In 2008, the Torino Foundation and the Nevada Childhood Cancer Foundation opened the Torino Foundation Classroom. The Torino Foundation Classroom’s home is in the pediatric oncology unit at Sunrise Children’s Hospital in Las Vegas, Nevada. The program provides in-patient education services for children receiving long term, hospital-based treatment for life threatening illnesses such as cancer, sickle cell, HIV/AIDS, hemophilia, and immune related diseases. The 340-square-foot education facility is equipped with school supplies, computers, a DVD player, wall screen and state-of-the-art education tools.

The Torino Foundation Classroom program is exceptional in that it has been created through the cooperative investment of time, effort, and resources of four different organizations: Sunrise Children’s Hospital, the Clark County School District, the Nevada Childhood Cancer Foundation and the Torino Foundation. Further, the program is unique in that it has been designed as a pilot to roll out Nationwide. The early success achieved suggests that this program will be a model for the rest of the country and deserving of international attention as well. The classroom, lead by teacher, Lenny Ware, is a full-time, five-day-per-week elementary and secondary classroom for students who are patients of Sunrise Hospital. The classroom was created to help critically ill children remain current on their schoolwork during their treatment and recovery from their illness. It has become something even greater. In addition to the educational experience, the classroom is a sanctuary for a hospitalized child; a place outside of their hospital room where the activities of normal life take precedence.

The curriculum, which is coordinated with the daily curricula of the Clark County School District, is individually based and focuses on student’s needs, strengths and weaknesses. Funding from the Torino Foundation is also utilized to provide these children with neuropsychological testing, advocacy services for their school education plans, and assistance for children transitioning back to school through the “Kids on the Block” and/or the “Back to School in Style” program.