The Alva Foundation - Recent Grants

Recent Grants

The Alva Foundation makes a few, large, multi-year grants each year to significantly
advance a program or project. The following grants represent recent activity in this regard.

Recipient Organization 2009 2008 2007

The CARKE Foundation, Town of Brome Lake, Quebec. Funding to support the construction of the Brome Lake Community Centre/Centre Lac Brome providing sports, social, and medical resources to citizens of all ages. 2006-2010. $50,000 $100,000

Centennial Infant & Child Centre, Toronto: Funding a three-year pilot program to assess the procedures and effect of including occupational therapy techniques in the programs delivered at Centennial. The Centre operates programs supporting the development and education of children at the pre-school and kindergarten ages. Using low student-teacher ratios, often one-on-one, developmentally delayed children experiencing Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, autism, congenital anomalies, and brain damage will be provided occupational therapy techniques to supplement their play and classroom learnings. 2007-2009. $30,000 $30,000 $30,000

Renascent Foundation, Toronto: Funding of a pilot study to test and refine the material and delivery of a Parenting module. This module could become part of the standard treatment for alcohol addiction offered by Renascent Centre. Until recently, the unique position and fragility of children of alcohol-addicted parent(s), although generally understood, had not been specifically addressed in therapy. This module will deal with the role and impact of adult alcohol addiction on their ability to be responsible parents. 2007-2008. $22,000 $22,000

Canadian Foundation For Women's Health, Ottawa: Funding to establish the "Alva Foundation Award in Neonatal and Newborn Health" as an annual research award of $40,000. Applicants will apply from across Canada in fields such as; prenatal genetic screening, nutrition during pregnancy, prevention of premature labour, gestational diabetes and the fetus, and substance abuse during pregnancy. Initial funding, 2007-2009 $50,000 $50,000 $50,000

Vancouver Oral Centre for the Deaf, BC: Funding to test a pilot program teaching parents of deaf children, in locations remote from Vancouver, home technicques for teaching and raising deaf children. Heretofore, the parents of children living at a distance from the only centre offering services to deaf children in BC were at a severe disadvantage. This test will combine occasional visits, with frequent use of video-conferencing tools to test the effectiveness of remote teaching of deaf therapies to able parents. 2007-2008 $22,000 $36,000

York University, Toronto; Funding to equip the new Psychology Research and Training Clinic. This facility will have a substantial, but not exclusive, focus on researching and treating autsim. As part of this program, the clinic will also serve as a practical training opportunity for eight to ten graduates per year focusing specifically on autism, this disorder being a debilitating conditoon dramatically curtailing healthy development in affected toddlers and young children. 2007-2009 $33,000 $33,000 $34,000

Invest in Kids, Toronto: The foundation is funding a pilot program in the Greater Toronto Area to test Invest in Kids Parenting Partnership program. The combined classroom and multi-media program is led by a two-person education team consisting of a health practitioner and a counselor, who together, cover the health, developmental, birthing, home safety and psycho-social issues experienced by first-time parents. The program aims to provide confident positive parenting skills that impact early childhood development in-utero to one-year of age. 2008-2009. $40,000 $50,000

Hincks-Dellcrest Centre, Toronto: The foundation is funding the development and testing of the Centre's Handle With Care program. Still in the developmental stage, the course material will train child-care workers for early childhood mental health skills as they are learned and exhibited in pre-school children in the child-care setting. $50,000

Children's Aid Foundation, Toronto: Recent research and literature has documented well the impact of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder on fetal development and subsequent mental health and development. Given that parental alcohol abuse is a common contributing factor in children being removed to protective care, it is important to understand the needs and success factors associated with successful placement of FASD children in adoptive homes. This study will examine the needs of adoptive families and the critical factors necessary for successful adoption of two or more FASD infant siblings. $48,000

Bloorview Kids Foundation, Toronto: In support of a Pilot Trial of Omega-3 Fatty Acids in the Treatment of Young Children with Autism. Various studies worldwide have shown that omega-3 fatty acids are important in brain structure and function, and are also associated with anti-inflammatory effects. This pilot project will build on previous research at Bloorview that showed diminished levels of omega-3 fatty acids and possible brain inflammation in children w/ autism. The study will determine the efficacy of omega-3 fatty acids vs. placebo on the core symptoms of both autism and hyperactivity/aggression in pre-school children. $150,000 over three years. $40,000

Mt. Sinai Hospital Foundation, Toronto: To support the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease project. The Raine Cohort in Australia, a group of 2800 children followed since conception (1990), has provided a gold mine of data about how a child's pre- and post-natal environment interact with genetics to alter his/her risks in development and adult-onset disorders. This grant will further the research and enable researchers at Mt. Sinai to investigate variables suggested by the human data, but using mice models as a proxy for human development. $100,000 over three years. $30,000

