Sanford Shapiro looks at Franklin Academy
Monday, January 16th, 2006
Sanford Shapiro looks at Franklin Academy
© 2006 Sanford Shapiro
Franklin Academy is the nation’s first boarding school specifically for kids in grades 8-12 with Non-Verbal Learning Disabilities. A boarding school for this particular profile of kids presents great opportunities for developing and applying social reasoning skills as well as providing a college prep academic experience. I stress the social skills part because those competencies are crucial for kids who struggle to interpret and manage social/emotional signals. Without faculty who understand how significantly these challenges can impact the acquisition of academic skills much time can be wasted. The current and founding headmaster, Frederick Weissbach appears to understand this and has assembled an administrative team who are dedicated to this type of learner. The school’s education director holds a doctorate in clinical psychology and while that is no guarantee of anything, it demonstrates the school’s perspective for viewing social awkwardness and mistakes as part of processing differences (rather than behavior problems). Don’t get me wrong, the kids I saw here were anything but behavior problems. I found them to be bright and articulate; and who expressed experiencing life as square pegs in the round holes.
The profile of a Franklin Academy student encompasses the range associated with diagnoses of NVLD and Asperger’s Syndrome. There is usually a strong preference for auditory learning and students often struggle with poor time management skills, organizational difficulties, some motor and/or visual-spatial weaknesses and, challenges within social situations and transitions. Sometimes there are traits associated with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD).
The school is a relatively new one on the scene, incorporating as a non-profit, in 2001. As word gets out about this school and it’s unique focus, I’m pretty sure it will attract a lot of attention nation-wide. Last year it had 57 students and at the beginning of this year there were 68. Plans are for it to grow to 100-125 within the next five years. It is in the accreditation process (NEASAC) and knowing the opportunities that come from such a process of self-analysis, goal-setting and planning, I would expect the well-thought-out philosophy will align itself with a standardized curriculum without losing any of its necessarily unique and individualized strands. For example, along with well-defined benchmarks for reading, writing, research and organization, equal emphasis is directed towards social pragmatic skills. Some of the areas within social development that are emphasized and assessed are self-awareness, personal hygiene, self-advocacy and interpersonal relationships. While one might smirk at the idea of personal hygiene being an articulated curriculum area for high schoolers who often have verbal IQs above 120, those familiar with the nuances of NLD will understand the relationship between visual and spatial weaknesses (not knowing how or not being used to paying close and organized attention to the visual field) and grooming. Add to it being a teenager and you have a worthy area of attention. I say this only partially with the previously mentioned smirk.
Within the college prep aspect of the school there certainly appeared to be a full range of classes including pretty advanced level courses. This is delivered with a 1:3 faculty-student ratio and with plenty of flexible planning available so that students’ needs for being alone is recognized alongside the interactive and collaborative nature of classroom learning.
Related at this site: Franklin Academy
This is a glowing review of a very new school – Franklin Academy. The school appears to be having a good start and very well poised to serve students with NLD. Mr. Shapiro recommends schools for parents seeking a LD environment for their children and should be more objective in his analysis – laying out the bad with the good. One starter of the bad is the whopping $58K tuition.
Thanks for your comments. It’s a great reminder that families should use reports like these as a jumping off point for their own additional due diligence. I looked over my post and I’m not so sure my writing of Franklin was glowing. It was more a description of the opportunities the school presents, a partial description of the team assembled, the student profile, and class highlights. In fact, in my mentioning of its newness I highlighted the accreditation process, which hopefully should help the school deliver on its goals and align curriculum delivery with its philosophy.. One of the things I’ve noticed from seeing so many schools, is that what some do not like about a particular school, others may in fact like. Description and some analysis seem better suited for this website. Then its up to a family to use other forms of guidance, placement help and of course a visit themselves in order to see if there’s a fit between the school and their son or daughter.
We had an awful experience at this school. Don’t believe the hype! Franklin is run by a headmaster with no special education background and staffed by people with limited experience. My child hated it here and left after 2 months. My child’s diagnosis was completely misunderstood by the “experts” at Franklin (although they claim to serve this population) and it made for a terrible experience. This school is not what it seems. Avoid sending your children here!
