The Legacy School is a small, independent school for children with language-based learning…read moredisabilities. My son is in his third year and and is succeeding in school because of the private tutoring that is a part of the school day and the very small class size.

From the owner: We educate bright, capable, creative children with dyslexia. Our school is small, and has a…read morefamily-like atmosphere and feeling. Our educational program is highly individualized and tailored to meet the educational needs of each child.

I had a very negative experience with this school back in 2018, but luckily I managed to get myself…read moreout within a few months. Before I state my opinions, I will give you a rundown of a typical day at this school. I'll start with the morning. A staff member comes to your house to pick you up in an SUV. My driver had something against me, I don't know what I did but she hated me, which sucked cause she seemed really sweet in the beginning. To my displeasure, everything that came out of her mouth was passive-aggressive, she was overall unbearable to be around. Her name is Mrs. Amy, to sum it up, she's just a very bitter woman. When you first arrive, they put you through a metal detector, take off your shoes, and look through everything you have. You can't go anywhere or do anything without being escorted by a staff member, to cut this part short, they'll stand outside the door when you're in the bathroom. I'm sure you can imagine that the rest of it is just as ridiculous Now and then you hear screaming from out in the hallway. They're usually dragging a kid to the "quiet room". A small white room with nothing in it, just an uncomfortable tile floor and a massive metal door. They use this room for almost every problem they encounter, I don't know whether that's the protocol or just plain laziness. Either way, it's always an uncomfortable experience and generally leads to more trouble than actually needed. A typical school day is as you may expect from what I've already written, absolutely wretched in every way, no contact with the outside world, very violent, and very strict. You may not speak out of turn, you may not leave your seat without asking, you may not be alone at any time, you may not disagree with the staff in any way, and you may not complain about mistreatment. You can't even stand up to stretch, you must ask for permission every time you lift yourself off of your seat if even for a second. All of these things will get you screamed at, and if they feel like it, they might throw you in the quiet room for it. Complaining about mistreatment is a one-way ticket to the quiet room, there is no tolerance for any type of confrontation with the staff. They tell you to "be respectful", but their faces say "worship me like a god." And going home is just a repeat of the morning, I won't get into that. Here are my thoughts on the school. I'm sure most of the teachers here very much love the power trip, as anyone else would see that this place is cruel and borderline abusive to its students. It's all nasty women who seem to love yelling at kids, you can see the enjoyment in their faces, it's not discreet at all. They stand there smirking with their arms crossed after they've sent some poor kid to the quiet room. I'm sure it's because they feel they lack power in their lives, which I understand. But put that emotion into a hobby or something, don't use it to leave lasting trauma on children's psyche. I feel terrible for Mr. John, he obviously means well, but he can't seem to understand how unhealthy this school is for the mental well being of every student there, which is already unstable for the vast majority of them. The reason these kids end up in these schools is that they're unstable and need help. High Road's system is built specifically to break students. This system bears a striking resemblance to that meant to train aggressive dogs. This system will only repress their student's problems and let them build up inside, these problems will only come out later in life, possibly in some huge outburst, possibly putting themselves and-or others in danger. These kids don't need this, they need an environment of love and support which this school lacks entirely. These problems need to be dealt with at the root. You can't just break kids until they fit into the system. It doesn't work. In all, this school needs to be shut down. Arrow Center for Education is a wonderful example of a school that uses love to rehabilitate its students. The teachers truly have a bond with their students and as a result, the majority of the students have a bond with them. This school completely turned me around. I went from skipping school and doing nothing, then to having mental breakdowns at High road, then finally to being motivated to get my diploma at Arrow. There's actually a lot of irony involved in the state of High Road. Contrary to High Road's theory that harsh treatment yields good behavior, it is by far so much more violent than Arrow, yet it houses the same type of kids. Parents, as a neurotypical, albeit depressed person who went through this, take my advice. Anywhere but here. Please. Your child deserves so much better. High Road was just nightmare fuel for me, I still have horrible dreams about this place. Literally, most of my dreams have plotlines that involve escaping this school. I wake up covered in sweat. The same lasting trauma doesn't need to happen to your child.

Life Changing! This was our first year at Oakwood, and despite COVID, it was by far the best year…read moreof school that my daughter has ever had. She thrived academically, emotionally and socially. She now loves to read and write stories, and she is happy to do her homework everyday, with out any prodding from me. Best of all, she now believes in herself and her ability to learn. They handled the distance learning brought on by COVID beautifully, and she was able to keep learning and engaging with her class and teachers all the way through the end of school. My only regret is that I didn't start her at Oakwood two years earlier.

Incredible School. I attended Oakwood School for nine years because I got diagnosed with Dyslexia,…read moreDyscalculia and some executive functioning issues when I was seven years old. Oakwood school's owners and staff have been wonderful throughout my education. Had it not been for Oakwood School I would have never been able to graduate from High School and graduate from Northern Va Community College with an Associates degree of science with a Major in General Studies. I give Oakwood School Five Stars because the teachers work very hard to teach and inspire their students.

