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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSP202200019 Narrative 2022-07-18 (2)Student Characteristics GENERAL STATISTICS: • Currently students are enrolled from 12 states, Hong Kong, the Cayman Islands and the Bahamas • 80% of students are privately funded • 87% of students are placed by Educational Consultants • Typical length of stay is 2 years • 33% of the students transition in June of each year and move to a traditional day or boarding school • Average age is 13.5 years DIAGNOSES: • Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder • Autism Spectrum Disorder- Level 1 • Learning Disability • Nonverbal Learning Disability Anxiety Depression Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder • Bipolar Disorder Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Mood Disorder Attachment Issues • Oppositional Defiant Disorder • Social Pragmatic Communication Disorder School Overview { • Non-profit therapeutic, special education boarding school • Established in 1963, celebrating 59 years of service to students • Boys only, ages 9-15 at time of admission, serving through 18, average to superior IQ • Boarding only with student capacity of 35 • Licensure: Virginia Department of Education and Commonwealth of Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities • Accreditation: Virginia Association of Independent Specialized Education Facilities (VAISEF) • Member: National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs (NATSAP) • Certified enrollment in the Student Exchange and Visitor Information System (SEVIS) • State funding approved by Illinois and New Jersey public schools Specialized Program Components THERAPEUTIC • Individual, family and group psychotherapy with a Ph.D. clinical psychologist, Ph.D. Licensed Marriage and Family Counselor, L.C.S.W., and consulting child psychiatrist • Therapeutic developmental approach • Relationship -based interventions • Family involvement, parent workshops and support group, and home behavioral support • Speech and Language Therapy • Social pragmatic Skills • Occupational Therapy • Animal Assisted Therapy • Art Therapy ACADEMIC • Skilled, professional, and dedicated staff • Licensed, Special Education teachers • Licensed and accredited school program • Individualized education and service plans • Effective brain -based learning • Focus on substantial academic growth Therapies integrated into classroom CULTURE • Safe and nurturing environment Character building education Social Thinking Curriculum Clubs and community service Experiential -based opportunities in athletics, woodworking, art, and music Community Champion (bullying prevention pro Structured environment that supports organiz< and emotional deficits Small school community with high staff to student ratios a MR Growth and Change A Clinical -Developmental Model LKS serves boys with a complex set of social, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral challenges. Many students carry multiple diagnoses that represent overlays of long-standing difficulties. The most common disorders that face our students are various anxiety disorders, mood disorders, processing deficits, social functioning difficulties, organization and attention deficits, developmental challenges and teaming compromises. Our boys typically have average to superior intelligence, although many show a lot of variability across measures. We do not serve boys with drug and alcohol involvement, social maladjustment, or conduct disorders. Predicated on the knowledge that human development is primarily mediated and facilitated by interactions within important relationships, ours is a relationship -based model. Many elements of attachment, object relations, and interpersonal therapies are utilized in our approach to treatment. Additional interventions variously include strategies found in behavioral, cognitive behavioral, family systems and experiential work. Because of the pervasive disruption and challenge our students face in their lives, the appropriate conceptual umbrella has to be broad enough to contain and address the widest array of needs and symptomatology. The clinical team at LKS focuses on establishing and maintaining deep and evolving conceptualizations of students' typically complex and multilayered disorders. Optimal treatment and specific interventions are based upon comprehensive in-depth understandings of the underlying psychological and biomedical processes for each student. Traditional, solution - focused, or symptom focused therapies are not sufficient, as demonstrated by most of our students' treatment histories. Our boys do not typically benefit from traditional behavioral contingencies, insight oriented therapies, or teaching methods; they often benefit from classic cognitive behavioral intervention, but not as the primary intervention modality. Therefore, we use a very broad clinical -developmental model which addresses all areas of individual, relational, and social functioning . Change occurs primarily