Shire Announces Award Recipients For ADHD Scholarship Program

Program helps individuals with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) going on to higher education

Shire, a global specialty biopharmaceutical company, has named the recipients of its 2012 ADHD Scholarship Program. The program is for individuals in the United States diagnosed with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) who are pursuing higher education at a college, vocational school, or technical school. Fifty award recipients have been selected from 1,437 applicants across the United States. The recipients were selected on the basis of their community service, volunteer and extra-curricular activities, and response to a personal essay explaining how ADHD has impacted their lives. The recipients’ essays explained the challenges associated with managing ADHD symptoms.

In 2011, Shire introduced the ADHD Scholarship Program and awarded 25 scholarships.  Due to the tremendous response, Shire doubled the number of scholarships to 50 in 2012.  The scholarship program is part of Shire’s patient-centric approach that offers support to patients with ADHD, their parents, families, caregivers, and patient advocates.

The Shire ADHD Scholarship includes a $2,000 monetary award and a prepaid year of ADHD coaching services. The coaching services are intended to assist the recipients in their pursuit of higher education and are provided by the Edge Foundation. For more information on the program, please see www.ShireADHDScholarship.com.

The 2012 winners are: Isaac Thompson of Arkansas; Adam Redleaf of Arizona; Mariah Carray and Geena White of California; Adam Wruck of Connecticut; Timothy Millison of Delaware; Michael Danis of Florida; Andrew Hawkins, Daniel Tache, and Meredith Wright of Georgia; Tiffany Lamb of Idaho; Bradley Szmurlo and Stephanie Williams of Illinois; James Kinsey and Emily Parker of Indiana; Natalie Mardirossian of Maryland; Jake Bailey of Minnesota; Callie Lack of Missouri; Olivia Langerhans of New Jersey; Brad Bauman, Zachary Elvove, Joseph Hara, and Michael Knapp of New York; Meredith Morrow, Molly Pfordresher, and Abby Thompson of North Carolina; Jacob McClellan and Charles Schneider of Ohio; Jenna Murray of Oklahoma; Cole Goodman, Brett Incollingo, Matthew Moore, and Benjamin Schreiber of Pennsylvania; Dustin Martin of South Carolina; Hannah Thomas of Tennessee; Dominic Lese, Emily Lord, and Katelyn Simmons of Texas; DomineeMcNerney, Tess Mulrean, and Kelsey Peterson of Virginia; and Rachel Best of Washington. The remainder of the 2012 recipients chose not to participate in any publicity.

“We received thousands of applications from inspiring individuals with ADHD who are pursuing higher education,” said Michael Yasick, Senior Vice President of Shire’s ADHD business. “This year’s scholarship recipients exemplify the values of passion, determination, and positive attitudes. We’re proud to recognize these recipients and provide them with tuition assistance and ADHD coaching services to help them continue their educational pursuits.”

Award recipients will be offered ADHD coaching from the Edge Foundation, which includes weekly sessions with specially trained ADHD coaches. The students set weekly goals and action plans to meet those goals and have e-mail and phone support from their coaches to help keep them on track. This support may be important for students because they have more free time and less adult supervision in a higher education environment.

“The Edge Foundation applauds the commitment that Shire has made to these students in expanding this program.  We are happy to provide them with the support of our coaches during this important time in their lives,” said Robert Tudisco, Executive Director of the Edge Foundation.

The Edge Foundation is a Seattle-based nonprofit organization that offers support for students with ADHD. The Edge Foundation’s primary mission is to provide access to qualified, professional coaches for students with ADHD as part of their multi-modal treatment program.

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Notes to editors

SHIRE PLC

Shire’s strategic goal is to become the leading specialty biopharmaceutical company that focuses on meeting the needs of the specialist physician. Shire focuses its business on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, human genetic therapies, gastrointestinal diseases, and regenerative medicine as well as opportunities in other therapeutic areas to the extent they arise through acquisitions. Shire’s in-licensing, merger, and acquisition efforts are focused on products in specialist markets with strong intellectual property protection and global rights. Shire believes that a carefully selected and balanced portfolio of products with strategically aligned and relatively small-scale sales forces will deliver strong results. For further information on Shire, please visit the Company’s website: www.shire.com.

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Statements included herein that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties and are subject to change at any time. In the event such risks or uncertainties materialize, the Company’s results could be materially adversely affected. The risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, risks associated with: the inherent uncertainty of research, development, approval, reimbursement, manufacturing and commercialization of the Company’s Specialty Pharmaceuticals, Human Genetic Therapies and Regenerative Medicine products, as well as the ability to secure new products for commercialization and/or development; government regulation of the Company’s products; the Company’s ability to manufacture its products in sufficient quantities to meet demand; the impact of competitive therapies on the Company’s products; the Company’s ability to register, maintain and enforce patents and other intellectual property rights relating to its products; the Company’s ability to obtain and maintain government and other third-party reimbursement for its products; and other risks and uncertainties detailed from time to time in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.