The High Road School of Wallingford – Hartford Campus opened its’ doors on September 2, 2010 in a spacious building to better serve the needs of students from the greater Hartford area.. The High Road School of Wallingford- Hartford campus will be serving students in grades 9-12 who are facing social, emotional, and behavioral challenges. To best meet the needs of this population, our individualized educational program features one-on-one and small group interactive learning, supplemented by integrated computer technology in every classroom. For improved acclimation to the mores and expectations of mainstream society, we offer comprehensive and in-depth social skills training to assist our ED students in recognizing social cues, communicating effectively, interacting with a group, and building healthy and happy peer relationships. Our unique behavioral management system directs challenged students to control their impulses, accept responsibility for their actions, and self-monitor their behavior.

Above else, we are committed to the success of all of our students, so we design our curriculums and initiatives to focus on the specific strengths and abilities of each child, and then we implement these customized intervention plans in a warm and nurturing environment characterized by small class sizes, personal attention, targeted counseling, and positive reinforcement. By adopting such an individual approach, we are able to meet all students at their particular performance level and create new pathways to heightened academic achievement and appropriate, confidence-enhancing behaviors.
 

ESY and APEX 2012

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Parent Workshop: Preventing Parent Burnout

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Parent Workshop: Family with Service Needs and Alternative Programs

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April Parent Workshop

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High Road Schools of CT Presents Informational Workshops for Parents and Guardians March 2012

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3Rd Annual Juan DeJesus Memorial Basketball Game

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Toy Drive

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November Parent Workshops Calendar

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ADHD Informational Workshop for Parents

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Informational Workshop for Parents

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Open House

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Parent Workshops

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Community Projects

The High Road Schools of CT has always strived to teach the students to give back to their communities to help them feel connected to the world out side of their families and school. So many of our students require a great deal of support in their academics or social skills and have often felt out of step with the people and places around them. By getting them involved in community projects it gives students the opportunity to step outside of their comfort zone and learn how their contributions can impact others in a positive way. In the process the students raise their self esteem and widen their world view. 

Students from the High Road School of Wallingford – High School had a wonderful opportunity this past holiday season to make an impact on their community by holding class fundraisers that raised a total of $700.00! They took the money and bought toys for the Smilow Cancer Center in New Haven who were thrilled to receive such items as x-box games, board games, arts and crafts supplies to name a few of the things that brightened up the holidays for the children.  The students participating in the Building Maintenance and Trade program at the high school also built a beautiful pine toy chest to donate to the center as well.

High Road Student Learning Center Upper school students were busy this year putting on a Hoop-A-Thon to benefit our local Make a Wish Foundation in memory of a beloved staff member who had a soft spot in his heart for this organization. They also raised $700.00 to donate to them so that Make a Wish can continue to make critically ill children’s wishes come true.

Our regional basketball fundraiser brings all seven school sites together to raise money for High Road’s Juan DeJesus Memorial Scholarship. Our competitive sports team, High Road Hornets, plays against the High Road Staff in a lively competition held at Albertus Magnus College. Parents, districts, staff, and friends come together to root for the students and support this very worthy cause. The scholarship is awarded to a High Road graduate planning to go on to college or a technical school program. An essay contest is held to determine the winner.

The above are just a few examples of how our students are making a difference in their communities.  By focusing on what they can do to help others, the students at High Road Schools of CT learn that with teamwork, perseverance, and commitment, anything is possible!

High Road School Presents Dave Hopla, Motivational Speaker

Basketball Coach Motivates High Road Students

On Friday, November 22, High Road Schools of CT presented Dave Hopla, the United States Top Shooting Coach at the Wallingford Parks and Recreation gymnasium for all the regional school sites. 

Dave not only motivates students to do their best in school and in life during his presentation, but does so while he continuously shoots baskets. Watching him put 414 out of 415 shots through the hoop was astonishing not only for the students but also for the parents and staff!

When Dave was younger he was told he was not very good at basketball, but at age sixteen he learned the skills to shoot baskets. After that he kept practicing and he began to keep a notebook of all of his shots. Tell him a date and he can go straight to his notebook to look up his personal best for that day. He never gets bored with shooting baskets because he is constantly motivated to top himself every time he practices.

Devon Washington a student in the High Road Student Learning Center Upper School was lucky enough to help Dave out during the presentation. Devon thought that Dave was cool. “I enjoyed learning from him by watching him shoot baskets and I liked the message of never giving up,” said Devon. “I am like that, too. I never give up!”

Another lucky student, Rebecca Murillo also from the upper school, kept tally of Dave’s shots. “I thought he was enjoyable to watch and I would love to learn to shoot like that. I liked his testimony how he was told he would never be good at basketball, but he became great at shooting baskets.” said Rebecca.

Both Devon and Rebecca are on the High Road Hornets sports team and enjoy playing basketball on a regular basis.

Dave stressed the three most important aspects of success: stay positive, don’t quit, and set goals. According to Dave, “Everyone has a special talent and when combined with a great work ethic it will bring you success.”

