[ nek-suhs ]: a means of connection
One of The Mead School’s core beliefs is that a student’s greatest potential can be achieved when their learning environment supports the whole child, and when individual learners are met where they are. We honor each student’s unique abilities and understand that there is no “one size fits all” equation for their success.
In 2020, Mead introduced Nexus and broadened the School's capacity to enroll a wider range of learners by providing individualized support services in conjunction with and inclusive of our existing general education program.Nexus serves its students and families by providing a student-centered connection with the student, teacher, classroom, specialist, and family. The goal is to create a community of support based on a child’s individual learning needs.
Who does Nexus serve?
Nexus serves neurodiverse children and their families by providing all of the benefits of a Mead School education but with added, individualized support services based on each student’s needs.
All students at Mead play a responsible and engaged role in the community. This includes participation in all school activities, including collaborative team projects, overnight trips, reflection, outdoor and physical development activities, theatrical and musical performances, and more.
Who does Nexus NOT serve?
The Mead School cannot serve students with disruptive behavioral challenges that would negatively impact classroom activity.
How is a determination made that a student’s needs can be best served by Nexus and The Mead School?
We want each of our students to achieve success during their time at Mead. Transparency during the Admissions process is vital to making an informed decision. It is through partnership with applicant families and educational consultants, review of school reports, evaluations, and a comprehensive internal Admissions team process that we are able to determine if a student’s needs can be best served at Mead. If you’re considering Nexus for your child we require access to any/all Educational Testing and Evaluations (eg., IEPs or 504s), and/or Private Evaluations (eg., neuropsychological evaluations, OT or Speech evaluations) in order to make an informed decision.
Once enrolled, how will The Mead School determine what specific Nexus supports will benefit my child?
The best way to determine specific supports is by observing the child in our educational environment and community. For new students enrolled in Nexus, there is a 6-week acclimation process whereby teachers and specialists observe each student’s skill sets (OT/Speech Therapists will conduct screenings) to make decisions about “right-fit” classes, extra support services, and cadence of services and family meetings. A schedule of classes and support services is created based on each individual child’s needs.
By the end of the 6-week acclimation process, observations, conversations, evaluations, in conjunction with a review of student records, are summarized into a Student Learning Profile that is shared with each faculty member that works with the child. This helps the teaching team understand the child’s strengths as well as their challenges and the services that are being provided to support the student’s success throughout the school year.
Who will support my child?
The teaching team of Home Center Director and Curriculum Directors work in conjunction with our Learning Specialist (and OT, SLP, depending on the child’s needs) to support your child. The support of your child at school also requires a committed partnership and connection with the family in order to be successful.
Learning Specialist & Director of Nexus
The Learning Specialist at The Mead School cultivates and strengthens a teaching and learning culture at Mead that successfully encompasses our range of capable learners. This position serves to support the teaching staff by offering resources, assistance, advice, and training to enable them to best meet the needs of our students.
The Learning Specialist reads and summarizes all Psychological and Educational evaluations for Pre-K - Grade 8 and for Admissions, as necessary, and develops and maintains communication and documentation protocols related to learning support. The LS writes individual learning plans (ILPs) targeting a student’s specific curricular/learning needs.
It is the Learning Specialist’s responsibility to provide one-on-one and small-group support/instruction for students, in both push-in and pull-out environments, and to coordinate the schedules for both Occupational Therapy and Speech/Language Services. As an integral part of our teaching and Home Center teams, the Learning Specialist Assumes an active role in Student Support Team (SST) meetings, providing vital data on all students.
The Learning Specialist also counsels with families on learning support and assessment accommodations, and meets with families as necessary to discuss the progress of their child. Responsibilities also include acting as a liaison with local school districts and attending CSE meetings as appropriate.
Speech-language Services
The Speech-Language services honor the individual spirit of each student while bolstering the language/pragmatic skills that require strengthening. Some students require speech-language intervention that is academically based and focuses on phonological skills, language processing, word retrieval, syntax, and inferential skills. For others, intervention is socially based, and targets pragmatic skills including problem solving, topic initiation/maintenance, cognitive flexibility, reading the room and developing friendships. There are also those students who benefit from a combination of the two therapies.
Our SLP is committed to knowing, understanding, and developing dynamic treatment plans as well as close working relationships with students who require speech and language services.
Collaboration with Mead’s Learning Specialist, Curriculum Directors, and Home Center Directors enable our SLP to remain abreast of any new student challenges/updates in order to effectively meet the evolving needs of each student/family.
Occupational Therapy Services
Mead’s Occupational Therapy services provide students with access to sensory integrative and motor enrichment to help support them in our school setting, and to set them up for their greatest success each day. These services benefit students through individual, group and indirect intervention.
Our staff Occupational Therapist screens each student in order to develop a plan that is individualized to their particular areas of strength and concern, and to provide a plan of intervention that will optimize the outcomes for both the student and the teachers at Mead. Our therapist brings expertise in many of the most current clinical interventions and modalities in the field of Occupational Therapy.
Collaboration with Mead’s Learning Specialist, Curriculum Directors, and Home Center Directors enable our OT to remain abreast of any new student challenges/updates in order to effectively meet the evolving needs of each student/family.
Laura Conte
Learning Specialist and
Director of Nexus
Benefits for the wider school community
Nexus benefits ALL Mead students and is one of the most important innovations of the Mead experience. The benefits of Nexus to ALL students include:
We are excited that you are ready to apply for your child to join
The Mead School.
A world of exciting learning opportunities awaits, and we can't wait to get started!
Applying for your child
Simply click on the "Apply Now" button below to begin. You will be prompted to set up your Mead enrollment portal account which will lead you through the Admissions process from Application to Enrollment.
If you have questions relating to your portal account
please contact the PARENT PORTAL HELP CENTER.
The Admissions Process
If you are interested in applying to The Mead School please review the steps below.
Feel free to reach out at admissions@meadschool.org with any questions.
