David has started kicking other children in class. He does not
play nice and yells out in the middle of class. His family life is
somewhat broken.
David has started kicking other children in class. He does not play nice and yells out in the middle of class. His family life is somewhat broken. His teacher has decided to find David help that she can not provide, given the other students in the class.
While public schools are mandated by law to provide an education for all students, the schools can not provide all the services necessary to meet all students’ educational, behavioral and emotional demands. Once this is determined, the school district asks its governing board to approve sending the student to a more individualized program.
One of these locations is Chamberlain’s Children Center, Inc. on San Benito Street. The center seeks to get students to “function in a normal class environment,” said Doreen Crumrine, Community Services Program director and Administrative Support Center director.
The multi-faceted program provides a number of services to children and their families that include residential treatment, special education, emergency/respite shelter, supervised visitation and exchange program and in-home child abuse prevention and intervention services.
“It’s a therapeutic educational setting,” said Phil Camilleri, director of special education, student services and health services with the Hollister School District.
The HSD Board of Trustees approved sending two students to Chamberlain’s Children Center at its March 25 meeting.
“We’re cautious in having our kids go out of our district. (Chamberlain’s) provides children with academics in the most natural environment possible. There’s a point at which we can’t work with them anymore,” Camilleri said. “… (Chamberlain’s) deals with behavioral and emotional issues for those students who, for emotional reasons, don’t make it in (regular) classes.”
Camilleri said when the time comes, sending students to Chamberlain’s is better because the center has more support services available. Removing students from a regular classroom also benefits the class they’re leaving because a negative distraction is being removed from the teacher and the other students, he said.
Chamberlain’s Children Center is considered a non-public school center and has about 20 students enrolled, Crumrine said. Students are in the first through eighth grades with the majority being at the first through fourth grade level academically, Crumrine said.
“Most students have developmental delays and emotional problems, but it’s their behavior that gets them here,” she said. “We get them the right care, at the right moment.”
Depending on the student’s needs, it can cost about $190 a day per student to provide services, Camilleri said.
“We’re required by law to provide services to children across the board,” he said. “It’s costly not only in terms of money, but in terms of the social needs.”
About 90 percent of Chamberlain’s students reside in one of the four cottages that can accommodate six students, Crumrine said. These students come from child protective services and are not necessarily living with their parents, she added.
School hours run from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and there are two classrooms with two credentialed teachers. The classes provide one-on-one individual help with students working in clusters, Crumrine said.
“It’s a safe, secure, highly structured environment,” she said. “… We want them to reach and maintain their academic potential. We focus on behavior then academics.”
Progress made at Chamberlain’s determines how long students live on site or are enrolled in classes, Crumrine said. Students can stay for an entire year or on a quarterly basis.
