If you're looking for support for yourself, or your child with special needs, this is a place to…read morecome to and ask questions! Most of the staff here has a family member with a disability so they're able to understand the unique experiences that come from raising a child with a disability and connect with people with that perspective. There's no judgment here, just information, resources, empathy, and empowerment. - webinars, support groups, online learning - check out their website to see the list of things they can offer. Most services are free. They have a support staff that can provide information about community resources, working with the regional center, early start programs, educational systems, accommodations and modifications, individualized, education programs, and more. They keep your information confidential. Reach out to them if you have a child with a disability, and have questions!

I have special need thank you for creating BFF project where we can have a safe place to have fun…read moreand make you some good people

Late post: I recently moved out of the area but when I was looking for a school for my school age…read morekiddos, this place was perfect. I really like how they have the small classroom sizes. The staff are all really nice, caring and supportive of the kids needs and accommodations. I like that they are in a school site and have close proximity classrooms and a playground. The best part was that each kid has specialized curriculum. It is so important for my ASD kiddos to have the variety a typical school setting. If you are looking for a school that goes above and beyond, check this place out. I hope I can find a school like this in my new city.

My daughter attended this school for a year when she was 13. The teachers are amazing. They…read morereally get your kid. The environment is uplifting and bright. Kathy and Heidi brought my daughter out of a deep hole and created an environment where she could shine. Their program is behavioral based. Although they do provide strong academics, their emphasis is on social and emotional therapeutics.

Five stars doesn't feel like enough…read more My daughter has been attending PACE (Pacific Autism Center for Education) for almost five years now, and I truly cannot say enough good things about this incredible place. From the very beginning, we were welcomed with open arms, and we've felt like part of a caring, supportive community ever since. Her teacher, Miss Rebekkah, has been with her the entire time--and I honestly believe she is heaven-sent. The level of care, compassion, and dedication she pours into her students is something so rare and beautiful. She has made such a profound impact on my daughter's life, and by extension, on our entire family. I also want to recognize her amazing para, Isabel. She is an absolute gem--kind, patient, and so deeply committed to my daughter's growth and well-being. It's clear every day that she genuinely cares, and knowing that my daughter has both Isabel and Miss Rebekkah in her corner brings me so much peace and gratitude. Every staff member at PACE is wonderful. They go above and beyond, not just meeting the students' needs but truly seeing them--celebrating their strengths, patiently guiding them through challenges, and treating each child with dignity, love, and respect. We are endlessly grateful for the work they do. PACE isn't just a school--it's a lifeline, a safe haven, and a place where our children are empowered to thrive. Thank you, Miss Rebekkah. Thank you, Isabel. Thank you, PACE.

I've been living as a neighbor to this center. Sadly, I must depart my hometown hastily. I'm going…read moreto live in Cleveland. I am a doordasher. And one time I delivered 15-30 boba teas to the fine folks who work at the center. They left a STRONG TIP!! The students and their teachers walk past my window every day. The employees park in front of my house. When school lets out, a minor traffic jam hems up the intersection. It is because these fine folks are doing the best they can without the type of facility they want or need. They are kind, caring, smart, educated people who care about others and the community. The families that arrive to pick up their students are all nice. They don't want to be a nuisance. AND THEY ARE NOT! If you have a person on the spectrum, they would be in good hands receiving education from this fine center. They are good neighbors to have. They've brightened many a dull day for me by simply saying hello. I'm sad to leave this area, my home. I was born two miles from here. But leave I must. This corner is filled with great neighbors. They enjoy the sunsets looking down Pruneridge and also forest. They helped me out for my moving sale. But one of my favorite neighbors is the Autism center for education. It's because the people who work here and attend for education are good people making a difference in this world. This corner is nearly a paradise. I'm kissing all my neighbors goodbye. These people are the best!!!!! So long, wonderful neighbors!

Incredible humans work here. Such a diverse and caring, intelligent and compassionate group. We…read moreare incredibly fortunate to find Thriving Minds Learning Center for our kids. Thank you!!!

Love, love, love these ladies! My 11 yr old has severe Dyslexia and ADHD. Consequently, she…read morestruggles with Math and Reading Comprehension. Nique is her tutor and she is awesome! Great energy, warm and friendly and her tutoring is on point. Andie is great too!

