The High Road School of Norwalk, serving children with social, emotional and behavioral challenges started off the 2007- 2008 school year in a brand new building off of Route 1 in Norwalk.  This new space has offered room for expansion and has allowed us to positively impact more students.

While still maintaining a small structured learning environment, we are able to focus on personalized academic, behavioral and transitional goals to ensure our students’ growth.Serving Fairfield County and the surrounding areas, the school offers a scholastic program for elementary through high school aged students.

Our special education teachers modify the curriculum in accordance with the graduation requirements of each student’s home school district.  Our staff to student ratio further ensures personalized instruction for each student.  In addition, our therapeutic milieu embraces the development of each student’s social emotional needs.

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Back to School 2010 - 2011 NEWS:

Open House

2010 Fine Arts Festival

The High Road Schools of CT held their second annual Fine Arts Festival on May 14, 2010 at the Sheraton Four Points Hotel in Meriden. The festival brings together all of the schools in the CT region to showcase their art work and creative talents.

The Fine Arts Festival is a culmination of a yearly school project called m-map. It is the Masters March Activity Project which integrates the fine arts into all of the academic disciplines. Norwalk teacher, Pamela Thompson, coordinates the projects for the entire region. Students, as always, are encouraged to “celebrate, cultivate, and challenge, the mind”, which was the slogan adorned on tee-shirts made by Transition Coordinator, Kathy Szabat and the Upper school students for all the student participants.

This year’s theme was “Finding Your Voice.”  One stand out project included a dinner party where each student invited a person of their choice to the dinner table. Each student designed the place settings for their special guest and also wrote a conversation that they think they might take place. The variety of guests included Martin Luther King, Jr., James Bond, Barack Obama, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln.

Besides all of the creative and inspiring art work, students also had an opportunity to show off their musical talents!  Students sang a variety of contemporary songs, as well as, writing and performing original rap songs and skits. A few students also accompanied their performance with guitar or keyboard.

This year the Arts Festival drew close to 300 people including students, parents, district heads and friends. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the art work and was energized by the students’ performances.

The Festival culminated with some fun interactive dancing led by Broadway dancer, Hally McGehean. Ms. McGehean led the students in some line dances including the Cupid Shuffle backed by our very own staff D.J. Jeff Benham.

High Road School of Norwalk’s Peer Leadership Program

Ms. Coviello was looking for an innovative way to address some of the tension and bickering that erupted in her 7th and 8th grade class at the beginning of the school year. She began to think about different activities that she could do with the students to strengthen their relationships in the classroom. She then decided to pair students together who did not normally work together and gave them different activities to work on that would require teamwork. Thus the Peer Leadership program was born.

For one lesson Ms. Coviello set up an obstacle course with a bit of a twist. The students going through the course were blind folded. The students could only proceed through the course by listening to the directions from their partner. To get through the obstacles, the students learned they needed to rely on and trust their partners.  The students discovered that they enjoyed working together on these actives and began to bond in a new way. 

As anticipated, Ms. Coviello noticed her students getting along much better in the classroom due to their involvement in the Peer Leadership program.

Shooting For Success

Swoosh!  The High Road School of Connecticut Hornets made the last shots to win the fundraiser basketball game against their staff 51 to 48.

The year started off on a sad note at the High Road School of Norwalk this year.  We unfortunately had to disseminate terrible news to our students on the first day of school; Mr. DeJesus, a well-respected staff member, suffered a heart attack over the summer, and had tragically passed away.  This news was difficult for our students to process, especially given the fact that mortality is something they have rarely thought of.

Mr. Juan DeJesus will always be a part of our High Road family.  What greater way to honor such a respected staff member than to grant immortality in creating a scholarship in his name.  The scholarship will be granted to one graduating senior in Connecticut who will be continuing their education after high school.  An essay contest will be held for all eligible students, and the winner will be the recipient of the scholarship fund. 

In an effort to raise money for our scholarship, our staff challenged the student competitive basketball team, the High Road Hornets, to a basketball game.  The game was hosted at Albertus Magnus, a local college.  Members from the Albertus Magnus basketball team practiced with the students before the game, signed autographs for the admiring students, and were the officials for the Staff vs. Students game.  At game time the stands were filled with parents and fans of all involved.  Members of Mr. DeJesus’ s family even made the long journey from New York to support the event and cheer on the students he had dedicated so much time and energy to. 