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Professional Development Day

The High Road Schools of CT brought the staff together from the entire region (Hartford, Norwalk, Wallingford, and Waterbury) on October 22, 2010 for a professional development day. The workshop was held at the Howard Johnson’s Harbor conference room in Milford. School psychologist, Andrew Moyer, MS, NCSP gave a presentation on Executive Functioning: Assessment and Intervention. Staff attending included certified teachers, social workers, and related services. .7 CEUs were awarded to participants. 

The workshop provided  an overview of Executive Skills, how to assess them, and how to use that assessment data to design interventions. A detailed discussion regarding skill versus performance deficits also took place. 

The High Road School of Wallingford – Hartford campus kicked off their grand opening by having an open house on September 1, 2010. The event was well attended by parents, students, and community members who were very impressed with the spacious building that houses roomy classrooms, a gymnasium, industrial kitchen, and the capacity for potential science and computer labs. 

The state approved school opened its’ doors on September 2, 2010 and is currently serving 31 students and has the capacity to serve up to 70 students from the Greater Hartford area.

Please stay tuned as the year progresses to learn more about the newest High Road school in Connecticut!

ESY and APEX 2012

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Apex Learning

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Reading Program Handouts

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Competitive Sports

The High Road Hornets  are gearing up for another exciting year playing a wide range of sports, including cross country, basket ball, volley ball, soft ball and flag foot ball. High Road School Students in grades 8-12 from across the region are eligible to be on the team once they achieve upper level status on our behavior management system.

The team faces challenging games with students from other non-public schools in the area. The Hornets look forward to Fridays when they travel to selected schools for the competition.

The competitive sports program enables the students to learn more about a variety of games, as well as, gives them a great opportunity to interact with new peers. Along with exercise and good sportsmanship, the team members also have another venue put their social skills into practice.

Professional Development

On November 10, 2011, the High Road Schools of CT came together for a professional development day at the Holiday Inn, North Haven.

High Road certified teachers attended a workshop on Multisensory Teaching presented by Genevieve Shryer from one of the SESI schools in Missouri, called Rivendale.

A multi sensory approach to instruction helps students to learn through more than one sense at a time. Students are taught using all their senses; (visual, auditory, and kinesthetic) simultaneously in order to enhance memory and learning and to accommodate all learning styles.

Ms. Shryer presented hands-on activities for reading, language arts, and math, and the staff had an opportunity to practice the lessons as well as make some materials for their classrooms.

Success in multisensory learning has proven to decrease anxiety, as well as, improve self-esteem, self confidence and responsibility!

Extended School Year Program

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.

Check back for Extended School Year dates for 2011.

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.


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.

All of our schools have social workers who 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.

High Road Schools now employs a full time psychologist. A behaviorists is 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 High Road school of Wallingford – Hartford campus has a comprehensive transition program in place for all high school students. There are two full time vocational coordinators on staff to address the transition goals listed in the students’ individualized educational plan, as well as, to coordinate vocational interest inventories, community out placements and on-site school jobs.

In the first year of the transition program each student enrolls in a pre-transition and/or transition programs supported by a comprehensive, multi-level curriculum.  The WORK READINESS morning class provides instruction and support to develop the basic skills needed to be most successful in an employment opportunity.  The curriculum provides individual student support which may include hygiene, interviewing skills, taking directives, performing in unexpected scenarios etc.  Each skill is taught through classroom-based instruction, with role-playing, to give the students an opportunity to practice typical work scenarios.  The students test out of each skills test in order to advance to the next skill.  This class typically runs six to ten weeks depending upon extensiveness of the content being taught.

At the beginning of this phase the curriculum includes administering a VOCATIONAL INTEREST SURVEY in which student interests and aptitudes are assessed, using a variety of quick response inventories, as well as a computer based inventory, called CareerScope.  These comprehensive reports guide the future training programs and community experiences in which the students would most likely achieve success by narrowing the employment possibilities to those that reflect personal interest and aptitude.

The second component of the first year student’s program consists of participation in JOB CLUSTER ROTATIONS, provided in the afternoon. These are rotations of each major training area that the students are interested in (aligned with the results of the above inventory) in order to assess true interest in performing the jobs daily.  Rotations are limited to three students, ensuring individualized skill development throughout a 2 to 3 month period, giving staff and students an accurate record of the depth and breadth of their interest. Long term success remains a guiding principle in the development of needed skills. During this phase, data collection obtained through on-going assessments reveal specific supports the student will need to be successful (i.e. a one to one job coach, diminishing supervision, etc.)

After narrowing down the possibilities, the focus of the second year of the program includes functional academics and work readiness remediation and troubleshooting, in the morning, followed by CUSTOMIZED TRAINING through related volunteer opportunities in the afternoon.  They enter specialized training in a specific field with the expectation of eventually completing the final phase of the program in the third or fourth year by filling a COMMUNITY-BASED EMPLOYMENT need.  This can be achieved through an enclave, supported employment, independent, or competitive employment.  These community-based opportunities are negotiated and secured by the vocational training staff.

Lastly, the vocational coordinators for these community-based positions will conduct periodic surveys with employers, receiving feedback and if needed, to continue to refine the students’ work skills toward maximal success.  Sustainability in their community-based job is our ultimate goal.