed to give a friend, a visiting speech and language pathologist, a ride to visit an organization whose free materials her clients were using. Angie, who had recently graduated with a degree in Child and Family Science, was teaching at a nearby private school. She had “come from a long line of educators” and had no plans of rethinking her career path.

“That casual afternoon changed the course of my life forever,” Angie says. “Although we came unannounced, the staff were gracious, hospitable, and inspirational—a lasting impression that I strive to emulate every day.”

When the tour ended in the Teacher Education Department, Angie knew that this was the right path for her. “I very quickly realized how much I needed them,” she remembers. “The message is empowering, genuine, respectful, and, most of all,

filled with hope.” She started JTC’s DHH Graduate Program, with a specialization in listening and spoken language, the next year.

After graduating in 1987, she assumed that she would re-enter the education system, this time in a public school, but JTC proposed a different plan—to stay and teach in the Preschool Program. The position allowed her to work closely with parents and children and learn from “experienced and trusted experts in this field.”

Parents who arrive at JTC’s gates often “abruptly end one chapter in their lives to begin a completely new and unexpected one,” Angie

reflects. “Witnessing the transformative power of love in a parent . . . is awe-inspiring.”

Angie credits the families at JTC for making her the person she is today: “Parent after parent has taught me about how to listen—I mean deeply listen—and not speak in order to rescue, fix, or make them ‘feel better.’ They gave me permission to go deeper, beyond the superficial remarks. Parents taught me how to empower them by listening to their pain, how to help them make better decisions for themselves, and how to take them exactly where they were—not where I thought they should be.”

After acting as director of JTC’s onsite education programs for more than two decades, Angie recently became certified as a Listening and Spoken Language Auditory Verbal Therapist and assumed the role of Director of Graduate Instruction and Teacher Development, a position that draws on her experience working with families all over the world. Her goal is to mentor and develop the next generation of educators of children with hearing loss, ensuring that they

are well-versed in K-12 curriculum and classroom instruction, child development and appropriate assessments, skills to help families from diverse backgrounds, and coordination of services and interdisciplinary teams for children and families facing unique challenges.

“I am honored to give back to JTC in this manner and once more feel deeply grateful and humbled to be entrusted with this responsibility,” Angie says of the lateral move to the new role.

Her career now centers on training the next generation of hearing loss professionals—people just like she was once—newly out of college and searching for the right path.

More than 30 years after she first arrived at JTC’s gate, Angie’s life looks little like the one she had planned then. But asked what JTC means to her today, she could not imagine anything different. “I am honored and proud to belong to the JTC organization and movement,” she says. “JTC is my family.”

(continued)

(continued on page 13)

14 | John Tracy Center

FUTUREFrom the very beginning, we have clung to Mrs. Tracy’s belief that JTC is “as much a movement as it is a place.” With reverence for her words – and the nearly 80 years of service she inspired – we are pleased to open our doors this fall at our new Los Angeles campus.

Just a short distance from our current campus, our new modern facility will offer all of JTC’s dynamic programs – as well as exciting expansions and new program additions.

increased capacity

newprograms

expanded National & international outreach

OUR NEW CAMPUSINCREASED CAPACITY With two audiology booths, the new campus will enable us to evaluate more children in less time: a critical factor in early identification. Additional rooms dedicated to speech therapy, listening and spoken language, and speech and AVT services will reduce wait time for families. The large library in our new space will help us engage the community in events and allow for story time and other language-focused play and learning for children and families.

NEW PROGRAMSIn the new facility, we plan to offer speech evaluations and speech therapy for children with speech delays, but typical hearing, provided by certified Speech Language Pathologists. We also plan to expand movement-focused modalities in our preschool to encompass sensory integration in other pro-grams.

Our professional development offerings will grow this year as well, with our two-day workshop for professionals unfolding into a complete online course, available in English and Spanish.

EXPANDED OUTREACHOur listening and spoken language outreach to families unable to access our onsite facilities will expand through telepractice—ensuring that children across the globe have access to essential programs.

As our outreach encompasses even more regional centers and school districts, our main campus—and satellite offices in San Gabriel and Long Beach—will help make sure that we are equipped to serve new families all over the region. Working in conjunction with a variety of funding sources such as school districts, regional centers, insurance companies and California Children’s Services (CCS), we can help ensure that families from all socioeconomic statuses have access to essential services for children with hearing loss.

HOW WILL OUR NEW CAMPUS SERVE FAMILIES?

• AVT Rooms • Multipurpose Room• Library • Parent Resource

Room

• Board Room• Offices • Waiting Room

$50,000$100,000

GOALS

www.jtc.org | 1716 | John Tracy Center

Please reach out to Jordan Kough, our Chief Development Officer, at jkough@jtc.org or 213-863-9960, to learn more about legacy options.

• Exterior, including Roof Deck and Playground

• Preschool• International

Programs and Teletherapy Rooms

• Auditorium• Audiology Booths

• Graduate Program, Teacher Education Study Room

• Film and Editing Room

$500,000 $250,000$1 million

LEGACY WAYS TO GIVE

We are embarking on this Capital Campaign with a goal of $4 million. The mission of John Tracy Center is made possible by the compassion and generosity of financial partners who share our mission. We are pleased to offer these unique opportunities for donors to this project to be acknowledged in perpetuity.

For more about this campaign, visit jtc.org/becoming.

Our staff are happy to work with you to find the flexible giving opportunity that best fits your values and financial needs.

GIVE ONLINEMake a one-time gift of any amount or sign up for monthly or annual donations at jtc.org/donate.

CORPORATE PARTNERSHIPWould you like your business to be recognized for positively impacting children with hearing loss? John Tracy Center has a variety of partnerships and matching gift opportunities that can be tailored to your business.

DONATE BY PHONEReach us anytime Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. PT at (213) 748-5481 and ask to speak with a JTC Development Professional.

MAIL A CHECK OR CREDIT CARD DONATIONPlease download, print, complete and mail our PDF form, available at jtc.org/donate.

John Tracy CenterAttn: Office of Development2160 W. Adams BoulevardLos Angeles, California 90018 USA

18 | John Tracy Center

Because of partners like you, JTC has become one of the world’s most acclaimed private providers of audiology diagnostics, education,

resources and support for families with young children with hearing loss.

We owe a debt of gratitude to all those

who have come before us to shape this organization

and to build on Mrs. Tracy’s vision for a worldwide movement.

Thank you for helping children with hearing loss

thrive in the hearing world –

and equipping parents with everything they need

to help their children achieve their fullest potential.

“It seems to me that the clinic is as much a movement

as it is a place.”

- Louise Tracy

Tel: 213.748.5481 | Fax: 213.749.1651 | Email: web@jtc.org | www.jtc.org