through immersion in a highly structured and predictable milieu, designed and calibrated according to the individual and group needs of our students. Collaborative goal -setting, direct instruction and positive practice of a set of functional goals provides the content for hundreds of relationship -based interactions each day. Carefully engineered task demands and contextual support ensure experiences of success with appropriate objectives. The types of functional goals targeted are defined thorough the Social/Emotional Curriculum which addresses objectives in executive functioning, interpersonal collaboration, competence in daily tasks and interactions, and social and relationship skills. Along with comprehensive psychiatric and pschological assessments and interventions, essential services include pragmatic language support, occupational therapy interventions for support of processing and anxiety reduction, and facilitation of relational and social interactions, all accomplished within relevant context. Students learn to expect academic success as their individual capacities are developed and supported. Ongoing family therapy supports the central role of the family in their son's growth and treatment. That connection also serves to support and shape the family system toward the development of an effective supportive environment for their son on transition, as well as to facilitate the extension of gains from this community to the family and home. Little Keswick School employs two full-time doctorate level psychologists, a licensed clinical social worker and our consulting child psychiatrist is on campus three days per week. This clinical team collaborates extensively with administrative, academic, and residential staff to direct and coordinate student support and treatment. Specifically, the clinical team directs an advisory team process, provides staff training, and consults on programmatic issues. More importantly, the clinical team works to guide and support the relationship -based interactions between all of the staff members and our students. Our consulting child psychiatrist gathers and distils data from all aspects of the program to use in provision of our students' psychiatric care. Students meet with these therapists weekly for individual and group therapy, and twice each month for family therapy via face to face sessions, teleconferencing or video conferencing. WWW.LITTLEKESWICKSCHOOL.NET I P.O. Box 24, Keswick, VA 229471 4a4-295-04571mdagitz@littlekeswickschool.net Yoouuare really respectful.Y're always really posi- tive. You always have a smile on your face, which is a really good thing." Early adolescent boys aren't typically known for their tendency to compliment their classmates. Yet these affirmations, spoken by real teens, are a common oc- currence at the Little Keswick School, especially during its weekly community meetings. The school encourages positive social interactions every day among its students —all of whom are boys working through one or more social, emotional, learning, and/or behavioral challenges. This small, private, therapeutic board- ing school —unknown to many Albe- marle County residents —is located on 25 pastoral acres off Louisa Road behind the old Keswick Depot. For more than five decades, however, the Little Keswick School has been a lifeline for boys and by Lynn Bell Pechuekonis their families from all over the US and abroad —boys who have been unable to succeed in a series of prior educational and treatment settings. They come with complex, usually multiple, diagnoses, in- cluding learning difficulties, social dif- fictuldes, mood disorders, attentional dif- ficulties, and cognitive processing issues. Students who often arrive discour- aged by experiences of failure and social rejection leave Little Keswick one to two years later filled with self-confidence, the ability to better regulate their emotions and behavior, and an army of new skills and competencies —typically equipped for a less- structured educational setting and on the path to greater success as emerging adults. The school's consistent success in transforming the lives of the 35 boys who reside there each year has earned Little Keswick a national and in- ternational reputation. Due to the nature of its students' chal- lenges, Little Keswick also offers intensive therapeutic treatment. The school, which is accredited by the Virginia Association of Independent Specialized Education Facilities (VAISEF), maintains two full- time doctorate level psychologists and a full-time licensed clinical social worker. A consulting child and adolescent psychia- trist carries a small treatment caseload and provides medication management for students. Boys meet with these ther- apists weekly for individual and group therapy and twice each month for family therapy. The clinical team also guides and supports the relationship -based interac- tions that occur continuously between students and staff members. The secret behind Little Keswick's success is a combination of several fac- 96 As featured