Our son has been evaluated by DLS a few years ago for learning differences and ADHD and we have…read morebeen attending regular therapy sessions here ever since. John Fleming is the kind mastermind behind the center and its approach to helping children and parents alike. We call him a gem of a human, truly. His precise and detailed IEP has helped our school so much, is easy to follow and most importantly allows our son to thrive at school. We were blessed to be matched with our phenomenal therapist Anne-Laure Grigsby who we absolutely love and who became such an invaluable part of our family in regard to our son's educational journey. Anne-Laure is highly professional, knowledgeable and extremely supportive in every possible way, but more than that, she is very patient, kind, loving and intuitive in customizing his sessions to what is most needed at any given time. Anne-Laure has a gift of always putting our son in good spirits even though he suffers from depression while teaching him and helping him with challenging tasks. He has improved so much, gained confidence and genuinely enjoys his sessions on a weekly basis. We are so grateful to DLS for all the improvements and will continue with our sessions for as long as needed.

My son has been attending Ed Therapy for ADHD and learning differences for nearly 2 years. I cannot…read morestress how invaluable our twice weekly sessions are with Sujatha Srinivasan. John Flemming has reviewed school assessments for us and consulted on our IEP. I don't want to think how much more of a struggle this would be without them. Forever grateful for the work of this organization.

Scott is a very positive person. From the initial consultation to the in-home visit, he was…read moreattentive, professional, a great listener and created a sense of trust right away. He took the time to understand our concerns as the school system can really be a lot stressful. He responds to emails quickly which makes the communication a lot easier and reassuring. We look forward to working with him through the IEP process. Highly recommended.

Navigating the school system can be intimidating, but Scott gave us our voice. He is professional,…read morecalm, and super responsive. He helped us secure a solid 504 plan as well as crucial Home Hospital instruction for our child that was so crucially needed during his recent post surgery recovery. If you need someone to fight for your child's education, he is the person to contact. We are so thankful to have met him!

As a former student, I had a negative experience at Esther B. Clark. The environment felt overly…read morebehavioristic, as I often felt conditioned rather than supported. This created a sense of learned helplessness instead of independence or emotional growth. One example of this, students including myself, would receive incentives such as gift cards from EBC to attend school by meeting the expectations set. This felt like more of a bribery to mask unwanted behavior instead of approaching behaviors and emotions from a psychological standpoint.

The absolute worst school you can send your special needs child to. The display of ignorance and…read moreirresponsibility is quite lacking on a whole other level. Let's just say I wouldn't even trust them to watch my dog let alone my child. Incident 1: My child was dropped off at the wrong address Incident 2: My child was being bullied over a matter of months and due to the multiple ignorance from the so called principal Jody, my child snapped and attacked his bully resulting in my child being disciplined. I couldn't so much of received an email or phone call back regarding my concerns of the bully and steps we could take that would have prevented the escalated attack. Incident 3: My child was in a car accident with their provided driver and nobody called me. I found out from my child when he got home from school and was deeply distraught. The schools excuse "oh we're sorry we forgot to call you". The principals response to fixing this is, I can provide a yellow taxi cab service for you. Seriously!?! Would you put your child in a yellow taxi cab? My son spent a whole year and a half at this school, with no improvement on his reading skills, then come to find out he was actually blind this whole time. It wasn't until he had his physical appt at his doctors office that I was informed my son could not see and needed to see a specialist. He had a stigma in one eye and can barely see. It's no wonder why he can't read and just gives up right away. Why did the school not pay attention to his behavior enough to notice that he was blind? In all honesty I have never seen such a lack for concern of children before I attended EBC. The previous school my child attended was so caring, observant, proactive, communicative and willing to go out of their way to help a child succeed. Here at EBC you even try to speak to the principal you are instructed that you have to schedule a meeting with her. Who does she think she is?!? The freaking president! Jody, I work 8-14hr days 6 days a week while managing my family all on my own, if I can spare 10-20min out of my day to have a conversation without blocking out my calendar you can too! Some conversations just warrant for immediate attention. I would seriously consider another school if you're searching for your child. I'm the type of parent that observes very closely on everything. I will give everyone a benefit of the doubt before saying NO THANK YOU and making my necessary moves. I heard great things about EBC however those great comments were probably all past observation before new staffing was implemented.

If you are struggling to find a school that "gets" your neurodivergent child, look no further. We…read morewent from daily battles and school refusals to a son who now comes home beaming, sharing everything he's learned. The team here is incredible--think " true angels" and "big teddy bears" with expert teaching skills. They've replaced my son's frustration with pure confidence. Ms. Kathy in the elementary department is a true hero! We are forever grateful to Pine Hills for giving our son a place to finally belong and thrive. 5 stars isn't enough.