I attended this school for 6 years, starting the year it opened. I really couldn’t of had a better fit. I took out of Franklin the knowledge of how to make friends, advocate for yourself ASAP, and experiences I that can never be taken away. I met many people, saw many representatives of other schools, and connected with at least over 500 people during my time there. It is amazing how 6 years there changed my life, and Franklin has been the 2nd most cherished part of my life, my family coming first. I know I don’t need to go out and be everything someone says I’ll be like being famous or doing something that will change the world. But I do know that as long as I help part of the world, and a group of people, I can feel like I did something in this world worth while. I have explored different interests I never knew existed, DJing, Computers, Flight, and Music Production. I owe my entire life from college and here on – to Franklin Academy.
And just for you parents – there are a lot of kids saying they hated Franklin, it was a bad place, the staff is not properly trained, etc etc etc. From my point of view, even though I did not live at Franklin, the staff was MORE than properly trained, I connected to many of them. The Academics were great. Obviously, there is no one school that can fit everyone’s needs (those who have learning differences, that is). However, Franklin came close to that, and I know that their efforts are true, there path in front of them, and the world is about to see something truly amazing.
– Wil Swartzell, Graduating Class of 09
We had a child at Franklin last year. Very bad experience. I agree with the previous posters….the staff is not who they present themselves to be. They seem like they are all for the kids, when in fact they have one and only one way of doing things and if your kid doesn’t fit the mold….well that’s just too bad. Kind of ridiculous when you think about the population that they are trying to serve…….each child is so different and needs to be dealt with as an individual yet at Franklin there’s only one way. Also, I felt that their discipline methods were harsh. I’m not a pushover parent either but if you looked under the hood you found some seriously archaic and possibly illegal methods being used.
Dear “Disappointing”
Sorry for your son’s bad experience. Is he doing better this year?
Can you give an example of a harsh discipline?
Thanks for writing in.
My daughter goes to Franklin currently. This is her first year. I have personally spent days on campus during my visits, unannounced, and have NEVER seen any examples of harsh discipline.Even when a kid totally loses it, as my daughter has, they handle it beautifully. In fact, they know not to approach her or argue with her when she is like that, but to stay in view so that she does not hurt herself or others. The talking about what happened always comes after she has had time to cool down. Discipline has been things like no computer after study hours, or she can’t leave the dorm to socialize after study hour, etc. for a few days. Really, nothing I wouldn’t do at home, and they make sure she understands which choices she made that led to the consequence. She appreciates the consistency and rules, actually, as she usually isn’t intentionally “bad”, just overwhelmed that day. They really get that, and ALWAYS dig until they find out what the problem was, or problems, and work with her, and others if necessary, on the problems. I find the staff to be incredible in their interactions with these kids, they actually do what they say, and get them to be more independent, and recognize what is going on around them and their reactions to it, as most of the kids have problems with social skills.
When she comes home, there has been a huge change in her ability to communicate, and to accept responsibility for herself. She is much more thoughtful of others, and more outgoing.
T Dorf,
Thanks for writing in and letting us know. It’s helpful to hear your level of specificity. Glad your daughter’s doing well. Please keep us posted.
Sanford
Does anyone have any experience–positive or negative–with Franklin Academy’s summer sojourn program? I’d appreciate any feedback regarding it.
I am also interested in hearing from anyone with experience with Summer Sojourn. My son is 15 and we are considering this summer program. Thank you.
Please provide more info about Franklin Academy. I am considering this school for my son age 16, both for the summer program and the next school year.
Kisco: I think you’ll need to contact the school directly. Their contact information can be found here:
http://www.ldresources.org/2004/11/24/franklin-academy/
My daughter currently goes to Franklin, too, and it has been an absolute Godsend for us. The school really does know what it’s doing, so when people who only attended the school for 2 months make bad comments, my only reaction is that either they didn’t give the school enough time to make an impact or that it really wasn’t a good fit to begin with!