in albetnade Magazine August/September 2017 ALBEMARLE tors. First and foremost, within the in- tegration of services in the therapeutic community, the philosophy of education encompasses both academic and social - emotional growth for each student. Sec- ond, the staff, led by Marc Columbus, who has been the school's Headmaster since 1993, recognizes that every boy has his own individual capabilities. Finally, the environment is structured to ensure that each student is able to achieve his growth potential. Small class sizes, teach- ers trained in special education, supple- mental learning specialists and numer- ous opportunities for hands-on projects and electives ensure that boys engage in their education and receive all the sup- port they need to succeed. To achieve true integration of services, quarterly reviews of each student brings together teachers, clinical staff, support counselors, residential counselors, and related services providers, such as the speech and language pathologist or occu- pational therapist. "We talk about what's working and what's the best approach for each student," says Dr. Marty Thomson, Clinical Director of psychological services at Little Keswick. "Every person on staff, regardless of their position, knows what is going on with every student," he adds. "They are all pulling in the same direc- tion on behalf of the boys." Over 46% of the staff members have been at Little Keswick for 10 years or more. Dr. Thomson has worked at Little Keswick for 17 years, ever since joining the school community in the simmer of 2000. He is a licensed clinical psycholo- gist with a doctoral degree in counsel- ing psychology and had previously been working in outpatient settings. "At the end of that five week summer session here, I said, 'I'm not leaving.' I saw more change in our students in five weeks than in working for two years with students in outpatient settings." Perhaps the most important feature of Little Keswick —and one often highlight- ed by families in their testimonials —is its nurturing culture. As a residential pro- gram, they focus on a relationship -based model. The community is saturated with an atmosphere of hope, promise, and belonging, resulting in a deep experience of being valued. Students are individually known, supported, appreciated, and en- couraged by each staff member through their daily triumphs, struggles, stumbles, and rebounds. "Everything has meaning at LKS, " says Mr. Columbus, who is famously attentive to detail around Little Keswick, "not only the therapy, but every agenda item on the daily schedule, the way community meetings are structured, the challenges provided by support counselors, the way the dorms are set up, the kinds of com- munity service projects the boys engage in —everything." The support counselors he men- tioned work with each boy, helping them set achievable goals and use appropri- ate strategies to solve challenges. "When boys come back to visit after graduating, the first person they want to talk to is a support counselor," Thomson says. "The nurturing relationship that develops is strong, and the boys understand that working through their challenges helped them grow and develop their skills to feel ultimately successful." Families typically turn to Little Kes- wick when their son has had all the best treatment available in their communi- ties, and interventions in outpatient set- tings were not working. Little Keswick accepts boys 9 to 15 years old at the time Headmaster Marc Columbus, and his mitre, Director of Admissions Terry Columbus. of admission. "Even then, our admis- sions process is extremely selective to en- sure a good fit for each boy introduced to the Little Keswick community," says Director of Admissions Terry Colum- bus, who has worked at Little Keswick for 40 years. "Maturity level is relevant, especially in relation to the boys already here. At some level, students must be able to build relationships and imple- ment surategies in order to benefit from the program support. "Our students tend to be develop- mentally younger and less sophisticated than typical adolescents and pre -adoles- cents," she says. "They are capable young men with average to high average intel- lectual levels. We do not consider appli- cants with histories of legal involvement or conduct -disordered behaviors. We also do not accept children who demon- strate patterns of physical aggression or sexual behaviors." Little Keswick was founded in 1963 when Robert and Elizabeth Wilson opened their ]tome for the summer to children to engage in activities and a structured program of reading, writ- ing and arithmetic. Eventually, some par- ents asked them to offer a winter pro- gram, and the Wilson boarded students in their home. With the experience of helping students succeed, the program turned into a year-round therapeutic boarding school and the facilities ex- panded. Farm cottages were renovated into dormitories and classrooms. Meals were served family -style in the Wilson's home until the Keswick Depot was added to the