I'll admit, when our home school district first recommended placing my child at PHS, I was very…read morereluctant. I read some reviews online that were, frankly, horrifying. So with a lot of reservations and misgivings, I set up an appointment to tour the school and meet with staff. My initial, still somewhat skeptical reaction to the visit was that it "wasn't as bad as I expected." His shadowing days were rather mixed. The first day, a Wednesday, was "awful" according to him and he got in the car crying and refused to ever go back. But after a cooling off period, I got him to try again on Monday and he had a wonderful day and told me how much he loved it. That was six months ago (give or take) and my son has now been enrolled since the summer program in 2022. He is doing so well both academically but also in his behavior. I believe two things are the overwhelming contributors to this: 1) his class is quite small and he is finally getting the attention he craves (that has often prompted inappropriate attention-seeking behaviors in the past). 2) Negative behavior doesn't give him a free pass to go home for 2-3 days or a week (with a suspension). In addition to these, he is also rewarded, praised, and recognized (attention, attention, attention!) for good behavior. Importantly, he is gaining much-needed confidence and learning to ENJOY school. He also tells me that it is so nice to feel like his classmates "get" him. His teacher, Miss Kathy has done amazing work with him and is a great communicator with the parents as well. The other staff are wonderful as well. In particular, the Dean of Students, Mr. Wallace is deeply engaged and puts his whole heart into connecting with students and improving the school and its programs. I am so glad that I overcame my initial reservations (and my son's!) so that he's a chance to learn to be a better student and have a positive school experience.

It has been over 1.5 years since my last review, and we love the school as much as we did when our…read morechild started school 2+ years ago! Everyone on staff has been incredibly easy and pleasant to collaborate with, and responsive to my questions. The school expanded over the summer to add 2 more classrooms, so that Burkard now has 6 classrooms: K/1, 2/3, 4th, 5th, 6th and 7/8th. Having experienced a few private schools and a public school between my 2 kids, I am confident this is the best environment for my child, for both academic differentiation and SEL support. It's often lamented that parents have to choose the least bad educational option for their 2e kids, but I truly believe this is a great option. We were fortunate enough to be with his amazing 2/3 teachers for 2 years, and have a new set of teachers we love this year, too. Speaking with parents across grades, they also think highly of their teaching teams. My son continues to thrive academically (measured by his overall engagement, as well as MAP testing), and we are very happy with the math differentiation he receives. Each year, I have been pleased with the attention and care the staff takes to make sure he's challenged at the right level. They take great care to plan engaging lessons across ELA, science, social studies and SEL, and incorporate hands on projects regularly to extend their learning. My son regularly shares interesting facts he learned in class! Math is a subject he continues to be passionate about, so I reach out to the school annually for math acceleration. He is given math assessments at the start of each year to determine the appropriate placement, and is given the option of joining a higher level class, or doing independent study in his classroom. We opted this year to have him join the higher level math class on a modified schedule, and we are grateful for the ability to choose the right option for him. The daily SEL teaching is also very well done. Many schools don't have the ability to go in-depth with SEL, but our BT has devised fun games and exercises for the kids to put their SEL knowledge into practice. It was so sweet to hear that my son's 4th grade class taught new recess games to the K/1 class! The BT's keep a close watch throughout the day, so the students are able to learn and play in a physically and emotionally safe environment. When conflicts arise, the staff is there to help the students resolve the issue in an appropriate way. We get daily reports, and twice monthly newsletters sharing what he's learning, so I know he's receiving a high quality education. If your child is at a school that is not meeting their needs, I encourage you to tour the Burkard School. It is truly a gem of a school!

We found TBS about three years ago and it is quite surprising that there aren't more schools for…read morebright kids who have significant social & emotional challenges, including mood disorders. We unfortunately found very little real understanding and expertise along the way, moving from program to program, from school to school, in every case deeply involved with the IEP process. Then we decided to try TBS. The results have been nothing short of amazing. Our student's self-esteem and emotional intelligence started to grow from the start and has continued to grow ever since. No more calls asking us to come quickly, the benefits to our entire household have been pretty incredible, across parents, siblings, and friends alike. When your student talks to you about how the kids at school are 'just like me', when they express a sense of belonging and common purpose to thrive in the face of big emotions, you can only smile and reflect on the journey. ...and imagine what it's like for other parents to understand you, understand your child, and understand so much of the details of the journey. The TBS community, made up of students, teachers, and parents is one that sees your child as deserving, powerful, and good.

Leigh was truly a game-changer for our IEP triennial meeting. It was the first IEP meeting that was…read morea collaborative effort, and didn't feel like we were on oppositional sides with the IEP team. She really set the tone from the beginning and signaled collaboration. She also held the team accountable to how they wrote IEP goals and made sure they truly supported our kiddo. For once, we finally got most of the supports our child needs, but it also felt effortless because Leigh is such an incredible IEP family coach and professional. A Million Stars, if I could give them. She made all the difference for our child.

Taylor is the best special education advocate l've ever worked with. She is kind, compassionate and…read morepatient. Not to mention so incredibly knowledgeable. She made it feel easy and doable to navigate the San Jose Ca school system for my son. She's the person you want on your side in IEP meetings . Thank you Taylor!