Through the donations of the evening, we were able to raise $1000 which will be awarded to a graduating High Road senior in Connecticut who will be continuing their education after high school.  We hope to continue this event in the years to come.

Memorial Service for Juan DeJesus

A week before the 2009 – 2010 school year began, the High Road School of Norwalk unexpectedly lost a beloved and integral member of our community – Mr. Juan DeJesus.  In an effort to pay tribute and to mourn his loss in a positive manner, our school social workers set about to assess exactly how the student body wanted to pay their respects to the man who had been such an influential role model and guide in their lives.  Did they want to write something?  Did they want create something? Did they want to ‘do’ something?

Although many wonderful ideas were brainstormed, it was collectively and emphatically decided that the students would create a path made of stepping stones in his honor.  This was the seed idea that was then grown into a full blown, peaceful, recreational area.  The students worked diligently in shifts, under the guidance of teachers, social workers and Mr. Botwick, to clear the area surrounding our hoop house, lay down fresh wood chip, build picnic tables and design a beautiful winding path of stepping stones.

The students then created and sent invitations to former staff, students, community members and Juan’s family to join in celebrating Juan’s life at a memorial ceremony.  On Thursday, October 1st, everyone came together to read a poem created of written memories and to vocalize to Juan’s family, and to each other, the multitude of ways he had positively impacted their lives and how he would never be forgotten.  High Road School of Norwalk will continue to enjoy and find peace in the recreational memorial site and Juan’s family has an open invitation to return to the site and take solace in what was created in his honor.

Untapping Hidden Talents

It is our mission to help students form positive identities by helping them to become more self-aware of personal strengths.  In an effort to discover hidden talents, aptitudes and interests, High Road School of Norwalk is determined to expose students to a variety of activities that will tap into all intelligences.  Our first attempt at this was to send all 7 classes on a trip to the Norwalk River Rowing Association.  Under the guidance and expertise of Melanie Jacobi, students spent 90 minutes on the water learning the basics of rowing, practicing team building skills, engaging in a new form of physical activity and enjoying the peace of being outside on a beautiful fall day.

We hope to enroll students who had a notable interest, passion and aptitude for rowing in an after-school program at the Norwalk River Rowing Association.  It is our hope and goal that this newfound activity will not only become a source of pride and provide a sense of accomplishment for the students, but it will also teach them, through experiential learning, that physical activity is a great stress release and remedy for the mind, body and soul!

Fall Family Fun Day

On Friday, October 23, 2009 The High Road Schools of CT held a Fall Family Fun Day at Plaskos Farm in Trumbull, CT. Students, staff, and their families were invited to "come on down" to the farm for a hay ride, corn maze, and a pumpkin to take home. It was a wonderful opportunity for all of our schools (Wallingford, Norwalk and Waterbury campuses) to come together to meet one another and enjoy some old fashion fall activities for the afternoon!
 
All participants also enjoyed a visit to the country store for some fresh apple cider, cider donuts or ice cream. A fun afternoon was had by all.

High Road and MCCA Partnership

The High Road School of Norwalk also has partnered with the MCCA residential program to provide day educational services under the MCCA ART School.  This program services up to 16 residentially placed girls who are addressing substance abuse and co-existing mental health disorders.  The setting provides the same tutorial academic model that our High Road Schools are known for while also providing a full time certified school social worker to address the therapeutic needs of the girls in attendance.
Please visit the MCCA website for more information. www.mccaonline.com

Related Services 

High Road Schools help the students to make the most of learning opportunities by staffing certified specialists to help each student with additional support as needed.

Our speech and language therapy program includes a coordinated and individualized approach. In group work, as well as individually, our certified speech therapists help the student to correctly produce the sounds in words, increase speech intelligibility, develop vocabulary knowledge and understanding, and utilize appropriate conversational skills. Emphasis is placed on pragmatics; such as turn taking, topic maintenance, asking appropriate questions, and socialization.   Also, grammar, syntax, and written expression are addressed.

