Hebrew Academy For Special Children (HASC) is a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

agency in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, providing a wide range of supportive services to children with

special needs In clinical diagnostic and functional development, special needs (or additional needs) refers to individuals who require assistance for disabilities that may be medical, mental, or psychological. Guidelines for clinical diagnosis are given in ...

. The organization is best known for its summer camps and its annual ''A Time for Music'' benefit concert.

History

The HASC (Hebrew Academy For Special Children) Programs were established in 1963 by Rabbi Max and Blanche Kahn to provide educational and clinical services to individuals from infancy through adulthood who exhibit developmental delays. HASC is currently directed by Samuel Kahn.

Services

HASC's services are geared toward infants, children, and adults with speech, learning, or motor limitations and also children who have behavioral difficulties. There are currently 6 locations in the New York region serving over 1,000 children. In addition HASC provides programs and living quarters like Camp HASC and assisted living apartments throughout the New York city area. A school is located in

Woodmere, New York Woodmere is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, United States. The population was 17,554 at the 2016 census. Woodmere is one of the Long Island communities known as the Five Towns, w ...

with a student body of approximately 890 students. Programs are divided by approximate age ranges: * Early Intervention (0-3) * Preschool (3-5) * School Age (5-21) * Summer Camp (all ages)

A Time for Music

HASC is well known for its annual ''A Time for Music'' benefit concert. These concerts have been held for the last 3 decades in venues such as

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 millio ...

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...

and

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

. The concert is viewed as a major event within the New York Jewish community. In the past it has attracted contemporary Jewish stars like Mordechai Ben David,

Avraham Fried Avraham Shabsi Hakohen Friedman ( he, אברהם שבתי הכהן פרידמן, born March 22, 1959) better known by his stage name, Avraham Fried, is a popular musical entertainer in the Orthodox Jewish community. Career Fried was encourag ...

, Yaakov Shwekey,

Matisyahu Matthew Paul Miller (born June 30, 1979), known by his stage name Matisyahu (; ), is an American reggae singer, rapper, beatboxer Beatboxing (also beat boxing) is a form of vocal percussion primarily involving the art of mimicking drum mac ...

, and Ovadya Yaish. A Time for Music is known to have a partnership with

Yeshiva Boys Choir The Yeshiva Boys Choir also known as (YBC) is a contemporary Jewish religious music boys choir. The choir is conducted by Yossi Newman, and their songs are composed, arranged and produced by Eli Gerstner. There are more than 50 children in the grou ...

, and

Eli Gerstner Eliezer "Eli" Gerstner (Hebrew: ''אליעזר גרסטנר''), is an Orthodox Jewish singer, songwriter and producer. Music career Gerstner began composing songs as a teenager. He produces albums of contemporary Jewish religious music under ...

. A Time For Music (being produced by

since 2016) is taking several members and soloists of

on tour around the

in the

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

and

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

areas, and several more to be announced

Camp HASC

Camp HASC is one of the many organizations founded by Max and Blanche Kahn, in the year 1970. Now Camp HASC is a host to what most consider "Heaven on Earth" with over 300 special needs children. These children are given individual counselors to work, play, and care for them throughout the entire summer. HASC also provides experience for new nurses just out of nursing school. For 7 weeks in the summer newly qualified nurses are running the show just as much as the counselors. A challenging part of their job experience for the new nurses is devising clever ways to encourage the campers to take their medications. The Infirmary provides an aid for those in need, the campers and counselors alike.

In the news

The school found itself in the news in 1998 when it named a building after Senator

Alfonse D'Amato Alfonse Marcello D'Amato (born August 1, 1937) is an American politician born in Brooklyn, Kings County, New York. He served as United States Senator for New York between 1981 and 1999. He subsequently founded a lobbying firm, Park Strategies. ...

and the senator used derogatory terms about some of his political opponents in his acceptance speech. The agency received a $430,000 federal grant in 2001 to establish a national service center for the disabled.

References

External links

Camp HASC

Camp HASC Concert A Celebration to Benefit the Happiest Place on Earth - Camp HASC

The HASC website
{{Authority control Medical and health organizations based in New York (state) Child and adolescent psychiatry Education in New York City Jewish educational organizations Non-profit organizations based in New York City Special education in the United States 1963 establishments in New York (state)