My daughter has discovered a lot about herself and how she learns and how to be a self-advocate. These are very, very important to NLD kids!
My biggest suggestion to those who are looking at this school is to make sure you meet with an educational consultant who knows about NLD. A good educational consultant will know if your child may be a good fit for this school.
March 22, 2010
Dear Sanford:
Since your last visit four years ago, there have been some exciting developments at Franklin Academy. First and foremost, we secured our accreditation through the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, receiving the commendation from NEASC that we have created a school community that completely matches our mission. The enrollment has continued to grow, and today we serve 80 students from across the country. As of July 2009, the Federal Government granted approval to Franklin Academy to begin enrolling international students diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome and Nonverbal Learning Differences. During this school year we started the Franklin Learning Institute – a much needed transition program to serve young adults of college age with AS and NLD, and our Summer Sojourn program provides a great opportunity for students enrolled at other schools to benefit from Franklin Academy’s expertise in serving this population.
My hope is that you might be able to make a return trip to our school. The founding administration that created this school eight years ago remains in place, and we would enjoy introducing you to our dedicated educators who collectively have more experience in serving students with NLD and AS than teachers in any other school. Best of all would be the opportunity to meet and talk with our wonderful students. In my estimate (informed by thirty-four years of independent school experience), no other group of students possesses so much exciting potential. If you cannot visit Franklin Academy in the near future, I hope that you might revisit our website at http://www.fa-ct.org to fill in the gaps. In particular, I recommend that you review the growing list of colleges and universities that are accepting our seniors for admission. Best wishes.
Sincerely,
Frederick Weissbach
Headmaster
We just wanted to add to this website are feelings about Franklin Academy. Our son has been a student there for 2 1/2 years and will be graduating in June. We would have never been able to say that if he were still in his previous public high school!!! Franklin Academy was the best school we found to educate our son who has a diagnosis of Asperger’s Syndrome. When his academics at his previous school went from a 3.75 GPA to failing, we knew we needed to take action. The reason for the decline was due to constant harrassing and bullying by the students, untrained teachers and his social impairment impeding on his academics. After visiting numerous schools, both day and residential, Franklin hit the “nail on the head”. Their profile of their typical student had our son’s name written all over it! We knew this was the place. The residential aspect really added to make the academic program complete. Our son had very few friends at home, so having a social component at school was important. Everyone we met at Franklin Academy during our search and interview process were so wonderful and caring. When we first walked into Community Meeting during our tour, many students came up to us to introduce themselves and shake our hands. They told our son what a wonderful school it is and that they were so happy. Tears came to my eyes. Our son was never happy at his old school. I was hoping that Franklin Academy would have the same effect on him. Our son started at Franklin in February of his sophomore year of high school. Living away from home was not a problem because he had attended overnight summer camp for many years. Immediately after enrolling, he began to thrive. He realized that there are a lot of other children like him. HE MADE FRIENDS!! His academics improved, he didn’t complain about homework and he truly loved school. We are not saying all went smoothly. He hit bumps in the road, but the staff is so well trained that they were able to deal with these in an appropriate manner, not by just sending him to the principal’s office and suspending him, like they did in his previous school. The teachers and staff spent the time to really get to know their students and what works best for each one. The contact with the parents is outstanding. We get e-mails and calls when things are going well, and when there have been issues. We couldn’t have been happier with our choice to send our son to Franklin Academy. We are so proud of all that he has accomplished there. Our son was accepted to four colleges, all with academic merit scholarships. He will be attending Ithaca College in the fall, majoring in Sport Management. We are so grateful to Frederick Weissbach for having the insight to start a school for students with this profile. As we have seen over the years, its growth speaks for itself. We highly recommend that if your child fits their profile, take a visit to the school. You will be amazed at what a difference they can make. We were!!!!