Our occupational therapists help students with sensory, perceptual, and motor problems better meet the daily demands of their environment. She uses directed play as the primary method of treatment; however, classroom consultation directly with teachers and assistants regarding the student’s abilities is also key to their success. Directed play includes activities such as mazes or target games to develop the student’s eye and hand coordination or ball games to increase coordination between two sides of the body.  Through the use of movement, touch, and other functional activities, the student better develops the responses needed to function in the classroom, home, and community environments.  As the child ages and his or her needs change, the focus is on the acquisition of specific skills.  These can include learning to measure baking ingredients, personal care, or crossing busy streets, depending on the student’s abilities.

Our social workers help students with emotional and social growth issues.  They focuses on helping the student develop age-appropriate skills and behaviors for the classroom.  Through the use of recreational and other activities, they assist students in building self-esteem, applying social skills, and practicing leadership and team participation.  The students are seen individually and in small group sessions.  It is also not unusual to find social workers in the classroom leading social skills activities.

A consulting psychologist and behaviorist are also available on an as needed basis.

At High Road Student Schools all related services personnel work closely with the classroom teachers to assure integration into all classroom activities.

The various and diverse transitional services of High Road Schools allow students to apply the skills they have acquired in the classroom — academic, social, behavioral, and otherwise — to “real-world” contexts in order to gain an understanding of the economic forces in society and of the professional culture in general. All of the programming that is designed to transition the student from school to work emphasizes preparation for productive employment after graduation. To make this employment as successful and fulfilling as possible, we help the student explore his or her interests and then build upon natural talents in choosing possible career paths. As students mature, we encourage them to gradually become more self-reliant. Our Transitional Services staff aids in this process by giving the students just the right amount of independence and interaction with the wider community, while still providing the supports necessary for the students to feel secure and confident.

School-to-Work Program
Our School-to-Work Program offers students the opportunity to participate in true-to-life jobs within the school setting. The end goal of the program is to develop the student’s employment skills and social skills in order to maximize their potential for success in the real world. As such, students seek to obtain jobs by first filling out an application and interviewing for the position they are interested in, as they would in real life. Once the student obtains a suitable position at the school, they are held accountable for their attendance and performance.  We work with them on such aspects of employment as punctuality, responsibility, and working independently. One of the jobs the students procure involve our student-run, on-the-premises retail business. Also, students participating in the School-to-Work Program are trained to operate many state-of-the-art machines that make customized products.

Community Work
High Road Schools afford students the opportunity to take their learning out of the classroom and transfer it into the community. We work with our students to practice the proficiencies they have mastered in the School-to-Work Program, and then, when a student is ready, a job coach accompanies them to volunteer or paid job sites out in the community. We partner with a wide array of local-area businesses, including restaurants, hospitals, preschools, and retail shops to expose the students to real-life work experience and social interactions. In this way, students can explore numerous career avenues and gain valuable work experience to list on their résumés.

IEP Management System

High Road Schools of CT is pleased to announce the implementation of IEP Direct web based management system in our Norwalk, Wallingford, and Waterbury locations. The utilization of this program will better serve the needs of districts and students with more efficiency and accuracy in creating individual educational plans.

For more information about the High Road Schools of CT, please contact Carol Revill, Outreach Coordinator @ 203-294-9139 or Brooke Violante, Chief School Director @ 203-840-1030.

Extended School Year

High Roads Schools of CT accepts referrals for our Extended School Year Program
(summer school) from local school districts. The ESY programs are available to our existing students who qualify, as well as, classified students who do not attend our schools during the regular school year.

Each child who is enrolled in the Extended School Year program will receive individual and small group instruction based on their current school year I.E.P. The extended year program addresses academic and social skill maintenance, transitional services (16 years and older), and enrichment activities. Speech and language, occupational and physical therapies, as well as social work services are provided for those who require them.

The school day for extended year is 9:00 A.M. – 1:00 P.M. and the program runs Monday – Friday for approximately 6 weeks.

2010 Extended School Year Dates

Starting Thursday, July 1, 2010 - Friday, August 13, 2010.
No school on Monday, July 5 due to July 4th observance.