Truly, if I could give my account manager Michael G. (the best one though I'm biased) six stars, I…read moreabsolutely would! He went above and beyond, taking time after work on a Friday to walk me through the entire Spear platform. That alone says so much about his dedication. He's incredibly detail-oriented, professional, and welcoming, but also just naturally funny, which made the whole experience even better. I'm a dentist, and I've worked with a lot of different reps, but Michael stands out. He feels like the leader of all the managers! He truly understands the value of everything Spear has to offer and explains it so well that I feel like he could sell any course to anyone. Spear is lucky to have him, and he deserves the biggest applause!

I was first introduced to Spear probably a decade ago when I was an associate dentist. I was so…read moreimpressed by Frank Spear at the first seminar I attended. Shortly after that first visit, I purchased my own practice and wanted to learn everything I could at spear. I took seminars, workshops, several a year and joined a Spear study club. The large investment felt worth it because I was getting a great education and taking things back to implement in practice making me a better dentist and leader. Fast forward to 2021, I sold my first practice and moved to a new state. Not the best time to be taking a workshop, I reached out to Spear to let them know I needed to postpone a workshop I had scheduled and they responded it would be no problem, I could reschedule for no penalty. I then purchased a new practice and joined spear practice solutions in addition to maintaining my study club status. I upgraded to a mentor plus program and spent the most I think you can spend per month on their memberships for a year. At the end of the year my practice transitioned to a patient management software not supported by Spear practice solutions. So i cancelled that membership, but kept everything else. This was in the beginning of April 2023. I had asked if there was any concern about me attending their summit presentation in April, i got told no, no issues. Then about a week before the Summit, I receive an email that I cannot attend the Summit since I'm no longer a SPS member. I was angry b/c I'd already changed my work hours for that week and had a flight and hotel arranged. After several emails and being told I was going to receive a huge favor, they "allowed" me to attend. This really rubbed me the wrong way, but I stayed with them. Then a few months later in booking a workshop, I was told my time to rebook had expired. I had no clue this even could happen. A course I'd paid for in the past ($5500) I could no longer take, I was told because over a year had gone by since I paid for said course. Totally fair policy, except I was never made aware of it. Eventually, after several phone calls and a google review, I was told I could use the voucher for another course. I scheduled for Feb 2024. Less than two weeks prior to the course, I receive an email that the course is cancelled. Frustrated, I call and ask what is going on and am told I have no other options really, except reschedule for May 2024. So i did. This is 3 days of work missed b/c I was intending to be in Scottsddale. May rolls around, I send an email to Braxten (my advisor) a couple weeks before my course to check in. He doesn't respond. Another email. No response. So I call Spear and get told the course has been cancelled. Why wasn't I informed before this? They don't know but they think my name got left off the list, just a mistake. Ok, but I'm furious because this is the second time for this course and now it's less than 2 weeks away and I'm here with 3 open days in my schedule and another flight and hotel I need to change. I let them know I had no desire to book again and just want a refund. Now I'm being given the run around, emails ignored, etc. I was told I'd receive a refund, but it didn't show up by the time I was told it would. The amount offered in the refund is about half of what I paid. At this point, no amount of money refunded is enough, and I'm sure Spear knows that. But they continue to layer insults on top of the already frustrating things they've done by offering a partial refund. I hope by sharing this, other dentists really look into options other than spear for their education. The company has plummeted in customer service and prices obviously have continued to be extremely high. They merged with CDOCs a year or two ago. Both companies were pretty good until they merged, now both treat their clients horribly. At least in my experience.

I have Tourette's Syndrome. Dr. Duane has treated me for several years for this as well as OCD,…read moreAnxiety and depression. They are not good playmates. He is kind, knowledgeable and listens to his patients. He has been practicing for years. He travels and speaks abroad. Would recommend him with my heart and soul for children and adults with difficulties. I am very pleased to have him as my neurologist.

From the owner: Conditions We Treat Learning & Behavior Disorders…read more Attention Deficit Disorders (AD(H)D) Autism Spectrum & Aspergers Anxiety & Depression Bipolar Disorder Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, & Dysgraphia Down Syndrome Tourette Syndrome Psychosis Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) Movement Disorders Dystonia Epilepsy and Seizure Disorders Tics Disorders Tremor Degenerative Disorders Parkinson's Disease Alzheimer's Dementia At the Institute for Developmental Behavioral Neurology and Biological Psychiatry we aim to address learning, behavioral, and movement disorders with personalized attention and care. Our goal is to improve the lives of men and women of all ages that struggle with learning, behavioral, and movement disorders. Motivated by the impact we make on peoples quality of life, we are in search to help more individuals with Attention Deficit Disorder, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, Dysgraphia, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Tourette Syndrome, and PANDAS. "After over 20 years of treatment of learning, behavioral, and movement disorders I have found a real need to encourage early identification in order to ensure success in school and in adulthood." - Dr. Drake D. Duane

If I could use a one word review, I would. Amazing!! Or supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, as my…read moreson calls it. They have a wonderful, caring staff -- all just filled with love and the desire to truly guide each student to be the best they can be. Excellent services (which I'm sure will grow exponentially, as they are a new school). They service moderate to high functioning children on the spectrum -- a real missing, much needed, offering in the North Scottsdale area.