I used to here at Paxton Campus and this is incredible school your adult kids will love working…read morehere and learning and challenging them selfs and such great education and the staff is blessing angels and have you feel so welcomed and hard working devoted and dedicated to your community others and biggest hearts and blessings and also have fun and enjoy there self and learn a lot and such patient supportive understanding gives good advice and for all the adults with disabilities and have them feel special and treated like a adult and bring your adults with disabilities and I RECOMMEND IT SO MUCH THEY ARE THE BEST EVER!! They are so passionate for Paxton Campus and the community and always strong positive staff and with a smile. Please come check it out Paxton Campus!!! They have you feel very welcome and like family and very helpful with information you need to know and need and help plus have awesome events and fundraising too and please donate donate to there Campus the more money the more they can change lives from now and the future thank you. I really appreciate it. Love Lauren

From the owner: The Aurora School is a caring, educational community that offers a quality education for…read moreindividuals with special needs. We provide a progressive learning environment that serves individuals with intellectual disabilities, ages 5 to 22. Using the latest techniques, curricula, and technology, students and their families become active partners in their individualized education program. We offer a wide variety of special education programs. Our curricula and activities are made to meet the individual student's needs. Among the skills we teach our students are: Verbal behavior Academic literacy Reading Social skills Self-management Problem-solving skills

This school provides a safe Christian learning environment. The campus is well kept and clean. The…read moreschool doesn't have central AC. However, academically it is lacking. The curriculum is not rigorous or challenging especially the foreign language classes. Also, several teachers are not attentive to their student's needs and learning styles. There is a blanket approach to teaching. I feel as though the teachers look at their jobs like respite from the rigors of public schools. They don't put forth effort and lack passion for teaching and educating young minds. The school lacks diversity on every level, including the administration, faculty, staff, and student population. The tone of the school is not welcoming. Sadly, unconscious bias is real at this school. During dismissal a staff person, Mr. Pipkin, or Ms. Ashby waves to select exiting vehicles. Thankfully, the students appear to get along well despite the atmosphere set by staff and parents. Last week parents were sent an email advising of unsafe lead levels in the drinking water. Most classes have close to 30 students and the school isn't very large. In my opinion, the school has become overcrowded in recent years. However, the student population increases yearly. There are over 500 students. Also, keep in mind that most Catholic schools do NOT have the resources and accommodations of public schools and are not legally required to provide assistance to students with certain special needs. Unfortunately, the door is not fully open to students with special needs. In fact, I believe that the inclusion of such students is discouraged. Many communications from the school are regarding fundraisers and there are a lot. 09-04-18: Annually, over 3.2 million in tuition and NO central air conditioning. School closed due to excessive heat for 3 days. Email stated that the school raises over $45K each year during Race for Education fundraiser. The school needs to allocate those funds for air conditioning. Do your research before applying to this school or any private/Catholic school. Your family may find better options elsewhere.

I absolutely love this school! My dad graduated from here many moons ago and I am proud to say our…read moredaughter (his grandkids) will be attending here from PreK to 8th grade! I have so many nice things I can say about the school from the outstanding principal to the greatest admissions to the nicest and caring teachers! This school is awesome and I am a proud parent of a Wolfpack kid!

The Sudbury method is quite different from mainstream educational philosophies, but don't let that…read morestop you from looking into Fairhaven School. My two sons have thrived in ways that are less measurable and far more important than anything we noted when they were in "regular" school. The truth is that compulsory education tends to focus on relatively arbitrary facts which might be memorized for a test, but are in no way a good measure of intelligence, well-being, or future success. When youth are trusted to find their own passions, they dive into learnings they cannot simply forget. They aren't forced to stay any longer than they wish to in any one subject, which reduces the risk that they will lose their natural love of learning or burn out. All in good time, students dive again, as desired, and in this organic way, they build a much more solid knowledge-base over time. Rather than simply learning facts, they continue to find out who they are, and to build their own paths towards their own goals. The "kids" here seem to maximize their own individual social-emotional skills, learned naturally through the democratic nature of the school and the peer feedback therein. Facts can be learned anytime (and are), but character is best build in our early years of development. Fairhaven provides just that--a fair haven--within which youth can develop this character. A place where youth take all the time they need to heal from any past school-related trauma, learn to re-find a love of learning (or keep it if they never lost it!), and learn natural consequences without shaming. This method requires parents to trust the process and take the long view--definitely not always easy, at all--but absolutely worth it. I work to build connections to other Fairhaven parents, and that supportive network continues to be incredibly helpful in this regard. I cannot recommend Fairhaven more highly.

