Photos: (Top) YES alumni standing with Salam Asia in front of Rawan Association for Child Development; (Bottom right) YES alumna Nadeen Al Shaer (YES '11) listens as alumni meet with a teacher and a child with ADHD; (Bottom left) Alumni interview Salam Asia at Rawan Association for Child Development. 

YES alumni from the West Bank have been diligently working over the last two months on an awareness campaign about ADHD. 

On February 19, 2017, seven alumni headed to Rawan Association for Child Development in Ramallah to learn more about Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), its types, and how it affects children, parents, schools, and the community. Alumni met with the head of the Association, Ms. Salam Asia, and a general physician who works at the Neurology lab in Al-Quds University to learn more about this disorder. Afterwards, the alumni went into the streets of Ramallah to interview pedestrians about their knowledge of ADHD and raise awareness about the disorder by handing out fact sheets. 

The alumni took footage of those events and created two videos in order to be able to reach out to as many people in the community as possible. The first video was a short piece that was intended for a social media awareness campaign. The alumni published it on March 6th on Facebook and YouTube. The video was shared on popular Facebook pages in Palestine and got over 50 shares, reaching more than 40,000 people on Facebook. Many people left comments about how they loved the video and found the information very helpful. A lot of them indicated that this was the first time they had heard of this disorder.

The second video, a longer version, included more details about the disorder. It was intended for schoolteachers, educators, and school counselors. Since ADHD is most common among children, the alumni felt it was important to raise awareness among teachers so they might start noticing the symptoms and then better know how to work with ADHD students in classroom settings.

For the third and final phase of the project, the YES alumni went into the schools. On March 16th, three alumni visited 11 different schools in Ramallah to deliver ADHD Awareness Packages. Each package included a DVD of the video, a brochure about the disorder, a brochure about Rawan Association (the only organization in Palestine that specializes in treating and diagnosing ADHD), and a letter explaining the purpose of the campaign. In the packages, the YES alumni asked the principal of the school to share the video and information with all teachers and staff.

The school visits were replicated in Nablus as well, where three alumni visited 12 schools on March 21st. The principals of the schools were very grateful for how much effort the alumni put into this campaign. They also promised to display and share the video with their teachers and counselors.

Since this new campaign was so successful and meaningful to communities in the West Bank, the YES alumni are now considering follow-up activities with the schools and the Rawan Association!

Photos: (Top) Ahmed Touqan (YES '11) and Ahmad Jaber (YES '14) heading to Al-Mostaqbal school in Ramallah to deliver the ADHD Awareness package; (Bottom) ADHD Awareness Packages ready to be sent to schools.