Current students at Auburn SS?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Current Auburn SS parent. I have hope. The school went through a hard time transitioning back to being in person. I believe they are turning things around. They really do have a great ES SL Specialist IMO. She was on maternity leave for awhile and then had to take time off for a family matter, but she still has done amazing things for my kid. You can tell that she is doing a job that she loves and that she cares about the kids. For a time the school didn't have an office manager and a director of admissions. I walked in one day to the SL Specialist coaching a student through a tough time, handling a pizza delivery, getting the student back to class, and then giving an admissions tour without skipping a beat. She is just one example of the resilient staff there. Of course there are problems and thinks that frustrate me, but there are staff who make the price worth it.

We are at SS campus. Social learning specialist is consistently mentioned as a bright spot at SS campus and we couldn't agree more. But sadly she alone is not enough to warrant this tuition when everything else is falling apart.

Couldn’t agree more. The Curriculum specialist is great as well. She helped me so much with my kids IEP, but two good staff members are bandaids to bigger problems that aren’t being addressed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone have any recent feedback? Are things same or different? Trying to figure out if this is right fit for son

I heard some disturbing stories from our Ed Consultant. I don't know your son's profile but based on what I heard I would steer clear. The fees are too high to pay for a poorly trained ABA specialist, minimal OT and no SLP.

Agree. After a few years at Auburn, we are pulling our son to go to public school next year. Is he ready? Not quite, but I am not going to continue paying (actually, pay MORE next year) for an empty promise. Behavior specialist needs a serious kick in the you know what, my son told me that social learning class was regularly not occurring due to staffing, and my kid seemed bored with his academics outside of Social Studies every day when he would come home. That’s what I will boil it down to: we are bored of the same excuses. A classmate of my DS was told not to come to field day due to the potential of behavior, not because he had done anything recently to warrant this decision. It seems like the BCBA is prioritizing easy days with easy children rather than working through challenging moments, which is what we came to the school for. Communication throughout the school is lacking and it shows.

DH wanted to try another year but it was time to pull the plug. I like the teachers enough and we have always had great specialists, but the Head of School clearly has no finger on the pulse and the staff seem to be running wild. Hopefully you find what you need somewhere else

[Anonymous]

Just curious, has anyone actually gone to HOS about frustrations?

[Anonymous]

It doesn't matter. Its run by a for-profit corporation. It will deteriorate until it becomes a school that takes school public placements only for guaranteed funds.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It doesn't matter. Its run by a for-profit corporation. It will deteriorate until it becomes a school that takes school public placements only for guaranteed funds.

So the point of this thread then is to just bully the staff who prob have little to no control over things? We want our kids to be kind and socially successful but then act like this?

[Anonymous]

I don't think it is perfect, but my kid is thriving at Auburn. It is overpriced, and there do seem to be staffing shortages. But the communication has been outstanding in our experience, and it has been exactly what our kid needed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone have any recent feedback? Are things same or different? Trying to figure out if this is right fit for son

I heard some disturbing stories from our Ed Consultant. I don't know your son's profile but based on what I heard I would steer clear. The fees are too high to pay for a poorly trained ABA specialist, minimal OT and no SLP.

Agree. After a few years at Auburn, we are pulling our son to go to public school next year. Is he ready? Not quite, but I am not going to continue paying (actually, pay MORE next year) for an empty promise. Behavior specialist needs a serious kick in the you know what, my son told me that social learning class was regularly not occurring due to staffing, and my kid seemed bored with his academics outside of Social Studies every day when he would come home. That’s what I will boil it down to: we are bored of the same excuses. A classmate of my DS was told not to come to field day due to the potential of behavior, not because he had done anything recently to warrant this decision. It seems like the BCBA is prioritizing easy days with easy children rather than working through challenging moments, which is what we came to the school for. Communication throughout the school is lacking and it shows.

DH wanted to try another year but it was time to pull the plug. I like the teachers enough and we have always had great specialists, but the Head of School clearly has no finger on the pulse and the staff seem to be running wild. Hopefully you find what you need somewhere else

I'm really shocked a school would tell a child they could not attend field day because of the potential of behavior. That is just beyond unprofessional and selfish. I don't think most mainstream schools would do this but if I were the parent I would pull my child out immediately. That's inexcusable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It doesn't matter. Its run by a for-profit corporation. It will deteriorate until it becomes a school that takes school public placements only for guaranteed funds.

So the point of this thread then is to just bully the staff who prob have little to no control over things? We want our kids to be kind and socially successful but then act like this?

Who is bullying staff? You sound....like you work for the company.

[Anonymous]

Curious if the people who have posted with concerns are mostly from the ES or the MS grades? We are considering Auburn for MS and wondered if it was weaker or stronger than the ES.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone have any recent feedback? Are things same or different? Trying to figure out if this is right fit for son

I heard some disturbing stories from our Ed Consultant. I don't know your son's profile but based on what I heard I would steer clear. The fees are too high to pay for a poorly trained ABA specialist, minimal OT and no SLP.

