I'm sharing my experience with Brightmont Academy Scottsdale Campus under the leadership of Sarah…read moreHorton. As a mom, I truly loved the idea of Brightmont's one-on-one model. My son is extremely intelligent--like many gifted children--and that's exactly why I chose this school. The 1:1 structure has the potential to be an incredible fit for the right student. My son is 14, bright, funny, and capable. He successfully homeschooled for three years without incident--not by accident, but because I took the time to understand how he learns. I taught him in a way that worked for him, with patience and flexibility. Sometimes we would even switch roles and pretend he was the teacher and I was the student--and honestly, that part came easy because he is incredibly smart. He wanted to attend school, liked his teachers, and was completing his work. That's why this experience has been so difficult. For a child like mine--who needs additional behavioral support and structure--the necessary supports were not meaningfully put in place. Over the course of several months: * The BCBA conducted only one observation lasting less than two hours * After that, there were no additional observations for approximately two months * A Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) was put together based on that limited observation and did not reflect my son's level of need * No Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP) was ever created or implemented * An RBT was providing support, but there was no BCBA oversight or supervision at any point I was never provided behavioral data, no analysis of the function of behaviors, and no tracking to support decisions. There was no communication from the BCBA--not with me, not with the RBT, and not with the teachers. No meetings, no weekly collaboration, nothing. At one point, Sarah Horton said that Brightmont was a perfect fit for Blake. Despite that, she removed him from Brightmont with less than three weeks of school left, knowing there was no other placement available for him. I was actively advocating for appropriate services and support through the district, and she did not stand behind that advocacy. Instead, she sided with the district, and I don't believe that's right. I also understand that the district (Paradise Valley Unified School District) funds placements like this. However, from my perspective, it felt like those priorities were not aligned with what my child needed. Regardless of how funding works, a child's needs should always come first--especially for a vulnerable student who is trying, engaged, and wanting to learn. What makes this even harder is that there were options. I offered to have my son's behavioral coach come into the school during those final weeks to support him. She was willing to do so. That option was denied, and the decision to end his placement was made by Sarah Horton. Every day, my son's access to water and the bathroom was restricted. My son is on medication and has a doctor's note requiring unrestricted access to water. The amount he needs varies, and staying hydrated is medically necessary to prevent serious side effects, including migraines and other complications. My son recorded a conversation, and what I heard was inexcusable. He was denied access to water and left in a room by himself. It is incomprehensible to me that a child with a documented medical need would have water withheld. Access to water is a basic need, and in this case, it was also a medical requirement. My son does well with the right support. He works with a behavioral coach at home before and after school and thrives because she is experienced, patient, and speaks with him--not at him--and never shames him. I wish that Brightmont and Sarah Horton had taken the opportunity to support him, advocate for him, and ensure he was not denied access to FAPE--which ultimately, he was. If your child needs behavioral support, structure, communication, and advocacy, I strongly encourage you to ask detailed questions before choosing this school. Sarah, I encourage you--as well as any educator or administrator--to stand behind your students. Stand with caregivers. Stand up to the district when a child needs appropriate services and support. What you did to my son was harmful. It was psychologically traumatizing. My child has already survived a national disaster, the loss of his home and our business, and a major life transition relocating to Arizona. This was an opportunity to embrace him, encourage him, build his confidence, and help him re-engage in school. Instead, you did the opposite--and removed him with less than three weeks left in the school year. Every child deserves better.

The principal and staff at this Brightmont location have gone above and beyond to accommodate the…read moreneeds of my special needs son. Although this is not a dedicated special needs school, I am incredibly grateful for everything they have done. My son struggled at every other school until he came to Brightmont, and now, for the first time, he is truly learning and thriving with the one-on-one lessons. This approach is working wonderfully for him, and I couldn't be happier. If I could give them more than five stars, I absolutely would!

An amazing place with amazing caring educators…read more Kiddos are treated with respect and are provided with age appropriate learning tools and a fun atmosphere to utilize them. When any specific services are requested the center will make it a priority to satisfy the need. The value for the services provided is awesome!

I took my son Jack here for a year and we just drove by and he pointed and said MOM! Look my old…read moreschool," and I said "oh yeah I'm surprised you remembered" (he's almost 8 now) I then asked "you must have really liked it there" he said "yes mom I loved it, they understood me." My son had special needs, behavioral and a speech delay and during this time his Dad and I were going through a rough Ron's in family court. I am appalled by the negative reviews. They are absolute garbage. Simply untrue to say the least. I have met the owner, and every single teacher and supervisor here. They are some of the most loving, caring, and dedicated individuals I had up to that point met at any other day care or preschool. And my son went to Childtime on bell rd, which was good. He attended tutor time on bell rd, which was disgusting and horrible and even more so the director there was trashy and had an agenda. But kids prep academy had small groups, next level care/attention, and extremely invested, loving, and more importantly QUALIFIED individuals organizing and running the place. And my son was happy, treated fairly, and in his words, he was understood. Which meant everything to our family, especially during the difficult time it was. The value here is one which can't be sized simply by a dollar amount. I am a real life testimony. And I deeply regret not writing this and giving them the credit they deserved a long time ago. Please, by all means feel free to reach out to me directly using this app messages if you would like to know more. I can't say enough wonderful things about this exceptional childcare.

