At FAID, our aim is to teach and prepare our students for life. So apart from following the educational program as set down by the Lebanese Ministry of Education and preparing our students for the Brevet diploma, we try to teach our students all the things they need to survive as a deaf person in a hearing world.
The Institute provides oral education for deaf and hard of hearing pupils between 2 and 18 years old. Sign language is a deaf person’s natural language, but as society expects them to speak, pupils are encouraged to speak, read lips as well as maximize their ability to hear by using hearing aids, cochlear implants and FM systems. So sign language is used in a supportive role to our oral education program only. The program is taught in both Arabic and English.
Classes are grouped on the basis of pupil’s strengths, needs, ability and compatibility. Classes are small in size with qualified teachers specialized and experienced in deaf teaching. Small group and one-to-one teaching is essential for each child academic and personal achievement.
Our in-house audiology department is fully equipped to fit & program hearing aids and custom make ear molds. Our speech therapists have the latest speech therapy computer software and resources.
MISSION STATEMENT
FAID’s mission is to act as a caring institute for the deaf and hard of hearing, which reflects a healthy balance of academic goals, building self-esteem, self-awareness and life skills.
VISION
FAID aim to stand as an institute where deaf and hard of hearing students are taught in a way that enables them to reach their full potential and equips them to fully participate in the world around them.
Through that, the Father Andeweg Institute for the Deaf aim to become the leader comprehensive center providing education and resources for deaf and hard of hearing individuals, their families, and for educational partners in Lebanon and abroad.
THE FOUNDER
Rev. Dr. Andy Andeweg (1932-1999), known as “the father of deaf people in Lebanon”, arrived to Lebanon in 1956 and mixed with deaf adults in coffee houses. He was soon able to communicate with them and established a deaf club where they can meet. In 1957, with the younger deaf generation in mind, he founded The Father Andeweg Institute for the Deaf (FAID).
He was not content with just this one institute, as in 1964, he established a school for deaf children (The Holy Land Institute for the deaf) in Salt, Jordan, and afterwards, set up the Deaf unit in Cairo, Egypt. Furthermore, a school for children with special needs in Aita Chaab, Lebanon was established in 1997.
Under his guidance, deaf clubs took place in Beirut and other cities. Teachers were principally trained through the AMT Teacher Training Program, which Father Andy launched in 1960.