If you have child that is high functioning child that can get overwhelmed easily from having high…read moredemands and needs structure and patience to flourish, stay away from this place. The teachers are overwhelmed and don't have enough support to handle high demand ASD kids especially ones that require outside the box thinking specialist and ones that require unique curriculum to help them grow. The school forced my daughter to do lower grade academics and then tried to say that I wasn't happy with her academic achievement! She received 100% in her Language Arts 3rd grade 4th quarter and they still insisted that she wasn't ready for 4th grade due to behaviors. Since the start of the school year, my daughter struggled with the high demand that was being placed on her to fit into their programs and she was purposely placed in lower academic curriculum due to her behavior and I tried to constantly advocate that the behaviors were due to boredom but no one would listen to me. I was told that until my daughter started following directions and behaviors improve, her academic would stay the same. I just recently had my daughter's IQ tested and it came back top 5%. She tested into 5th grade reading and 7th grade spelling; her math was behind because the school refused to teach her grade level math telling me initially that she was behind and then they said oh we are too ahead in the curriculum and we can't have her join the 3rd grade class then they wanted me to get her caught up during the summer if she wanted to be in 4th grade. The owner (Victoria) just doesn't really care about your children. Your child is just $$$$ to her. She just wants the money and wouldn't care if your child succeeded or not. They have also had such a huge turn over with their staff and I am not surprised at all. The only reason I tried this place was cause of the so called "great reviews". I usually don't like to place reviews, but I just had to share since so many people recommend this school! I would be very careful with placing my child here.

I just wanted to let everyone know how much my dyslexia tutor has helped me using the Barton…read moreReading & Spelling System. Brittany is a fantastic dyslexia and reading specialist that is extremely professional and effective. We do all the sessions remotely, so it is also very convenient. We have made so much progress in the short time we've worked together and I'm so excited to share about it!  After struggling with dyslexia for my entire life, I am finally starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel. I have learned more in the last 4 months of tutoring than I have in the last 20 years! I continue to be surprised and excited from all of the progress in each of our sessions. I used to feel extremely hopeless and depressed, which stemmed from my struggles with dyslexia, but now I'm looking forward to all that I can accomplish using the skills I'm learning with this program. I've failed in the past so many times, but now I really feel like I've found the solution I've always needed to be successful! I hope that others can find a solution that's as effective as I have found.  You can check out her website if you want to learn more at www.allstaracademyaz.com or by e-mailing her at www.allstaracademyaz.com or at 602-935-0868. In my experience, her communication is very prompt and she's super easy to work with.

Brittany has helped my daughter achieve a tremendous amount of success in the time she's worked…read morewith her. My 3rd grade daughter has dyslexia and experienced self- esteem issues due to her difficulty learning to read. She uses the Barton Reading and Spelling System with my daughter...we've seen major results and are excited to see how much more she will achieve! Brittany did a thorough free consultation with us and helped us understand how dyslexia affects my daughter's learning because her brain is wired differently. She then explained the plan for her success and stayed consistent with it the entire duration we've worked with her. She took the time to assess her, talk to us, and has continued that through out the entire journey. Brittany is caring, passionate about what she does and punctual. Don't hesitate when you need a tutor!

Juliette's yoga and sound healing classes have been a wonderful resource for my child. She works so…read morewell with him. Each week, his flexibility and balance improve as they go through the different poses. Juliette has also worked very hard to connect with him, utilizing his special interests as motivators. I would recommend her services to anyone. She is amazing and a beautiful person to work with.

From the owner: Meditation, Movement, Yoga & Sound Healing ​for those on the autism spectrum…read more Benefits: Anxiety relief, calming, provides sensory input, body awareness, self regulation. Helps with coordination, balance, flexibility, focus & concentration.

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.

This school has become a second home for my son. Teacher Tyra's gentle patience and genuine empathy…read morehave helped him grow in ways we never imagined. Principal Ming is a rare soul--his wisdom, compassion, and inspiring life journey shape a school where every child is valued. The therapists pour their hearts into helping each child progress, and the cafeteria aide's kindness brings comfort and familiarity to my son's day. We feel blessed to be part of this community.

My brother attends The Aces Paradise Campus. This year is his 3rd year there and we couldn't be…read morehappier with all the help and support we get. 3 years ago, I toured many schools as I was very nervous about him starting high school and I could have not made a better choice. I am very grateful for the experience we have had, and my brother has grown and learned so much. He loves going to school and Miss Alexa and staff go above and beyond. Teachers and staff are very communicative and available to answer any questions you have.

If you have a Downs Syndrome child or family member I recommend Gigi's Playhouse without…read morereaervation. They have programs for very young children through adult. My 45-yr old participates in twice a week exercise sessions in a large room with many adults, most in their teens, 20's, maybe 30's, I would guess. He looks forward to seeing and exercising with his friends and they have an excellent leader with a group of assisting parents and volunteers. From there it's lunch with friends followed by an activity.- such as art. You'll feel good when you walk in, while you're there, and when you leave - every time. It's the people who make the difference and Gigi's Playhouse has the people and caring you like to see. Shea Blvd just a couple minutes from the 101. Try a visit and look around!

This place has the greatest people running it, is full of amazing moms and beautiful kids I wish…read moreit was closer but either way, I'll be hanging out lots more once my kiddo gets a bit older and we are out of the house more and more Thanks for all you do!

The fun Fridays aren't fun as they used too be but other than that, it's a good schoolread more

As a kid I went there for two years the first year was good the teachers were fine but the second…read moreyear went downhill it was unprofessional we had no history or PE and they played inappropriate music infront a a bunch of small kids also the kids were getting held back from going home and was getting screamed at for talking a little and ms Kris was the most unprofessional principal I've known. I felt very non supportive I was forced to do things like take off my hoddie when I was struggling and a lot of stuff so if you want your child going there it's not the best place for one BECUASE bullying teachers a ton of stuff