Sincerely,
Caryn and Barry Cohen
My son has a diagnosis of Asperger’s Syndrome. He has attended Franklin Academy as a boarding student for the past 4 years beginning with Summer Sojourns and his Freshman year in high school. His graduation will be this June. The bottom line for us is that Franklin Academy is the best thing that has ever happened for both my son and our family. Yes, it is expensive but, it has been worth every penny and more. The very low student/teacher ratio and individualized attention each child gets is key to success for students like my son. I have been extremely impressed from day one with the skill and dedication of the staff. The few times there have been glitches (as happens in any school), the problem has been addressed and fixed immediately. I have found the school and staff to be very responsive to both my concerns as a parent and my sons as a student. It has been an amazing experience to watch my son grow over time and his independence blossom as a direct result of his years at Franklin. I remember being very moved during the first year at Franklin as I realized that for the first time in his life, my son had friends and was a respected member of a community. That experience alone has made Franklin invaluable in my sons life. He has learned not only how to make a friend, but how to keep one. He has learned to be a contributing member of a community, he has learned to be a leader. The Individual and Community course that all students are required to take essentially uses the residential dorm experience as a lab and is highly effective.
The school has not only been supportive in helping my son to learn Social skills but has also helped him to greatly improve his Executive Functioning skills (actually that is an understatement!). Academically, Franklin has also been wonderful. My son has been challenged to organize his thoughts and improve his writing (always a problem) to the point that he received an almost perfect score on the writing portion of the SAT’s. He did so well on the PSAT’s and SAT’s that he is now a National Merit Scholar. He has applied to 8 mostly competitive colleges which he handled by himself with Franklin’s expert support! He has heard from and been accepted to 3 so far including the Honors College at UVM. He has received merit scholarships to all 3. We hope to hear good things from the other 5 by the end of next week (April 1st). None of this would have been possible without Franklin.
As for discipline, not only has it been appropriate but they have a justice system that the students participate in. It turns the disciplinary process into a learning experience for the kids. My son has learned and grown a lot as a result of this system.
I now have a son who can take a summer online college course and excel with no input at all from a parent (no homework reminders etc). He can manage his own money, shop for himself and always packs his own suitcase. He does his own laundry, talks for 2 hours on the phone to a friend and handles his personal hygiene better than a lot of teenagers (I have 3). His academics have thrived and he has become his own best advocate out in the world. Some of this may seem small but to my son and our family it is huge. It means that he can lead a happy, successful and independent life. None of which I would have been sure of without Franklin Academy.
This is a school that is always looking for ways to better teach and support their students. It’s a school that is truly dedicated to it’s students. I would be happy to talk to any interested parent about our experience with Franklin Academy shaglied@hughes.net
Regarding Summer Sojourns…..my son attended the program the summer between his 8th and 9th grade school years. He was registered for school at Franklin in the fall and we felt that spending a couple of weeks there over the summer would ease the transition for him. As he is a senior now, our experience is several years old. However, it was a good one. He enjoyed his two weeks and it did indeed help him transition to boarding school in the fall. We were very glad to have found a summer program as in the past we had never been able to find anything appropriate for him given some of the challenges associated with Asperger’s. Summer Sojourns fit the bill for my son and he had a good first experience with being away from home on his own. Food allergies are a big issue for my son, and I remember being very worried about that. It was handled very well by the staff and there was no problem – what a relief!. My son did not return to Summer sojourns after that first year only because he wanted to be home for the summers since he was away most of the rest of the year at Franklin. I know that the Summer Sojourns program has grown and matured over the years but unfortunately cannot be more specific. I have only heard good things though.
Our son enrolled at Franklin Academy for the final two years of high school after we watched his educational success trajectory peak in 7th grade and plummet by sophomore year. He had been diagnosed with Aspergers and was gifted with a high IQ so his public school teachers considered him lazy rather than LD and his confidence and self-image suffered greatly. Facing social isolation, a deficit of executive function skills, and unachieved potential, our public school special education team told us that our brilliant son, who consistently tested in the top percentages on standardized tests, would need 5 years to graduate public high school with low level classes.
