About Meeting Street School

In 1946, Dr Eric Denhoff, a pediatric neurologist, and Margaret Langdon Kelly, a teacher, founded Meeting Street School. They believed that children with or without disabilities should be accepted and important. The funds received from fundraisers and school departments are what pay for the high tech equipment that help these children. Meeting Street is a school for individuals with disabilities. It has been providing education services for children with special needs for over 50 years. It was the first school in East Providence, RI. Perhaps, because it has been doing this for so long, its reputation is so positive. The staff there, at all levels, is committed to providing the best possible services. The comfort level at Meeting Street is partly about the physical environment, but it is more the attitude of the staff, who are devoted to the children and genuinely believe in what they are doing. School departments in certain districts decide which children they believe will benefit from going to Meeting Street. The tuition for typically developing children is $190.00/per week for infant/toddler programs, and $165.00/per week for preschool/kindergarten. The school departments will pay for the students who are referred to Meeting Street, but it is not a public school. The school is in a comfortable, meadow-like setting, with acres of green, even-cut, and healthy looking grass. The trees stand and hang glamorously over seas of mulch and gravel. The flowers around the trees are full of life. Accessibility to the entrance is very much needed and accommodating to all with or without disabilities. At the entrance of the school, there is a buzzer. However, in case of a fire, the doors unlock from the outside automatically for firefighters. Therefore, when you push the buzzer, the secretary, sitting at a desk right in front of the door, will buzz you in. In order to ensure the safety of the children and staff, Meeting Street tries to monitor who comes into the building. The visitor's pass is an easy way for staff to know if an unfamiliar person is in the building for a purpose. The couches and tables in the waiting room are silky soft with bumper pads. You might say to yourself, "I hope it takes a while for me to be called." The waiting area has plenty of things to keep children occupied, such as educational books and puzzles. The whole waiting room is safety proof. All of the electric sockets are covered. Every room, except for the offices, has decorations on the walls with little handprints. "They were all done as art projects from the Bright Futures preschool children." the tour guide told me. The name of Meeting Street's preschool is Bright Futures. A day in Bright Futures for all students is very structured. The little handprints in every room gave me the feeling that I was in a place where miracles happen. It is true because some of the parents I spoke to said that their children have done things that they never thought they would do, such as crawling, walking, and talking. I believe so as well because my son, Nicky, crawls and speaks sign language fluently. My son was a student in the preschool wing. There is a waiting list for the infant and toddler programs. There is a waiting list for preschool, but most of the children on it wil be admitted in September. All children with special needs are referred to Meeting Street and have Individual Education Plans. It is also required by law to have bus transportation. The bus picks them up at their houses, not at a bus stop. School starts at 9 am and ends at 2 pm. Snack time is at 9:30 am, and at this time occupational therapy is given, then again at lunchtime, at 12:30 pm. After snack, the children sit down at the rug and identify the month, day, year, weather, and the attendance of each child. This gets the children to identify/recognize eachother by their names. There are four centers in which the children play. At these centers, the children learn about water, sand, crafts, such as coloring and pasting, and cooking. After centers, the staff takes the students outside for a half hour. When recess is over, they all come in to use the bathroom and to wash up for lunch. At 1 pm, it is naptime and that is for an hour. When naptime is over, it is time to go home. The staff uses this time to get all of the students' things ready to go home. Three times a week the children attend what is called adaptive physical education and this takes the pleace of one of the centers. The team of educators, therapists, nurses, social workers, and other related professionals are committed to helping each student gain the knowledge and skills necessary to become a contributing member of the community and to achieve the highest level of independence and fulfillment possible. Meeting Street School has both regular and special education teachers. The special educatiors have at least a bachelor's degree and are state cerified in special education. The regular educators have a minimum of an associate's degree. The school encourages all staff to participate in on-going professional development. All staff also receive training on lifting children, universal precautions, and other areas of health and safety. The tour guide brought me to the audiology room where the audiologist tests individual's hearing. Meeting Street specializes in working with children and young adults who are difficult-to-test due to communication challenges and/or complicated medical conditions that would require sedation for audiological testing without this specialized equipment. Nicholas, my son who was a student, was tested. I sat with him on one side of the room and the audiologist went into this little box-shaped room. She would make a beeping sound on one side of the room to see if Nicky would turn his head in its direction. I thought that was a smart method. Meeting Street has been written about in newspaper articles and magazines for its ideal balance of improved technology, innovation, and compassion in supporting children and young adults with disabilities and developmental delays. I have great respect for this school and all who work within it. Meeting Street has a program called, Early Intervention, which provides the continuity and consistency in a child's care in his or her early education. It also builds a solid foundation for the student's future. Meeting Street School combines education, therapy, and work experience within the classroom and community settings. The school runs on a 230- day, year-round schedule, assisting all students who attend, with the option of children having a vacation in summer.