Debbie Institute

The University of Miami Mailman Center for Child Development was founded through grants from the United States Public Health Service and the Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. Foundation combined with a donation from Abraham and Joseph Mailman through the Mailman Foundation.

The Mailman donation was given in the name of Abraham Mailman’s granddaughter, Debra Jean Segal.  The Debbie Institute was established in her honor as a demonstration school to develop innovative educational strategies, provide training and practicum opportunities for university students, conduct scientific research, provide community support, and become a proving ground for public policy.

For over forty years, donations from Weeks family have changed the lives of over a thousand young children with hearing loss and disabilities. The seeds for this endeavor were planted early in the 1980s with a generous donation from Austin Weeks. In 2015 Marta Weeks Wulf continued this extraordinary legacy by establishing the Weeks Educational Center at the Debbie Institute where our highly trained teachers and therapists work in partnership with families to promote optimal growth and development for each child enrolled in the Weeks Educational Center. 

Auditory Oral Education Program provides early educational intervention services for children who are deaf or hard of hearing from birth to seven years of age in educational classrooms with children without hearing loss. The program provides an educational environment where children who are deaf or hard of hearing learn to communicate by listening and talking. Children enrolled use assistive hearing devices (hearing aids, cochlear implants, BAHA hearing devices) and the teaching methods rely primarily on listening skills for the purpose of developing spoken language as the method of communication.

Early Education Program provides early intervention services for children with developmental disabilities from birth through three years of age. Children enrolled in our center- based program receive early education services as well as speech therapy, physical therapy, and occupational therapy.

Early Childhood Education Program provides services for children without disabilities from birth through four years of age in our classrooms in either the Auditory Oral Education Program or the Early Education Program.

The Debbie School’s classrooms provide a natural learning environment for children with and without disabilities. The curriculum is designed to prepare children with disabilities to participate in general education classrooms. Thoughtful educational opportunities are designed to meet the individual needs of every child to facilitate optimal learning experiences throughout the daily routine.

Grant funding from the Florida Department of Education Bureau of Exceptional Education and Student Services provides opportunities for families of students who are deaf/hard of hearing through the Auditory Oral Education Program and The Bridge to Speech Project.

The Debbie School Auditory Oral Education Program provides opportunities for families of students who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) to enroll their children in an early education program where they can learn to listen and talk from certified Listening and Spoken Language Specialist. Services are provided for students who are DHH or have dual sensory impairments from birth to 7 years of age who reside in multiple counties, including rural and underserved areas. In addition, professionals provide support for families and public-school districts.

The Bridge to Speech Project provides opportunities for students who are DHH from 3 through 6 years of age who reside in counties throughout Florida to attend a private auditory oral program with faculty members who are credentialed as certified Listening and Spoken Language Specialists. Both center-based and virtual services are available as well as comprehensive evaluations, audiology, therapy, and family education. Outreach services include consultation and technical assistance in the areas of hearing technology and listening and spoken language therapy as well as standards-based instructional support for school districts, professionals, and students in general education and other settings.

The Debbie School Little Explorers Summer Program is funded annually by The Children’s Trust. The program provides high quality services for children with disabilities birth to five years of age and their families in an inclusive environment where children of diverse socioeconomic backgrounds who reside in Miami-Dade County have the opportunity to learn and grow. Our inclusion classrooms provide a natural learning environment for all participating children. The daily educational program is implemented with consistency and fidelity by a culturally diverse staff of teachers, therapists, and classroom assistants that are experienced and qualified to work with children with disabilities and their families.

Outreach services include consultation, collaboration, technical assistance, and training in the areas of hearing technology and listening and spoken language development as well as academic domains for professionals and students in school districts throughout South Florida. 

Children with disabilities and who might benefit from the services offered at the Debbie Institute are referred through the Early Steps Programs (North and South) and other community agencies.  These services are funded through grants with Miami-Dade County Public Schools and The Children’s Trust.  Families are not required to pay tuition.

Families interested in enrolling their child in the Early Childhood Education Program can apply below to join the waiting list. This program is funded through tuition fees.

Waiting List Application

• Easterseals South Florida
  
• Early Learning Coalition of Miami-Dade/Monroe
  
• Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech Florida
  
• Early Steps Miami-Dade
  
• Early Steps Southernmost Coast
  
• Florida Department of Education Bureau of Exceptional Education and Student Services
  
• Florida Department of Health Early Steps Programs
  
• Miami-Dade County Public Schools
  
• Miami Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired
  
• Parent to Parent of Miami
  
• Resource Materials and Technology Center: Deaf/Hard of Hearing
  
• Sertoma Speech and Hearing Foundation of Florida, Inc.
  
• The Arc of South Florida
  
• The Children’s Trust
  
• United Community Options of South Florida
  
• University of Miami Linda Ray Center