This fall, the JCC Therapeutic Nursery will be moving to Lubavitch on the Palisades (LPS) in Tenafly. With a new home comes a brand new name: The Springboard School. The move comes after the school has served children with social, emotional and behavioral challenges for over 24 years at the JCC on the Palisades.
The school is a nationally recognized program for bright, young children with various developmental challenges, including high-functioning autism. It is built around a comprehensive social-skills curriculum that teaches children how to communicate and socialize with their peers and how to regulate their emotions and behaviors. These skills are crucial for school success. Parents are collaborators in their child’s education, using what they learn to help their children at home and in the community.
The Springboard School will be an on-site resource for LPS. Their staff will provide speech and OT screenings and will help LPS teachers and parents with students who are having difficulty in school. By giving The Springboard School a home, LPS will allow the school to continue their ground-breaking work with young children and their families.
Children at the Springboard School will have the option to join LPS classes in the morning and The Springboard School for their afternoon program. With the combined efforts of both faculties, expectation is for The Springboard School’s students to eventually flourish in the mainstream classes as well as in the larger Jewish community. The hope is that the Springboard School will serve as a model for other Jewish day schools.
The goal of The Springboard School is to have bright, young children with developmental challenges reach their highest potential. Many of its former students have gone on to colleges, graduate schools and successful careers. Most importantly, many are leading happy and productive lives. It is most gratifying for the staff to have made a dramatic difference in the lives of so many children and the extraordinary parents who raise them. Both Lubavitch on the Palisades and The Springboard School are thrilled and energized by this new partnership.
For more information about the Springboard School or to schedule a free screening for your child (for children ages 3-6, with communication, social or behavioral challenges), please contact Director Lois Mendelson, Ph.D., at [email protected].
