What a hidden GEM! I was a former teacher in SUSD- my oldest daughter whom is in 4th grade is…read morehaving trouble In math- we learned about AL&L from a friend- when we walked through the doors it felt like another home - they have made my daughter beg to go back daily- show support and have given confidence to my 9 year old who felt she wasn't doing well in school! No we have been there just a few weeks - and she already is improving greatly in her math and confidence / organization in all subjects- rose is my daughter favorite this far- she says she makes her laugh and enjoy learning - the owner Sydney is a warm- kind soul who truly wants the best for our daughter and family. THANK you Arcadia literacy and learning center - for giving hope and joy in our daughter again! Much lindsey M.

From the owner: We are currently enrolling for our Summer Intensive programs for Dyslexia and ADHD. With over 10…read moreyears of experience, we are here to help you and your child during this time.

Highly recommend!! Very caring staff. My kids have gone since they were 4 months old for day care…read more Very dependable and always felt confident my kids were in good hands.

I've sent both of my sons to Upward and can not say enough positive things about it. They were in…read morethe Newborns, 1s and 2s rooms at various points, and the staff in each room truly felt like family. Watching my boys grow and learn in this environment has truly been a blessing and Upward gets my highest recommendation!

It about time that a special needs school advocate was on yelp with a review!! Great job there and…read moreI have referred Christina to other parents with special needs children so they don't have to face that dreaded IEP alone with the TEACHERS staring down and trying to intimidate you. Thank you for being there, -Rosalee

Christina was so incredibly helpful with our families unique situation. She helped me to understand…read morehow the AZ Charter school system works and how to navigate the paperwork required to get our child the services he needed. Her experience as a teacher was paramount because she so obviously understood what was needed to reach our specific goals. She was so respectful and considerate in all of her communication and recommendations (and quick to respond always). I really felt like she came from a place of compassion and understanding and never a place of judgement. Beyond helping with the school situation, she spent time with our family to offer ideas and methods to help us with the behavior issues we were seeing at home. I really appreciated the graceful manner in which she integrated into our family dynamic - so that she could really see what was happening and offer realistic and helpful advice. Her services provided me with a sense that I have the emotional tools to be the best parent possible for our child. I'd recommend her in a heartbeat to any parent needing any advocacy help.

We discovered Gateway this year. Upon our "trial day" my son greeted me with both fists in the airs…read moreexclaiming, "Finally, we found a great school!" and he was right. After 2 years in the Chandler school district, my son had deteriorated by every measurable standard. The second year I ended up needing to pull him out and homeschool him while he went to therapy to deal with the stress that was seemingly caused on purpose by the staff at the public school. My son had done well generally in a public school setting before moving to Arizona, but the local school here had teachers unaware or unwilling to meet the needs of a high functioning, never aggressive autistic child. Gateway's amazing teachers, therapy programs, and constant communication with the parents allowed my son to recover and begin to thrive. It is no wonder the school received the highest level of accreditation. I have an hour and a half commute (one way), but that is a small price to pay to have my child begin to work independently, to become comfortable around others, to learn to self-advocate for his needs, and to learn to self-regulate. When I asked my son this year why he loves Gateway he said, "Because I just be myself." If you have an autistic child, you know what that meant to me. He can now focus on the business of learning because he is not panicked and overwhelmed by the class itself. The staff are professional, knowledgable, and genuinely care about each child. They create groups of students with similar abilities so the group to work together. They foster independence, confidence, and teach the child how to manage their autism. They empower each student with successful experts in all walks of life on the spectrum, and bring therapy to the group where the teachers can model and encourage what is learned throughout the week. No more driving from one therapist and then another--the school creates a holistic approach to the child's life. The horse therapy has been the best addition to my boy's regimen. He has discovered a passion for animals and now has new friends in the neighborhood because of that passion. But one of the most important gifts has been to learn from the modeling of the staff and the other students how I can do better at meeting my child's needs. When you are surrounded by other high functioning children on the spectrum, it is easy to see the attributes that common among children on the spectrum and I have become a lot more patient with my working with him. I consider this school a godsend for our family. Thank you Robin, Max, and Matt. You have changed our family for the better.

