Phillips School

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have never heard of Ridge school.

Have you looked at Alternate Paths in Alexandria? I would go there over Phillips.

Agree that you should tour Alternate Paths if you are also looking at Phillips.

Is ridge school new? I have also never heard of it.

[Anonymous]

If you are going to have aggressive kids you need a seclusion room. Restraining kids physically is much more dangerous than a seclusion room. Clearly, they need to be used only by highly trained staff and under strict guidelines, but the fact is that there are children with out of control behaviors who can’t and shouldn’t be hospitalized all the time. A lot of kids opt for the quiet room because they know they need the reduced visual stimulation and sense of safety. Some kids do feel safe knowing they are briefly isolated. Not all kids need the same setting or strategies. Obviously, abuse of seclusion is horrifying and should never be permitted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you are going to have aggressive kids you need a seclusion room. Restraining kids physically is much more dangerous than a seclusion room. Clearly, they need to be used only by highly trained staff and under strict guidelines, but the fact is that there are children with out of control behaviors who can’t and shouldn’t be hospitalized all the time. A lot of kids opt for the quiet room because they know they need the reduced visual stimulation and sense of safety. Some kids do feel safe knowing they are briefly isolated. Not all kids need the same setting or strategies. Obviously, abuse of seclusion is horrifying and should never be permitted.

Phillips is the only SN school we toured that had a seclusion cell (too small to be called a room). The other schools managed meltdowns by moving kids out of the way and having a safe/cleared area of the classroom. Restraint as an absolute last measure. So either all the school systems send their most violent kids to Phillips or Phillips doesn't follow best practices.

A quiet room is completely different than a seclusion room. Most schools have sensory rooms or quiet areas kids can take themselves to.

[Anonymous]

My child is at a school not mentioned here and he often gets sent to a room. It is not called a seclusion room but it sounds like a cross between a seclusion room and a sensory room. In many ways I don't have a problem with it -- it is no different than me having my child stay in his bedroom when his behaviors are not safe and allowing him to come out when he has his behavior under control. However, I do think repeatedly being sent to the room at school creates negative feelings about school.

[Anonymous]

If a school has a seclusion room, it is usually very small, maybe 8 x 8 with padded floor and walls and no windows or anything at all in the room, and the child cannot come or go at will.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

My child is at a school not mentioned here and he often gets sent to a room. It is not called a seclusion room but it sounds like a cross between a seclusion room and a sensory room. In many ways I don't have a problem with it -- it is no different than me having my child stay in his bedroom when his behaviors are not safe and allowing him to come out when he has his behavior under control. However, I do think repeatedly being sent to the room at school creates negative feelings about school.

Which school?

[Anonymous]

There’s no padded wall or floors. Some kids pee or poop in there on purpose and it has to be able to be disinfected easily. It doesn’t happen often, but it does happen. A quiet room is what the seclusion room is called in FCPS. A sensory room is different. We’d love one, but there isn’t space for one. Well, there would be, but we seem to be hiring instructional coaches whose need for offices are a priority over special education needs. Lower class size would cut way down on the need for restraint and seclusion, but that’s another story.

[Anonymous]

I have seen two seclusion rooms and they both had padded walls and floors.

[Anonymous]

OP - where did you end up with your child? My 10 yo son with HFA, ADHD, anxiety and depression started with the 5 week ESY at Phillips and just finished his 2nd week of school. So far, so good! Also, Piper Phillips, who runs the schools is a phenomenal educator. I worked for her (I've been in sped for 17 years and have worked in FCPS, Kingsbury and LAB) in the Middle School program at Kingsbury in the mid-2000s. She is top notch and I trust her implicitly. My son is super complicated, so we're hoping this will continue to be the right path.