Education Designed with a Fresh Vision for Each Student’s Future

Each youth we serve receives individualized education combined with therapy from highly trained school personnel in small class settings. Our goal is to provide a space where each student can blossom and come to life before our eyes – not only in a classroom setting, but also by using nature as a teacher – and art and music as therapy.

Whether we are developing life and vocational skills or just slowing down when life starts to get too fast, each child’s educational journey is designed to fit their needs – because we truly believe that a child’s mental wellness is a work of art.

Our small classes of about 10 students allow our personnel to focus on each student. Our highly trained teachers and therapists collaborate to use a variety of evidence-based programs and behavior strategies to focus on short-term goals that lead to longer-term success and reignite a child or teen’s passion for learning. By adapting our teaching to fit each student’s personality and needs, we get to know each child on a personal level. To understand what each student is going through, so we know the best way to teach them by making them feel safe and empowered.

Teaching, caring for and growing students is what our personnel do every day, whether a student is with us for a short time or through graduation.

To learn more about our schools and the enrollment process, call

In addition to traditional academic offerings, KVC Academy uses a variety of evidence-based programs and behavior strategies (as evaluated by the National Standards Project and the National Professional Development Project), including:

• Cooperative Learning: We use a variety of learning activities in small teams.
• Just-In-Time Teaching: School personnel engage students by linking out-of-class and in-class activities.
• Project Based Learning: We promote problem solving and critical thinking skill development by engaging students in learning through exploration of real-world issues.
• Personalized Instruction: This allows students to work independently and at their own pace with built-in assessment and testing for comprehension.

We currently employ more than 15 evidence-based practices and programs for children with autism (as identified by the National Development Center and the National Standards Project), which may include:

• Differential Reinforcement and Pivotal Response Training: School personnel use positive reinforcement to reduce challenging behaviors and increase pro-social behaviors.
• Discrete Trial Training: This one-to-one instructional approach is used to teach skills in a planned, controlled and systematic manner.
• Prompting: This helps increase task behaviors and teaches new skills.
• Functional Behavior Assessment: This helps school personnel understand the motivation behind a student’s negative behavior.
• Social Stories/Social Narratives: This intervention helps learners adjust to changes in routine or to teach specific social skills and behaviors.
• Functional Communication: School personnel coach students to develop appropriate communicative behavior as a replacement for problem behaviors.
• Social Skills Group: A highly structured set of lessons is taught in small groups to promote positive social interactions with peers.

Teacher Spotlight

About the Autism Education Program

Our world-class, evidence-based interventions and unique approach to autism education empower children to modify challenging behaviors while improving communication and developing social skills.

We support success in home and group home settings by focusing on life skills such as cooking, housekeeping, laundry, money management and other vocational activities. Skills taught are then reinforced through community field trips such as grocery shopping, eating in a restaurant and using public transportation.

Accreditations

Independent Schools Association of the Central States (ISACS)

Sponsors of this Program

United Way of Greater St. Louis