The University of North Carolina School of Medicine is pleased to announce the establishment of The Carolina Institute for Developmental Disabilities (CIDD). This new institute brings together four outstanding, existing programs on the UNC campus – the TEACCH Program (Treatment and Education for Autistic and Related Communication Handicapped Children), the Clinical Center for Development and Learning which includes the federally funded University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities and Leadership and Education in Neurodevelopmental Disorders Programs, The Family Support Network of North Carolina, and The Neurodevelopmental Disorders Research Center, which includes the NICHD-funded, Eunice Kennedy Shriver Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center.

The new Carolina Institute for Developmental Disabilities will be one of the largest programs for developmental disabilities in the country and UNC-Chapel Hill's primary source for treatment, education, and research on developmental disabilities. In addition, CIDD will provide important, state-of-the-art resources aimed at supporting individuals with developmental disabilities and their families in the state of North Carolina, and will promote research on the pathogenesis and treatment of these conditions.

The Institute Director will be Joseph Piven, M.D., Sarah Graham Kenan Professor of Psychiatry, Pediatrics, and Psychology. In addition, Jim Bodfish, Ph.D., Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics will be named the new Director of the Clinical Center for Development and Learning. Mr. Jeffry Low will assume the position of Deputy Director for CIDD, overseeing administrative aspects of the organization. Gary Mesibov and Irene Zipper will continue as directors of TEACCH and the Family Support Network respectively. Plans for the new Institute include relocation of the Center for Development and Learning from its current location to an 18,000 sq foot building, on a 5 acre campus 1.5 miles south of the UNC campus, which currently houses the UNC Autism Center (home of the Chapel Hill TEACCH Center), pending approval of building plans by the town of Carrboro.

The formation of the Carolina Institute for Developmental Disabilities, in partnership with organizations across the state, will greatly impact all areas within developmental disabilities.

Thank you for visiting The CIDD. Our new web site will launch this spring, please be sure to bookmark this page and visit us again.