I think we can all say that more than anything we want the best for our kids; better education, to be surrounded by people who love them and to be embraced for their individuality. That is exactly what I envisioned Satori to be. Unfortunately, that was not the case. I sent my three-year-old son to Satori, and after three weeks I was told by Jo, the Director that he was "being seen as a bad kid and that he believed that he was high functioning autistic." I am not sure for all you other parents but, for a director to tell a parent something like this is devastating.
When you first start Satori, there is a process in which you would come in to see if your child is "a good fit for the school." Jo said that my son was the perfect fit for the school because he is inquisitive and curious children just need to be guided. However, when our family feels under financial turmoil, I had requested a scholarship until we could get back on our feet and I now believe that this played a HUGE role in his being dismissed.
After two weeks, I had asked his teacher Magon (pronounced Megan) how he was doing, and she said that he was doing excellent. 2 days later, I got a call from Jo stated that I need to find another school for my son. The following Monday, she called me at roughly 11 am and said that I needed to pick up my son because he bit his teacher and was no longer allowed at the school because of the reasons stated above. I think this is ironic because when I switched my son back to his old daycare (3 months ago), he has not bitten anyone.
Another complaint that I have is in regards to their staff members. One, in particular, I think her name is either Donna or Kathy but, she is an older lady who takes care of the kids during the extended care hours. Most mornings I would wait until my son's teacher Maggie showed up because she wouldn't even say hi to my son in the morning and would continually ignore him. I am not even sure why she is employed there if she does not know how to approach children. There were also times where I came to Parker's classroom early, and I would hear Magon yelling at the children. Maggie, on the other hand, is amazing, and I am glad that she is in the classroom to balance out Magon.
I contact Jo, Magon, and Brian Love several times to request a refund on the school t-shirt and the field trips that we paid for but, I never received it. I am thankful that my son has left this school. TUSD Child Find has provided a SIGNIFICANTLY better education than Satori could ever and it was free as opposed to the crazy 825+meals and with the scholarship, it was still 700+meals. My son just needed help with communication. He is doing amazing. I think Satori should be ashamed and should change their mission statement because they do not live up to any of the standards. It's all a façade. read more