Agree. After a few years at Auburn, we are pulling our son to go to public school next year. Is he ready? Not quite, but I am not going to continue paying (actually, pay MORE next year) for an empty promise. Behavior specialist needs a serious kick in the you know what, my son told me that social learning class was regularly not occurring due to staffing, and my kid seemed bored with his academics outside of Social Studies every day when he would come home. That’s what I will boil it down to: we are bored of the same excuses. A classmate of my DS was told not to come to field day due to the potential of behavior, not because he had done anything recently to warrant this decision. It seems like the BCBA is prioritizing easy days with easy children rather than working through challenging moments, which is what we came to the school for. Communication throughout the school is lacking and it shows.

DH wanted to try another year but it was time to pull the plug. I like the teachers enough and we have always had great specialists, but the Head of School clearly has no finger on the pulse and the staff seem to be running wild. Hopefully you find what you need somewhere else

I'm the PP who has had good experiences with Auburn, but I actually don't really understand why they have a field day at all. It's a school full of kids with ASD who thrive on routine, structure, and predictability. How is it a good idea to mess with that and expect kids to be more social than normal in a totally different environment and pretend that is somehow fun for them?

I'm really shocked a school would tell a child they could not attend field day because of the potential of behavior. That is just beyond unprofessional and selfish. I don't think most mainstream schools would do this but if I were the parent I would pull my child out immediately. That's inexcusable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone have any recent feedback? Are things same or different? Trying to figure out if this is right fit for son

I heard some disturbing stories from our Ed Consultant. I don't know your son's profile but based on what I heard I would steer clear. The fees are too high to pay for a poorly trained ABA specialist, minimal OT and no SLP.

Agree. After a few years at Auburn, we are pulling our son to go to public school next year. Is he ready? Not quite, but I am not going to continue paying (actually, pay MORE next year) for an empty promise. Behavior specialist needs a serious kick in the you know what, my son told me that social learning class was regularly not occurring due to staffing, and my kid seemed bored with his academics outside of Social Studies every day when he would come home. That’s what I will boil it down to: we are bored of the same excuses. A classmate of my DS was told not to come to field day due to the potential of behavior, not because he had done anything recently to warrant this decision. It seems like the BCBA is prioritizing easy days with easy children rather than working through challenging moments, which is what we came to the school for. Communication throughout the school is lacking and it shows.

DH wanted to try another year but it was time to pull the plug. I like the teachers enough and we have always had great specialists, but the Head of School clearly has no finger on the pulse and the staff seem to be running wild. Hopefully you find what you need somewhere else

I'm the PP who has had good experiences with Auburn, but I actually don't really understand why they have a field day at all. It's a school full of kids with ASD who thrive on routine, structure, and predictability. How is it a good idea to mess with that and expect kids to be more social than normal in a totally different environment and pretend that is somehow fun for them?

I'm really shocked a school would tell a child they could not attend field day because of the potential of behavior. That is just beyond unprofessional and selfish. I don't think most mainstream schools would do this but if I were the parent I would pull my child out immediately. That's inexcusable.

[Anonymous]

Ugh, I can't seem to post correctly, but here is what I was trying to say - I'm the PP who has had good experiences with Auburn, but I actually don't really understand why they have a field day at all. It's a school full of kids with ASD who thrive on routine, structure, and predictability. How is it a good idea to mess with that and expect kids to be more social than normal in a totally different environment and pretend that is somehow fun for them?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It doesn't matter. Its run by a for-profit corporation. It will deteriorate until it becomes a school that takes school public placements only for guaranteed funds.

So the point of this thread then is to just bully the staff who prob have little to no control over things? We want our kids to be kind and socially successful but then act like this?

Who is bullying staff? You sound....like you work for the company.

Nope. Just an Auburn parent who used to be a teacher. I’m not saying Auburn is perfect, but I look at it from two sides. What’s the point if you don’t at least try to communicate with them? I was referencing the commentor who said the BS needed a “swift kick in the you know what.” They are not the only ones making comments like that. All I’m saying is instead of calling the BS lazy on a forum let her know your thoughts (if you haven’t already done so) I could be completely off the mark. Just my two cents

[Anonymous]

My impression is that the staff are very dedicated and mostly great, but there isn't a lot of support from the overarching organization and that they are probably forced to work with limited resources.

Despite the high price tag, the number of students there is small, and I'm not aware of robust fundraising efforts (I guess that is limited if it is for-profit?), so I don't think they have a lot of funds to work with. On top of that, the pandemic has caused a major hit to teaching positions and supplementary positions like OTs, etc. - not just at Auburn, but everywhere. I hope the staff doesn't get burned out and leave because I think most of them are really great, and I would love to see them get some more support to do their work.

[Anonymous]

exactly the above.

this entire thread just makes it sound that the school is a shithole and in the deepest of troubles. which is far from the truth.