Our search for alternatives, with the help of a psychologist and an education consultant, brought us to a school whose mission, environment, and culture seemed custom-made for our son’s needs and appeared able to intervene and reverse the failing trajectory. We have been pleased with the school from the first day we interviewed; not only did our son answer yes to 5 of the 6 typical Franklin student profile questions, but Franklin had a plan, based on a researched framework of neuro-atypical learning styles, that we were confident would help our son. Help in this context did not mean to “change” or “fix” him, but to give him the tools and study skills, through self-discovery, in an immersive and supportive environment that has allowed him to be successful without ever compromising his essential wonderfulness. In fact, Franklin’s well trained family of staff has been focused, from the first day, on not forcing solutions on our son, but working with him, every day throughout the entire day, to find the answers that best suit his idiosyncratic personality, characteristics, and thought patterns. He has developed organizational skills, better understands how to prioritize work, and even makes to-do lists now! Our son recently was accepted to some very competitive colleges-this could not have happened without the diligent, thoughtful approach of Franklin.
Prior commentators mentioned that the school is expensive, and it is. However, the level of service to both student and parent is very high, the student/faculty ratio is very low, and the access to support is 24/7. That does not come cheap or easy and Fred has managed to attract a dedicated, well educated, and very understanding and patient group of faculty and administrators to provide this immersive, caring environment that has succeeded in returning our son to a trajectory where he can fulfill his potential in college after 2 years at Franklin.
As parents of a student who has spent four years at Franklin Academy, we agree with the many sentiments expressed in previous positive testimonials. Our son has grown in the time he has been at Franklin from a socially isolated individual to an independent, self advocating young man. During the course of his stay, he has learned the necessary life skills that will enable him to realize his potential in the years to come. The growth in our son was in large part due to the dedicated staff and challenging curriculum. With a small student to teacher ratio, the school offered our son the individual attention necessary to make important changes in his life. Unlike in many mainstream schools, the staff at Franklin understands the special requirements of children with learning disabilities and as such is better able to address a student’s specific needs. This is no small task as no two individuals with NLD or Asperger’s present the same set of challenges. The academic course of study at Franklin enabled our son to score high on his SAT exams such that he was accepted into several competitive colleges and has received three merit scholarships. He has gained sufficient self-confidence to enroll at a large university where he will be challenged both academically and socially. We believe that the Franklin experience was the best possible choice for our son and we highly recommend the school.
We heartily agree with the positive comments already posted and will add our own. Our son started Franklin midway through 10th grade after years of struggling at many local private schools purportedly dedicated to helping kids with learning and social difficulties. He always tested in the “very superior” range of cognitive ability, but always struggled academically and socially. After a couple of months at Franklin he started to flourish in multiple areas, notably his attitude about learning, his discipline, his focus on his future, and his ability to make and keep friends. He embraced the leadership opportunities he was offered in 11th and 12th grade, and this furthered enhanced a responsible and self-confident attitude. As other posters have noted Franklin exhibits flexibility with the students, but there are consistent and appropriate expectations. Most of these kids are a bit “quirky” and Franklin doesn’t try to mold them into something uniform. From our observations what has changed with most of the students is their heightened self- confidence and optimism for their future. We don’t think this would have happened without the support and guidance of the professional and kind staff at Franklin. Yes, it is expensive, but the round the clock “teaching moments” are the rewards.
Our son was accepted at many highly competitive schools, with merit scholarships, that we would not have anticipated three years ago. His time at Franklin has prepared him admirably for this next step.
Hello parents,
I have just discovered this site and your testimonials have
given me hope.
Please advise if you know of a similar elementary program.
My daughter will be going into the 4th grade this September.
I remeet w/ the district (Bethlehem school district in Albany New York) this coming Tuesday to discuss an appropriate placement. I know they will not be able to support her needed curriculum.
I am very worried as Lexi has been very unhappy at school and home and I want to find the right learning environment for her.
Thank you.
Lauren,
You might consider contacting the Norman Howard School in Rochester to get some ideas and to explore their school. Not sure if presently they’re taking kids below 5th grade, but worth a look.
I have written about the school here at this site: http://www.ldresources.org/?s=norman+howard+school
Best of luck.