F&H Cares Announces CBIRT as Our 2024 Award Recipient

Fabrics and Home is happy to announce that this year’s F& H Cares recipient is The Center on Brain Injury Research and Training (CBIRT), a center under the Department of Psychology at the University of Oregon that seeks to help children and adults with traumatic brain injury (TBI). Their research looks at how to improve their lives by developing interventions to promote a better quality of life. CBIRT also engages in training sessions in best practices for educators and professions working with TBI individuals.

What Is F & H Cares?

Fabrics and Home chose CBIRT as the F & H Care’s donation recipient for 2024. This is part of an ongoing yearly mission to help school-aged children impacted by one of the 13 disabilities listed in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Fabrics and Home donates 25 cents per yard for each yard of fabric sold from fabrics purchased on our website. “Through this initiative, we hope to provide students, families, teachers and staff affected by a disability with resources and support,” said Lorie Thur Katz, owner.

CBIRT’s History and Research

CBIRT started in 1989 when Oregon Research Institute research scientist, George Singer, and Ann Glang, then a recent PhD graduate of University of Oregon, obtained a federal grant for a project on home-school support for children with a brain injury. This work aligned with both of their experience and their belief that “everyone, including those who have sustained a brain injury can learn (and re-learn) skills if the professionals who work with them use evidence-based instructional strategies,” according to the CBIRT website. This idea is still a core principle of CBIRT.

“In all of CBIRT’s projects I am excited about the potential to help individuals with brain injuries and their families,” said Melissa McCart, CBIRT director. “I am also excited about CBIRT’s work in policy and law. When we are successful in removing barriers for people with brain injury we have the potential to impact the quality of life of individuals and their families for years to come.”


CBIRT’s research work includes:

• Educational outcomes of students following TBI
• School services for students post-TBI
• Interventions to improve social relationships with TBI
• Transition of youth with TBI from school to adult roles
• Systematic instruction in assistive technology to improve outcomes and quality of life for adults with TBI

“I hope to make sustainable change for the better that not only provides interventions and resources but that increases awareness and access to services for individuals with brain injury and their families,” said McCart.

See more about CBIRT

Learn about F & H Cares

All photos from The Center on Brain Injury Research and Training (CBIRT)