Dearborn Academy students typically come to us through their Special Education Director or Out-of-District Coordinator. Dearborn Academy also enrolls students on a private pay tuition basis. Spaces are limited. Please email us or call 781.641.5992 to learn more about private enrollment.
For Districts
As a state-approved Chapter 766 program, Dearborn serves students in Grades 3-12 in Dearborn Elementary/Middle and Dearborn High School. Our program’s strong educational mix allows us to meet the needs of students with a fairly broad range of learning and social challenges. In the past few years, we have partnered with more than 40 school districts to serve their students.
We are particularly strong in supporting high-ability students who struggle with the following:
- Language-based and nonverbal learning disabilities
- Dyslexia, writing or comprehension difficulties
- Math skills
- Executive functioning challenges
- ADD and ADHD
- Anxiety, social anxiety, depression and mood disorders
- PTSD
Tour Our School
Educators and other special education professionals are always welcome to visit Dearborn Academy and learn more about our programs. Please email or call Rebecca Altepeter at 781.641.5992 to arrange a tour and visit.
For Families
We understand the out-of-district placement process can be stressful for families. And we are here to help. If your student’s IEP team recommends an out-of-district school placement, they will send a referral packet to several schools. If you know that Dearborn has received your packet, you are always free to call us. Until we review a formal packet, however, we will not be able to answer many questions regarding possible placement, but we’ll do our best to answer any questions about our school.
If Dearborn Academy is one of the schools to receive your packet, our admissions team will carefully review your student’s needs and history. If we think our educational and therapeutic services will be a good fit, we will contact you to arrange a formal interview for you and them. We will give you a tour of the school and our team will review your student’s previous and current school experiences, needs and goals with you.
If, together, we agree to take the next step, we may then invite your student to spend a full day at the school. They will meet our teachers, staff and students. At the end of the day, we meet with your student to talk about their impressions.
A member of our team will then call you, as the caregiver, and school system with our decision. We try to make our decision promptly to avoid further delay in the student’s education. Most families will have a decision within two days. Once a student has been admitted, Dearborn staff work with the school district and caregiver to complete any needed IEP paperwork and arrange for transportation.