About Us

TOHUM Autism Foundation

TOHUM The Tohum Autism Early Diagnosis and Education Foundation was established in 2003 as a non-profit health and education foundation for the public good, with the mission of promoting the early diagnosis of children with “Autism Spectrum Disorder”, integrating them into society as independent individuals through special education, and spreading this nationwide.

Our Mission

For children and youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and their families; as well as for other children and youth with special needs and their families who receive services in inclusive educational settings;

the fulfillment of their information and support needs in order to sustain their lives under contemporary societal conditions,
The training of instructor staff, the provision of education and research,
Working towards increasing capacity in the fields of special education and inclusive education as well as related professions, and bringing missing professionals to Turkey,
Supporting and improving health and education services implemented nationwide,
Supporting and developing opportunities for vocational training, independent living, and social life,
Conducting advocacy efforts and initiatives to improve legislation and policies,
The creation of an informed public opinion,
establishing effective collaborations with other public and private institutions and organizations in efforts aimed at its purpose,
bringing the screening, detailed evaluation, and diagnostic processes regarding ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) up to world standards and spreading them nationwide,
building capacity for children with ASD to receive early intensive special education, and to meet all their needs ranging from the least restrictive educational environment to inclusive environments at all stages of life,
Establishing a model school by implementing the Princeton Child Development Institute (PCDI) programs in the education of children and youth with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), and ensuring the widespread dissemination of these programs across the country.

Our Vision

Early diagnosis of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in Turkey means meeting the health, education, vocational training, employment, independent living, and inclusive education needs of diagnosed children and their families according to world standards. Furthermore, it is the fulfillment of the relevant needs of other children and young people with special needs in inclusive educational settings.

Our principles

Scientificity,
Leadership and pioneering,
Transparency,
Reliability,
Sharing,
Inter-institutional communication and collaboration,
Efficiency and effectiveness in sources,
Valuing people and children and upholding their right to the best services.

Our Milestones

2003

TOHUM We founded the Tohum Autism Early Diagnosis and Education Foundation.

2005

We initiated the process of establishing a model school in Turkey in cooperation with the Princeton Child Development Institute (PCDI) in the USA.
Lorna Wing's Autism Handboo and Temple Grandin Thinking in Pictures By introducing his books to the Turkish language, we ensured that fundamental resources in the field of autism became accessible in our country, and we continued our translated publications in the following years.

2006

Our school has started operating under the Ministry of National Education under the name “Special TOHUM Foundation Special Education Practice School”.

2009

Following the United Nations“ declaration of April 2 as ”World Autism Awareness Day,“ we launched our ”I Am Aware of Autism, I Stand By Them!" campaign and reached a wide audience.
by delivering educational materials and technological devices to special education classrooms in public schools Every Classroom a Tohum We launched the project.

2010

Turkey's first e-learning platform in the field of autism TOHUM Autism Foundation Training Portal‘we brought to life.
We developed the first job and life curriculum for autistic youth in Turkey and ensured its implementation at the Beylikdüzü Special Education Business Application Center.

2014

“With the ”Light It Up Blue for Autism" campaign, while increasing autism awareness, we transformed it into an even stronger awareness movement with the support of iconic structures illuminating Turkey with blue light.
By establishing our Guidance Unit within our school, we have started offering educational evaluation services to autistic children all over Turkey and consulting services to their families.
With our supported employment model, we have launched our internship program for the young students at our school.

2015

We established our Continuous Education Unit and reached thousands of families, teachers, healthcare professionals, and university students with our training programs on autism.
We have developed our first mobile applications for children with autism: TOHUM 1, TOHUM 2 and Concept Teaching We offered our applications for free and reached tens of thousands of users.
In cooperation with GfK Turkey, we conducted Turkey’s first “Autism Perception and Knowledge Level Research” and have continued it regularly every two years.

2016

We have developed international collaborations with the World Bank, the OECD, and institutions from various countries.
Between 2016 and 2018, we carried out award-winning awareness campaigns such as “When My Child Grows Up”, “Share Your Heart”, “This Is Not a Joke”, and “The Real Remedy”.

2018

We implemented our Supported Employment Model for the first time in Turkey on a full-time basis with Eker Dairy Products.
We screened a total of 55,919 children for autism risk across Turkey.

2020

During the pandemic, we initiated distance education practices for the education of individuals with autism. We accelerated our online training, webinars, and digital projects. By making the remote support model permanent, we offered our students a new option in their educational journey.
By updating our mobile applications Tohum Autism Foundation and Listen Speak reintroduced them with their names.

2021

We signed the “Autism Awareness and Education Protocol” with the Ministry of Family and Social Services.

2022

On April 2nd, World Autism Awareness Day, taking the ’Light It Up Blue for Autism“ campaign we have been running since 2009 a step further, we shifted our focus from awareness to inclusion and launched the ”Light It Up Red for Autism“ call.

2023

For children with autism affected by the February 6 earthquakes, we opened 5 special education container classrooms in the earthquake zones in cooperation with the Ministry of National Education and the Ministry of Health.
We delivered 1,928 educational toys and technological training kits to autistic children affected by the earthquake.
We celebrated the 20th anniversary of our foundation.

2024

“We organized the symposium titled ”The Last 20 Years of Autism in Turkey and the World." At this event, where we discussed the development of autism in our country and globally, alongside expert speakers, 3 autistic youths also shared their experiences.
The Employment and Career Coach Department was established. Our public service announcement “My success story” has been broadcast.

Our awards