How do I get my child into your school?
All referrals to Lighthouse School come from the school district.
My Doctor says my child should come to your school.
How do I get him in?
Speak with the Evaluation Team at your child's current school about the needs of your son or daughter and your concerns about his academic and clinical needs. They will work closely with you to identify what will best help your child.
What are the students at your school like?
Our students come to us with many different needs and diagnoses and are ages 3-22.
How long will a visit take?
Visits are scheduled for two hours, either in the morning or the afternoon, most days of the week. We want to make sure that we and you have the information necessary to make the best decision for your child.
Can I make an appointment to tour Lighthouse School?
A family needs to receive authorization to visit Lighthouse School from the Special Education Team of their city or town prior to a visit being scheduled, even if a referral is not being made by the school district.
What do I need to bring on my visit?
Once a referral visit has been scheduled, you will receive an email confirmation with specific details about the visit. You will also receive the Pre-Enrollment Application as an attachment to the confirmation email. Please bring this completed application and your child's up to date medical physical exam, immunization list, and record of last dental visit with you on your visit, along with any other evaluations or documents about your child that might not be in a school district referral packet.
Do I bring my child on the visit?
Many parents and guardians like to visit without the student first. More often parents and children come together. If you bring your child, he will have his own tour and informal assessment with a member or two of our Referral Team, and you will also have a chance to tour and share your knowledge with our team.
What happens after my visit?
You communicate your feelings about Lighthouse School with your school district ETL and we are considering the needs of your child and our ability to provide the programs and services to meet those needs, as well as an appropriate and available space in a homeroom. Once the team has made a decision, the school district contact is notified and a discussion about placement and the IEP takes place.
How long does your acceptance decision take?
Usually we can give an answer to the school district within a week after you have submitted all of the application materials. Sometimes we need more materials or medical information from either you or the school district and the process takes longer.
How long will my child be at your school?
While the average length of stay is a bit more than two years, every student has a different set of needs and your child could stay for a shorter or longer amount of time. Our mission is to help your child develop strengths and strategies to be able to transition to a "less restrictive" setting as soon as possible.
Do you have vocational services?
Yes we do, both in house and job sites in the greater- Chelmsford community. Helping our students learn about themselves and other people, find out what they are good at and get the training they need is a large part of our high school curriculum.
How will I know my child will be safe?
Every decision we make at Lighthouse is designed to maximize safety for both our students and our staff. Yet, we at Lighthouse School will service some students with challenging needs socially, emotionally and behaviorally. On your tour, you will have a chance to see how our team works proactively to resolve conflicts and manage crises as they occur. You need to know that our commitment to your child's safety will not be compromised.
What goes into a referral packet?
After you sign a release of information form, the school district will send a packet of information to the Supervisor for Enrollment that includes current IEP, recent evaluations and assessments, and other pertinent information.
Can I bring a friend on a visit?
You can bring a friend, parent, other relative or an agency support person to your visit. Having another person present can help you remember all you have learned on your visit, add to the information we can learn about your child, and help you be objective in your decision-making.
Do you provide transportation to Lighthouse School?
Transportation is arranged and provided by the school district in which your child resides
How will I know what my child is doing in school?
You will have a Family Therapist who will visit you in your home to both bring information from school to you and bring information from home to us. You will be able to communicate by email or phone with your Family Therapist with questions and concerns. During the hours of 8:30 and 3:00 pm, your therapist is working with students and we ask you to contact outside of those hours unless the concern cannot wait.
Four times a year you will receive Progress Reports that address the goals and objectives of his IEP, and you will receive a Report Card with his grades and comments. You will also have a team meeting at least once a year to discuss progress on goals and progress benchmarks.
In addition, you will receive communication from your child's teacher about your child's month and the activities in which students participated.
After my child is enrolled can I visit the school and see his classes?
We welcome visits from you to our school. The connection that we have with you is integral to our treatment with your child. Many parents want to meet the teachers and therapists and perhaps observe a lesson or two. We ask that you schedule these visits with your Family Therapist.
We also have events throughout the year, such as parent lunches, sporting events, holiday parties, and academic award ceremonies that parents are welcome to attend.