Note: I wrote this in the past and am posting it now) ---- I am a past student that attended…read moreGateway academy for one year , and god! I would not recommend you go here if you or your child is gifted or at least grade level. You ask for harder work, and are dismissed by teachers that wish they could actually teach you more, but as per the dictators policy (Mrs. Robin) they can't give me actual challenges. I have had 2 tests maybe, and I'm more than halfway through the year. To add to this, these tests were the easiest tests I've ever taken in my life! Do not send your child here! Also, here's a list that I took at the begining of the year (when I still had hopes of leaving) which doesn't include a lot of the new stuff. Here's a summary of the information because the school would probably kick me out (not that I would mind) Version to my parents My classes this year aren't challenging me or giving me the resources I need to learn. In math, we're a month behind because the online curriculum still isn't fixed, and we're stuck reviewing topics I mastered in sixth grade. Science work is so easy and drawn-out that deadlines mean nothing, and tests are recycled to the point where grades don't reflect real understanding. Language class is almost entirely Duolingo, which doesn't teach grammar or real communication skills, and even "enrichment" work takes weeks for something I could finish in days. History is just fill-in-the-blank notes and shallow projects instead of meaningful, in-depth learning like I had before. I'm not being pushed to grow, and staying here is holding me back academically. Version for administration In math, we are already a month behind because the Savaas curriculum still isn't fixed, despite my teacher contacting Mr. Anthony 1-2 weeks ago. My teacher wasn't given proper resources and had to reuse slides from a previous school, so the pace is slow. We've spent over a week reviewing order of operations and negative numbers, which I mastered in sixth grade. In science, deadlines are stretched far beyond what's needed--two weeks to take notes that should take 2-3 days, and tests are meaningless because, after taking them, we just redo the same questions for credit. Even when I ask for harder work, I'm told I still have to do the same easy assignments, which wastes time. Language class is almost entirely Duolingo, which doesn't teach grammar or sentence structure, and enrichment work is stretched over three weeks for tasks I could finish in days. History is mostly fill-in-the-blank notes and shallow projects, like spending a week on domestication with no deeper exploration, compared to last year when I created in-depth presentations on world history topics. I'm not being challenged, my time is being wasted, and staying here will hold me back academically.

Came here for a job interview. Met with Carolyn and Abby, who are both very nice. Took a tour of…read morethe bailout and got to observe a classroom with some older kids in it. It was really interesting and a thrill for me to see these kids achieving academic and personal goals. This school specializes in the needs and learning of children with autism and the teachers here are really amazing with these kids! I wasn't chosen for a job but they weee impressed with my resume and will keep it on file. I enjoyed my interview and visit. This is a really good school.

This school, along with Miss Ary and the staff that works with her are a some of the best things to…read moreever happen to my son so far. Hes happy going to and coming home from school every day. I'm very satisfied with the ease to communicate directly with the teacher via Class Dojo and the amount of communication coming from the teacher every day. The staff seems energetic and enthusiastic about their jobs. My son is speaking a lot more at home as well. Super satisfied with this school so far.

This is a school for children with learning challenges. In addition to the 23K yearly tuition,…read morethe curriculum used for high school is an online learning program through the University of Nebraska high school. Students are required to purchase UNHS curriculum, in addition to JGS tuition. As a requirement of UNHS, the progress tests must be proctored by the person set up to proctor students. In this case it is the owner, Dana Herzberg. She allows the teacher's to proctor the students. That's the first of many violations. In a weird twist of cheating stories we hear about every day. The school staff, JGS, is cheating the students. They are providing answers to tests, allowing double-sided notecards to be used while testing, and recycling testing material from year to year. The "old" tests are used to make study guides for the students. The students are then required to make their note-cards from the study guide. (Which is actually the test)? These poor unsuspecting students are being robbed of an education and they don't even realize it. Sure, they are all getting wonderful grades. But, like always, there's a cost. The cost is the student's (if not challenged enough) are not learning. I encourage you to read the proctor guidelines. This post is 100% factual. http://highschool.nebraska.edu/-/media/unhs/files/pdf/proctor_guide.ashx?la=en

This school is the real deal: It is exactly what some other schools say they are on their marketing…read morematerial, but turn out not to be. Dana, the director, is not only knowledgeable about kids who learn differently (gifted, ADHD, dyslexic, twice-exceptional etc...), she also works tirelessly on giving these kids the education they need in a warm and supportive environment. She knows how to pick the staff that shares in her vision as well, so everyone at this school is on the same page. I would say that any child would benefit from this kind of learning environment, but for kids who learn differently, regardless of the reason, this school IS the place to be!!! My son loves coming to school every day, and I feel so grateful to have found On Track Academy!