This year, Devereux celebrates its 95th anniversary and the 50th anniversary of the Institute for Clinical Training and Research (ICTR), a division of The Devereux Foundation. Both organizations were conceived by a true visionary, Helena T. Devereux.
Even before women had the right to vote, Miss Devereux fought for the educational needs of the forgotten children: those students, often seated in the back of the classroom, who could not reach their potential without extra help. She began her mission to help those special children and developed an individualized, positive educational approach, which she used successfully during her tenure as a school teacher in Philadelphia. However, she believed that these children would advance even more if their academic experiences were integrated with a structured, caring living environment. So, Miss Devereux took students into her rented summer home and spent three months working on their academic, vocational and social skills. Using that summer’s success as a stepping stone, she expanded her dream again and established the Devereux Schools in 1912, later to become The Devereux Foundation.
Over the next 45 years, Miss Devereux saw her vision evolve into a premier organization, dedicated to meeting the needs of individuals with special needs and designing their education and treatment through a multi-disciplinary approach. In one of her final milestones, Miss Devereux wanted to ensure that the work she started would continue beyond her lifetime. Shortly before her resignation as President of The Devereux Foundation in 1957, Helena Devereux established the Institute for Training and Research, later renamed the Institute for Clinical Training and Research. ICTR embodies and perpetuates her commitment to furthering the understanding of individuals with special needs and training professionals to meet those needs.
Now the responsibilities of furthering the mission set forth by Miss Devereux fall on the shoulders of the stakeholders of today’s Devereux. It is the responsibility of employees, board members, clients, families and others to continue blazing the trail of what has become the nation’s largest non-profit provider of services to children, adolescents and adults with behavioral, mental health and developmental disabilities. Along with the widespread recognition of ICTR and our financial strength, we are a thriving institution and will remain strong with the continued commitment of our supporters. I hope you will join me in this important, life-changing effort.
To help guide us in this charge, I am very pleased to announce Devereux’s newly revised Mission Statement and statement of our Core Values.
Our Mission
Devereux changes lives and nurtures human potential.
We inspire hope, ensure well-being, and promote
meaningful life choices. Our mission is achieved
through a wide range of services and supports
for individuals and their families.
Core Values
We support a respectful and integrated team approach.
We foster personal and professional growth of our staff.
We develop innovative and effective solutions.
We partner with families and communities.
In future blogs, I will share with you our Philosophy of Care and the exciting plans we are developing to celebrate the 95th anniversary of Devereux and the 50th anniversary of ICTR. Stayed tuned for the details!
And finally, a Happy Birthday to Miss Devereux, who would have turned 123 on Friday, February 2nd. While the rest of the country celebrates Ground Hog Day, we celebrate the birthday of our founder.
