The federal law requires two things of an IEP team when determining placement for student with disabilities: 1) the placement must be appropriate, and 2) it must represent the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) for that student. Once the IEP team at a local sending school district decides that The Forum School meets those criteria for one of their students, the district sends a referral and requests placement.

“We work with all of our students to offer opportunities that fully immerse them in the school experience”

Once a student is placed with us, our focus is on providing the Least Restrictive Experience. We strive to provide a school experience where students are able to grow their independence and fully engage in the school community. Whether this means running errands throughout the building independently, eating lunch in the cafeteria with other classes and students, taking part in school dances and assemblies, or leading morning announcements, we work with all of our students to offer opportunities that fully immerse them in the school experience. Our students are peer mentors, artists, singers, classroom stars, and award winners. Here, each student is fully included.

To make this possible, we engage in ongoing professional development with instructional staff to keep the focus on increasing student independence and decreasing prompt dependency.  Our administrative and support staff work with classroom staff to gauge when students are ready and how much independence to give them while focusing on the experience that the students receive while in our program.  An experience that prepares them for independence beyond The Forum School to the greatest extent possible!