Educational Services

The purpose of the educational program is to provide students with
unique, individualized opportunities so that they can develop positive attitudes, a greater understanding of themselves, increase their knowledge, and develop skills commensurate with their potential to become self-controlled, self-respecting and self-sufficient adults. The model employed in the educational program is known as clinical teaching, i.e., the use of a diagnostic/prescriptive approach. The levels of the educational programming range from kindergarten through 12th grade (* please see notation below). Based on ability and potential, students are either placed in an academic content emphasis program or one in which the emphasis is on acquiring basic practical life skills and vocational experiences.

Within the academic program, each student has a written Individualized Education Program (IEP) including goals, specially designed instruction and related services such as reading therapy, speech/language therapy, developmental movement therapy and occupational therapy. Classroom programs are individualized in accordance with the implementation of each student's IEP and through ongoing team discussions. Classroom programs also include those that are self-contained and those that are departmentalized. Another option is a partially self-contained alternative program for students who have difficulty functioning successfully within the regular program.

* At this time the youngest day student is eleven years of age and the youngest residential student is thirteen. We hope to expand these chronological age constraints through future enrollments.