2/5, the amenities were nice, and the campus is wonderful, but poor student/staff culture,…read moredysfunctional administrative systems, and lack of educational support make it a hard avoid for me. Please do not repeat the mistakes I made when I lost my middle school years here. I am a former student of Fairhaven School (2016-2023). In my time I found that the school suffered from quite a few issues. I do not recommend it for kids with ADHD, Autism, or learning disabilities, as it is fairly sparse in any structured or dedicated methods to help people with those issues find out how to function. My primary issue in this school was liability and safety. I had two friends and classmates who were sexually harassed and assaulted. One was a transmasc man assaulted by a cisgman. In that case the school ejected the perpetrator. The other case was a cisgender man being sexually harassed by a cisgender woman. The accused was not suspended or ejected from the school. In neither case were authorities contacted by the school on the issue. In my experience, the school is fairly obsessed with money and liability. The staff is less concerned about student safety and more-so about legality. In addition, due to a student lead democratic judicial system, kids are often subject to callous judicial proceedings, with jurors often being disinterested in the process, and intentionally speeding along hearings. Furthermore, many punishments given by the judicial system were, in my opinion, outsized and often drawn on ideological lines. The school was very intolerant of certain transgressions, which is fine for a school to do, but I find is inappropriate, as the school advertises a fair and rounded judicial system. I also once again find that student lead judiciaries were often very lax about prosecuting sex-crimes. I have been able to flourish after transferring to my local public high school, and thanks to my time there I've been set on a college course, but I undoubtedly have holes in my knowledge and am behind where I could be. I seriously suggest looking into other options, as for the high tuition, this ecosystem is not worth it. I will admit I have felt jaded by my experience here, but without touching the culture of the school, I simply think the model doesn't work. Kids should have freedom, but I find that if young kids aren't forced to learn, they typically will not build skills that will be helpful later. It isn't fair to have a 6 year old decide their future all the way out to college, because all they want is to have as much fun as possible at that age.

The staff at Sheppard Pratt have been consistently unprofessional in my experience. On multiple…read moreoccasions when calling to speak with a patient, I was met with a curt tone, interrupted, and placed on hold without any explanation. What's even more concerning is that this does not appear to be an isolated incident. Other family members and callers have reported being placed on hold for extended periods (15+ minutes) and then having their calls abruptly disconnected without explanation. If a patient is unavailable or there are communication restrictions, that should be clearly communicated. Repeatedly placing callers on hold and disconnecting calls creates unnecessary stress for families trying to check on their loved ones. For a facility that provides mental health care, a higher level of professionalism, communication, and empathy should be expected. unfortunately, my experience has not reflected that standard.

Horrible experience. Truly scary. 8 minute showers, finger pricked at 5 am, weighing you daily…read morewith a paper gown on. Measurements in Kg thinking you a cant convert it into pounds. Escorted to the bathroom, you can't flush the toilet. They conviently have a key that can only flush the toilet. Oh and if you don't eat 75% of your food, even you don't like it, Ensure it is until drink it. The worst experience of my life. Since then I lost my lower extremity, SP was worse!!

Such an amazing program! They work well the children really well. I enjoyed the entertainment!read more

Exploration Nation was able to work with me on the ideas I presented and although the plan I had…read morethey didn't have it on their list of programs they made it work. We had 2 incredible Pancake Days with students and 1 Family Bingo Night as an attendance incentive. Families and students had so much fun during these events. The staff are amazing!! They all work together, creative, organized, flexible and fast!!! Set-up and clean up after events is done super fast! I am happy to continue working with Exploration Nation! Thank you!!

Overall, going to this school has been a very positive experience for me. Unlike schools like High…read moreRoad, this place has an environment based on love rather than fear, and the students thrive because of it. I feel like I have to mention High Road because of how bad of an experience I had there. I like to think maybe a parent considering that school may see this and reconsider. High Road was very cold and strict, the staff was almost inhuman, and violence was the answer to every problem their students had. The teachers here feel very human, and they very much care about their students. Their problems were de-escalated rather than escalated further. The students are so much less violent than that of High Road, but they obviously house the same type of kids. It may not be a perfect school, but it's leagues ahead of High Road in the way they treat their students. I was very hesitant to trust this school because of my experience with High Road, but I am very glad I did. For contrast, see my review on High Road here: https://www.yelp.com/biz/high-road-school-white-marsh?hrid=3CL5CogM4yfijlaBrssjGg&utm_campaign=www_review_share_popup&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=(direct) I will add more to this review when I feel the need, but it is currently 12:24 AM and I'd like to sleep.

From the owner: In operation since 1997, Arrow Center for Education School (originally located at Cromwell Bridge,…read morenow located in Hunt Valley) is a private, separate-day school providing full-day special education and related services to a maximum of 54 students. Our primary goal is to help each student reach their full potential academically, emotionally, and behaviorally. This is achieved through a well-structured environment, low teacher-to-student ratio, and the integration of a therapeutic, treatment-oriented education model.