Comments on: Eagle Hill School (CT)

By: Sanford Shapiro

Sanford Shapiro — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 01:50:44 +0000

Mary,
First, a few questions: If she has an IEP she should be having formalized re-evaluations (testing) at least every three years. So, how come she hasn’t?

Have you tried any “Social Thinking” groups out side of the school day?

IF you think Franklin Academy may be a good fit, then having over two full years of it sounds better than the alternative. Why are you put off by “only” two plus years (I think they consider mid year enrollments).

By: Mary

Mary — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 00:06:09 +0000

My daughter, Sara, has a diagnosis of NVLD but has not had any formal testing for several years. She is 15 and a sophomore at our public high school. Although she has an IEP a mile long and receives many modifications in school, I’m not sure that she is in the best place for her. Socially things are very difficult for her – she has few friends and the ones that she does have run hot and cold. She is very naive and is easily taken advantage of.
Franklin Academy in East Haddam CT seems like the kind of place that Sara would have been successful at. Unfortunately I think it might be too late to make a change with only 2 full years of high school left. I do plan to try to enroll her in their 2 week summer program.
What I am really looking for is some kind of a social network for kids like Sara. We live in Fairfield county and for years I have been trying to find other kids “like her”. Any suggestions?

By: Sanford Shapiro

Sanford Shapiro — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 05:26:45 +0000

Suzanne,
This thread is for the CT. Eagle Hill school, which is a K-8 school, not high school. It’s a completely different school than the one in Hardwick (MA).

I wish one of the schools would change the name. It can be confusing.

By: suzanne

suzanne — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 02:55:24 +0000

we accepted our 18 yo sons diploma despite the school not providing for his LD’s, now we are trying to find a college to support him and it is difficult and expensive.

By: Terri

Terri — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 16:47:43 +0000

Has anyone else had experience with the Eagle Hill School in MA. My son is 18 and was diagnosed with NLD when he was 12. Our public school system was unable to support his learning style. We did not accept his dipolma this year and are looking for a placement at Eagle Hill next year. This is his last chance for sucess in high school and we want to make sure that we are making the correct decision. My son that Eagle Hill would be a good match.

By: Tom O'Dell

Tom O'Dell — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 13:56:41 +0000

Dear Susie,
Great news about your son’s successes at Greenwood!! I was the Head of School there 7 years ago so I know first hand how Greenwood, and other schools like it, can completely turn kids around in so many different areas.
Your point about NLD is an interesting one. NLD is such a broad term and can mean so many different things. So if a school says they only accept kids with a language based learning difference and not NLD, I think you should still look into that school further. Just be very honest and upfront with the school about your child’s specific language and non-verbal needs. You’re right about Greenwood; the school is not specifically geared to working with NLD boys, but the place is so supportive in so many different ways and it has a communication class that can address social issues. With that said, there are other schools that accept only kids with NLD. This website is a good place to start in terms of identifying those schools. Good luck with the high school selection process!!!

By: anita

anita — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 14:12:32 +0000

Hi,

My son started at Eagle Hill in Hardwick Mass this fall. He is 16, NVLD and ADD he is has made huge improvements. Eagle Hill in Mass absoultely does take disctrict funding. Give them a call the teachers and ciriculum is phenomenal!!!

By: Susie

Susie — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 15:28:59 +0000

Wow. It’s been three years since I’ve visited this site, and I’m really impressed with everything that’s happening out there in the field of parenting the LD child. My son attends Greenwood School, which is one we never would have found without this site, and he absolutely loves it. Greenwood is a junior boarding school, though, so I’m back here searching for a high school.

Here’s my experience: NVLD is fast becoming the next level of service among all these schools. Three years ago, few schools even mentioned it. Thanks to the fine work of the Shapiros, I found Greenwood, which does not initially appear to serve NVLD, but actually does an amazing job of it. My son’s social, emotional, writing, organizational, hygienic, and math skills have all made a 180 degree turn around. He has also found specific interests in music and computers that he had not had the time to explore until he attended Greenwood.

I encourage anyone on this site to further read the details in the Shapiro site. That site helped me narrow my choices, and the moment that my son visited Greenwood, he knew he was home.

By: Tom O'Dell

Tom O'Dell — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 22:22:45 +0000

Diana,
First of all, Eagle Hill in Connecticut does not take kids in the 11th grade so it wouldn’t be appropriate for your daughter even if they did take district funding. There are a number of LD high schools that do accept district funded students so I suggest you start by identifying some schools that have the right program for your daughter (this website has lots of good info on possible schools) and then call the Admissions offices and ask if they take funded students. If your district is balking at agreeing to fund the placement, you may want to get an educational advocate or attorney to help you. There is an organization called COPAA (www.copaa.com) that will help you find one of these professionals.
Good luck!!

By: Richard

Richard — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 20:55:19 +0000

My wife, who runs the academic support program at The Gunnery just told me that the problem is that many towns require that all teachers who interact with your child at these private schools be certified. Not all teachers at private, LD-support schools have special ed certification so Eagle Hill may be simply saying that they don’t want to deal with this issue because it will force them to hire only certified teachers.

This is not a slight of Eagle Hill, most of the private schools who run LD support programs use uncertified teachers but not all towns get bent about this.