school's campus in 1995. The campus has since evolved with a gymnasium, outdoor black top and soc- cer field. A new Academic Center and the Madison and Jefferson Dorms opened in 2008, In 2012, the Monroe Residence Center was completely renovated, adding a school library. The most recent evolution of the school was finalized in fall 2016, when Little Keswick took a major step forward in becoming an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit school, to enable philanthropic giving in support of the school. "The ability to raise funds and to cre- ate an endowment is crucial to keeping costs down and to making the school more accessible to families around the world that will benefit from our pro- grams and staff while keeping the needs of our students and families first," Mr. Columbus says, Integrity and safety are also core values of the school. Little Keswick continuously receives impeccable reviews by accredita- tion agencies. Little Keswick was a proud recipient of the "Excellence in Education Award" offered by Woodbury Reports Inc., which is offered annually to schools that pass an extensive screening process and achieve the highest ratings for the quality of their programs, safety, and ef- fectiveness. In addition, the school has been awarded with a Certificate of Ac- creditation with Commendation from VAISEF for receiving 100% compliance with accreditation standards. Perhaps the best reviews of the school come from the parents who have expe- rienced the program and the impact it had on their families. "As we look ahead, the now can do so with optimism and hope and confidence that our son will find his way and continue on the positive path that you have shown him," one par- ent said. "The work you do at LKS is so important and we've seen firsthand the transformation during his time there was nothing short of miraculous." ALBEMARLE As featured in albeounie Magazine August/September 2017 97 Animal Assisted Therapy How a Codd Nose and a Warm Heart Make a Difference At Little Keswick School, we believe that relationships are the context in which positive change occurs. Through meaningful relationships with our staff, students experience repeated opportunities to see themselves in a different light in which they are positive, capable, and independent. However, relationships with our human staff aren't the only ones that help them feel a sense of care, trust, and accomplishment. Animal Assisted Therapy has been a vital component of the LKS program since the school's opening in 1963. Whether learning to ride and care for a horse in our equestrian program, spending quality time with our campus cat, visiting the chickens, or engaging with one of our five therapy or facility dogs, our students have the chance to learn about themselves and how to care for others through their connections with animals. These connections provide social support, act as a catalyst for human social interactions, reduce loneliness, help with emotional regulation, and increase self-esteem. Since 2011, LKS has worked with Canine Companions for Independence (CCI) and Pet Partners to provide canine assisted therapy to our community, beginning with Barter, our first facility dog. Facility dogs from CCI are bred to have calm, sociable temperaments and work for more than two years learning over forty commands. In 2017, Dr. Kelsey Fassieux, one of our clinical psychologists, completed training with CCI and welcomed Kalia as our second facility dog. Then, in May, 2019, Jennifer Payne, Director of Academic Services, completed CCI training and Nitro joined the LKS community. Along with Kalia and Nitro, we have three therapy dogs, Grace, River, and Mika who were certified through Pet Partners. Students engage the dogs by grooming, petting, talking to, or playing with them. Or, students may benefit from the sensory input when a facility dog performs the "lap," "sit," or "visit" command. Our dogs also provide students support during therapy and problem solving where they offer security and comfort. Similarly, they help students in academics by attending classes, being read to, and providing comfort during situations that could provoke anxiety, like testing. A few minutes with one of our four -legged friends is often just what a student needs to shift his mindset, regulate himself, and feel safe enough to take risks that lead to success. "Nitro greets each student with excitement and is always ready to play or sit calmly, depending on the student's need in the moment. Students experience themselves as calm, capable, kind, smart, confident, joyful, lovable and fun when they are with him," says Jennifer Payne. Maybe the best way to summarize the power of our Animal Assisted Therapy program is through the words of one of our students. "I feel important and accomplished when I am with Nitro. I like doing my schoolwork when I am with him. I want to be the person I feel like when I am with Nitro all the time." WWW.LITTLEKESWICKSCHOOL.NET I P.O. Box 24, Keswick, VA 229471 434.295.04571keswickidsOIittlekeswickschool.net