2023 annual report
All of us can identify milestones in our lives — significant moments that weave a narrative of who we are, the choices we make, and the impact we have in the world.
This was a year to celebrate milestones that have shaped and defined May Institute over its nearly 70-year history. We invite you to take a look back with us!
None of the milestones we celebrated this year would have been possible without May employees, past and present, who make lives exponentially better. We dedicate this video, below, to them.
"The One Who Knows"
— Dar Williams
All the things you treasure most
will be the hardest won.
I will watch you struggle
long before the answers come.
But I won't make it harder,
I'll be there to cheer you on.
I'll shine the light that guides you
down the road you're walking on.
You'll fly away, but take my hand until that day. So when they ask how far love goes,
when my job's done
you'll be the one who knows.
May Institute partnered with Children’s Hospital Boston in pioneering home-based early intervention services for children with autism and their families.
May Institute opened our first homes for adults with disabilities as an alternative to institutional care in Massachusetts.
May Institute pioneered one of the nation’s first schools exclusively for children and adolescents with brain injury, now situated on an expansive new campus in Norwood, Mass.
In the decades since May helped pioneer home-based early intervention (EI) services for autistic children in Massachusetts, we have expanded significantly in the Commonwealth and beyond. EI services, along with center-based and home-based services, provide intensive support to children and families when they need them most.
Meet two of those children, brothers Benny and Owen, and their parents Brianna and Billy.
May Institute saw the need for lifespan services early on. Thirty-five years ago, we opened residential homes for adults with disabilities as an alternative to institutional care.
The power of family and community is present across May’s adult programs, throughout the lives of the adults in their care.
This is the story, and the legacy, of Verna and Henry.
May Institute operates six special education schools. One is unique because of the population it serves, and it marked its 30th anniversary this year.
The May Center School for Brain Injury and Neurobehavioral Disorders is a tight-knit community where hope lives, and whose staff and students are always identifying the next opportunity for growth and learning and happiness.
And, sometimes, for winning!
May Institute started offering Positive Behavior Support services to public schools around the country, helping to promote student achievement by improving the school behavioral climate.
May Institute established a presence on the West Coast with The Bay School in Santa Cruz, Calif., expanding our footprint to provide educational services for children with autism and other special needs.
The National Autism Center at May Institute completed the National Standards Project to provide critical information about evidence-based interventions for ASD, and guidelines for how to select them. More than a million people have accessed the findings.
May Institute’s clinical experts share their knowledge and the results of their research through hundreds of published columns for families and through presentations and regular contributions to the research literature.
May Institute opened a new autism center for young children in the D.C./Virginia area to serve military and civilian families, expanding the reach of existing centers in Georgia and North Carolina.
Mary Lou Maloney, a pioneer in the deinstitutionalization of individuals with special needs, and a lifelong advocate for that community, was named Chairperson of our Board of Directors, and the first woman Chairperson in the organization’s history.
May Institute relocated and expanded the May Center School for Brain Injury and Neurobehavioral Disorders to a new campus in Norwood, Mass., to enhance access for special education day and residential students.
All of us can identify milestones in our lives — significant moments that weave a narrative of who we are, the choices we make, and the impact we have in the world. This was a year to celebrate milestones that have shaped and defined May Institute over its nearly 70-year history.
Some of you know the beginning of May’s story – parents of twin boys with autism, looking for an alternative to institutional care. Dr. and Mrs. May forged a new path and opened a small residential school on Cape Cod in 1955, hopeful and determined they could create a better life for their children and others.
Since then, numerous milestones have helped weave the narrative of May Institute, and the impact this organization and its people have had on hundreds of thousands of children, adolescents, and adults.
We invite you to watch the videos and read the stories in this annual report. They are a glimpse into how services translate into real-world examples of love and growth and how they impact people’s lives.
Thank you, as always, for supporting us in our work.
Most sincerely,
Dr. Lauren C. Solotar
President and CEO
Neal Todrys
Chairperson, Board of Directors