I got bullied for having a disability and they wouldn't do anything the principal, Mr. Traud and…read moremiss Kathy were very disrespectful and and the food was not very good even at the end of the year they wouldn't give the children food. They said that we have a food shortage and they wouldn't provide any food. This is their job to provide food. why won't they do it? It is a failure school and if they don't like a child, they will stay hating him for the whole year and if they do hate a child, they don't post any pictures of that specific child. They don't do anything even if you wanna like request something they do not do it they don't provide anything so disrespectful and don't come to the school. I will move my child from this school...

We absolutely love this school! The teachers are supportive and caring, and we are so happy we…read morefound this place!

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

We have been at PCA for over a year and absolutely love it. I highly recommend. Teachers are so…read morewarm and caring I could not ask for a better place for my kids. We unfortunately have to move our kids closer to home which is such a difficult decision I had to make and wish I didn't have to. Wanted to shout out to Ms. Angie, Kaylee, Ms. Carmen and Ms. Mari. These people are amazing and so supportive. Ms. Carmen is such a kind and caring teacher to my 4 year old. I'm seriously bawling my eyes out having to take my kids to a different school due to commute.

We are so grateful for the wonderful care our daughter receives at Phoenix. Children's Academy…read more The entire staff, from the front desk team to the chef, teachers, and faculty, have made us feel at ease every day. We love and appreciate everyone there and highly recommend them for all your child's needs. Thank you for everything you do!

It took my almost 8 months after my son was discharged to write this review because I wanted to…read moremake sure it was based on facts and not my opinion. But after 8 months of my son thriving at another school and hearing about all the work and accommodations being provided for him, it is very apparent Arizona Autism does not know what they are doing when it comes to ABA therapy. First things first I was very open and honest about my son's aggression and violent behaviors, I expressed that was the whole reason we wanted ABA therapy in the first place. Less than two weeks from my son Start date, I got a call from a BCBA stating that they were wanting to discharge Mateo because His behaviors were outside of the scope of ABA therapy. They said him having his violent outburst, as well as pulling his diaper and close down or out of the scope of ABA. That is 100% incorrect. ABA is supposed to help children who have these types of behaviors. They couldn't even give me a valid reason as to why they were discharging him. One person said it was because of the frequency of his violent behaviors, somebody said it had nothing to do with the frequency, but the intensity of his behaviors. Another person said it had nothing to do with his behaviors at all, it's the fact that he's pulling his pants down and peeing on himself. Another person said it had nothing to do with any of those things, just none of the staff, there are trained to handle kids of his caliber. I never got a straight answer. After going back-and-forth for a couple of weeks, it was determined that the director, BCBA, and RBTs on my son's case were not knowledgeable, and everybody was let go. The president of the company himself told me that ABA was a new venture for them and they may have jumped the gun hiring the staff that they did for the Gilbert location. Once this location received a new director, she told me that she didn't see anything in my son's behaviors that was out of the scope of ABA therapy. The first week or so, my son was doing OK, but then his violent behaviors heightened at home, especially in the morning, getting ready for therapy. There were nights where he wouldn't sleep and so he would sleep in, and I would take him to therapy later, They were even times where I would warn them that he's extra upset and they would advise that I was able to keep him home. I asked on multiple occasions if him missing days or if him having to sleep in and go later or even miss would affect his eligibility or affect him having a spot, and they always told me no. However, one day I get an email stating that they are discharging my son due to attendance. Mind you, I didn't get a phone call, nobody asked me to come in for a meeting, I got AN EMAIL that stated they were just charging my son. And I haven't heard anything from anybody since. I kid you not, there were days I would pick up my son and he was filthy. Food all over him, didn't look like they wiped his face or washed his hands. And he never looks like that when I pick him up from his new school. There was one specific time where I picked him up and he was wearing two pairs of pants (jeans and sweats) and the only explanation that was given to me was "That's what he wanted" when my son was clearly uncomfortable, wearing two pairs of shorts. If your child is lower functioning, and on the higher level of the autism spectrum, this place is NOT for you/them. They do not know how to handle aggression, self harm, children who suffer from toileting issues. They told me themselves their staff is just not equipped to handle children with these types of behaviors. And I wish they would have told me that from the beginning before I pulled my son out of school when I specifically told them that these behaviors were what we needed to work on. My son is in a new place and is thriving. And they have told me that they haven't seen anything outside of the scope of ABA or anything out of the ordinary that a trained BCBA/RBT wouldn't be able to work on. Save yourself the heartache and find another ABA place.

Best therapy place. Moved from New York to Arizona just to get therapy for my daughter. They have…read morebeen so helpful. Other places I contacted were not genuine.