The Rees-Jones Foundation has made a $20 million gift to the TCU Institute of Child Development at Texas Christian University. The Institute conducts research, education, training and advocacy focused on children suffering from trauma-induced developmental issues that lead to social, behavioral and emotional problems.

 

Among the principal interests of The Rees-Jones Foundation are promoting the welfare of children suffering from abuse or neglect and providing relief to those facing mental health challenges. The TCU Institute of Child Development has been able to significantly improve and expand the scope of its work to help at-risk children thanks in large part to leadership support from Jan and Trevor Rees-Jones.

 

“This Institute changes lives and, thanks to the generosity of The Rees-Jones Foundation and the continued leadership support from Jan and Trevor, this amazing work will no doubt continue to touch and restore many more families and children,” said Chancellor Victor J. Boschini, Jr.

 

The Institute’s groundbreaking Trust-Based Relational Intervention® (TBRI) therapeutic model has proven particularly effective with adoptive children and those in state or foster care. Consequently, this therapeutic model now permeates all training and policies that are employed by personnel who adjudicate and administer family law in Texas.
TCU Institute of Child Development research shows that abnormally aggressive behavior in harmed children is often caused by pervasive fear resulting from neglect, abuse or other early trauma. These children frequently suffer profound changes in their developing psyche, neurology and biochemistry. They may exhibit various mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder, reactive attachment disorder or severe depression. Explosive rage, violent outbursts and learning disabilities are also typical.

 

The Rees-Jones Foundation is the principal funder of the Institute’s three-year TBRI® Evaluation Study, a proof-of-concept analysis to confirm the therapeutic model’s effectiveness in large-scale and institutional settings. In smaller settings, TBRI® has achieved positive results in restoring harmed children to health and wholeness.
The most recent commitment from The Rees-Jones Foundation will endow the TCU Institute of Child Development and ensure that its director, Dr. Karyn Purvis, and her team can continue their important work with children from hard places. In addition to funding, the Foundation has provided strategic counsel to the Institute and fostered community partnerships with like-minded organizations.

 

In recognition of the gift, the instructional building under construction in the University’s Intellectual Commons will be named Rees-Jones Hall. The facility will provide state-of-the-art classroom space and will be the new home of the TCU Institute of Child Development and the TCU Energy Institute.
Newsweek and NBC’s Dateline, among other news organizations, have reported on the work of the TCU Institute of Child Development.