Other (miscellaneous small grants, each under $5,001) $21,276 $29,302 $23,200

Total grants in the fiscal years ending December 31 $294,276 $334,302 $295,200

Recipient Organization	2009	2008	2007
The CARKE Foundation, Town of Brome Lake, Quebec. Funding to support the construction of the Brome Lake Community Centre/Centre Lac Brome providing sports, social, and medical resources to citizens of all ages. 2006-2010.	$50,000		$100,000
Centennial Infant & Child Centre, Toronto: Funding a three-year pilot program to assess the procedures and effect of including occupational therapy techniques in the programs delivered at Centennial. The Centre operates programs supporting the development and education of children at the pre-school and kindergarten ages. Using low student-teacher ratios, often one-on-one, developmentally delayed children experiencing Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, autism, congenital anomalies, and brain damage will be provided occupational therapy techniques to supplement their play and classroom learnings. 2007-2009.	$30,000	$30,000	$30,000
Renascent Foundation, Toronto: Funding of a pilot study to test and refine the material and delivery of a Parenting module. This module could become part of the standard treatment for alcohol addiction offered by Renascent Centre. Until recently, the unique position and fragility of children of alcohol-addicted parent(s), although generally understood, had not been specifically addressed in therapy. This module will deal with the role and impact of adult alcohol addiction on their ability to be responsible parents. 2007-2008.		$22,000	$22,000
Canadian Foundation For Women's Health, Ottawa: Funding to establish the "Alva Foundation Award in Neonatal and Newborn Health" as an annual research award of $40,000. Applicants will apply from across Canada in fields such as; prenatal genetic screening, nutrition during pregnancy, prevention of premature labour, gestational diabetes and the fetus, and substance abuse during pregnancy. Initial funding, 2007-2009	$50,000	$50,000	$50,000
Vancouver Oral Centre for the Deaf, BC: Funding to test a pilot program teaching parents of deaf children, in locations remote from Vancouver, home technicques for teaching and raising deaf children. Heretofore, the parents of children living at a distance from the only centre offering services to deaf children in BC were at a severe disadvantage. This test will combine occasional visits, with frequent use of video-conferencing tools to test the effectiveness of remote teaching of deaf therapies to able parents. 2007-2008		$22,000	$36,000
York University, Toronto; Funding to equip the new Psychology Research and Training Clinic. This facility will have a substantial, but not exclusive, focus on researching and treating autsim. As part of this program, the clinic will also serve as a practical training opportunity for eight to ten graduates per year focusing specifically on autism, this disorder being a debilitating conditoon dramatically curtailing healthy development in affected toddlers and young children. 2007-2009	$33,000	$33,000	$34,000
Invest in Kids, Toronto: The foundation is funding a pilot program in the Greater Toronto Area to test Invest in Kids Parenting Partnership program. The combined classroom and multi-media program is led by a two-person education team consisting of a health practitioner and a counselor, who together, cover the health, developmental, birthing, home safety and psycho-social issues experienced by first-time parents. The program aims to provide confident positive parenting skills that impact early childhood development in-utero to one-year of age. 2008-2009.	$40,000	$50,000
Hincks-Dellcrest Centre, Toronto: The foundation is funding the development and testing of the Centre's Handle With Care program. Still in the developmental stage, the course material will train child-care workers for early childhood mental health skills as they are learned and exhibited in pre-school children in the child-care setting.		$50,000
Children's Aid Foundation, Toronto: Recent research and literature has documented well the impact of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder on fetal development and subsequent mental health and development. Given that parental alcohol abuse is a common contributing factor in children being removed to protective care, it is important to understand the needs and success factors associated with successful placement of FASD children in adoptive homes. This study will examine the needs of adoptive families and the critical factors necessary for successful adoption of two or more FASD infant siblings.		$48,000
Bloorview Kids Foundation, Toronto: In support of a Pilot Trial of Omega-3 Fatty Acids in the Treatment of Young Children with Autism. Various studies worldwide have shown that omega-3 fatty acids are important in brain structure and function, and are also associated with anti-inflammatory effects. This pilot project will build on previous research at Bloorview that showed diminished levels of omega-3 fatty acids and possible brain inflammation in children w/ autism. The study will determine the efficacy of omega-3 fatty acids vs. placebo on the core symptoms of both autism and hyperactivity/aggression in pre-school children. $150,000 over three years.	$40,000
Mt. Sinai Hospital Foundation, Toronto: To support the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease project. The Raine Cohort in Australia, a group of 2800 children followed since conception (1990), has provided a gold mine of data about how a child's pre- and post-natal environment interact with genetics to alter his/her risks in development and adult-onset disorders. This grant will further the research and enable researchers at Mt. Sinai to investigate variables suggested by the human data, but using mice models as a proxy for human development. $100,000 over three years.	$30,000
Other (miscellaneous small grants, each under $5,001)	$21,276	$29,302	$23,200
Total grants in the fiscal years ending December 31	$294,276	$334,302	$295,200