The Howard School

The Howard School has been a Godsend for our family! Our son has OCD, and experienced extreme anxiety in his large public high school. He missed nearly 25% of his freshman year due to anxiety-related absences, and really struggled to make friends. While we knew he was bright, his grades suffered because of missing classes and coping with stress. We transferred him to Howard in his sophomore year. The class sizes are small, and the teachers get to know they students well. Our son has been challenged academically, but has been given accommodations when he needs them. There is a lot of discussion in class, and students have the opportunity to really delve deeply into their subjects. Our son was readily accepted by the other students, and he now has good friends. He rarely misses a day of school, and his grades have improved significantly. He's had opportunities to play school sports that he never would have in a 2,000-student public school. He did very well on the SAT and the ACT and he will graduate this spring and attend college in the fall. Our son is now a happy, confident young man, and Howard gets the credit! We cannot recommend it highly enough.
--Submitted by a parent

A different approach does, indeed, make all the difference. For parents of students with LD struggling in the public or private schools in the Atlanta area, consider the howard school. This curriculum is geared for student success with eventual matriculation ot colleges or vocational based secondary education. The teachers are committed and the campus is inclusive and welcoming. Although not academically rigorous, the program reinforces independence, progression and success for students.
--Submitted by a parent

Disregard all negative reviews on this site I am a senior this year at the Howard school with severe dyslexia and there is no better place to be than right here I started in ninth grade and could hardly read and now I can read just about anything the teachers are great they strive for independence and the curriculum is challenging as it should be it is not behind in any way!! If your child has a learning disability and this is coming from a student at Howard this is where they need to be!!!

We began our journey at The Howard School January 2011. We have a daughter with dyslexia and all that goes with it. We were shut out of several of the Buckhead schools mid-year that accept children with reading and language difficulties. However, Howard realized that when a child is diagnosed with learning challenges, immersion needs to begin immediately. She is in the lower school and has made such amazing progress in understanding and comprehending what she reads. Math continues to be a challenge, but the tools Howard provides students will help her in the years to come. I fully believe that early diagnosis and immersing her at Howard will provide the best foundation for her in the years to come. I realize with the focus on getting them to read, write and compute math at grade level, they may miss things in other subjects. It will be easy to make up in the years to come. Plus...who really ever used what they learned in 2nd grade earth science anyway.
--Submitted by a parent

The Howard School has been a big disappointment. After three years on high expecations for our ADHD child, we have given up and are much poorer for it. THS averages down child with ADHS to make them feel like they are smarter. However, the disservice is that they do not keep up academicallly. Our child is older and further behind his age group three year later. Do not waste your time or money on this school. It is a loser!
--Submitted by a parent

This school is amazing!! Our journey with the special needs of a dyslexic & LD child has taken us through 5 schools. The 5th being the Howard school. I wish he could have been here all along , but after 2 years he's an 8th grader now and will definitely stay to be a graduate. In the first year his reading and comprehension rose 4 grade levels. They totally got him and started his "happy days". His self esteem is soaring and he is aware how to accommodate himself to get his studies done. He actually told us he definitely wants to take their summer program to get started on his high school maths! ( He used to dread school! ) He has lots of friends now, ( he used to be very quiet and play alone.) The changes we have seen make the tuition so much easier to pay. Of course if you have a special needs child you know the tuition isn't cheap at any of the schools because these children need low ratio classes and highly qualified teachers. We have experienced teachers that go above and beyond expectations.Their motto is " A Different Approach Makes All the Difference", and it certainly does.
--Submitted by a parent

The Howard School saved my child. She entered as a high-school sophomore and is graduating this year. She was identified with ADD in 5th grade, and even with "accommodations", public school (in a high-achieving school district) was not helping her academically, and was destroying her self-esteem. She could still be stronger academically, but at least she knows she is valued for her strengths and as a person. I think she now has a good chance to go to college and succeed. Her teachers really showed her that they believe in her and think she has a unique voice that deserves to be heard. Also, as a parent, I appreciate the tone of parent/teacher interactions. I finally feel like a team member working with my child and her school, instead of fighting for my child to be served appropriately.
--Submitted by a parent

This is our third year at The Howard School. My son has always felt supported while being challenged and looks forward to each day. The staff and teachers are excellent; we are lucky to have a school like Howard.
--Submitted by a parent

My son is in his first year at this school as a lower school student. He also participated in the summer school sessions, where his progress and love of the staff, prompted me to enroll him in the fall of 2010. He is very happy and really enjoys school. The atmosphere at The Howard School is very accepting of students with their own unique sense of style, character, and individuality. Most children with any learning differences exhibit many different qualities, that I have found are accepted here and encouraged. I also am the parent of an adult child who also has learning issues, so I do know what to expect with my second child with differences. The best I can say for now, because he has not been there for a full year, is that he is loving to learn, happy to attend school, and I do feel he has found a "home school" where he will receive the instruction and what he needs to begin his academic journey.
--Submitted by a parent

My daughter has struggled with a mixed expressive and receptive language delay. She has attended the Howard School for 3 years. We have had independent testing performed outside of the school 2 of those 3 years and have seen dramatic improvements in many of her deficient areas. While the pace of education is slower than the traditional setting, a school reaching out to a broad range of students has to adjust accordingly. We have tried to fill in any remaining gaps and our daughter will transition out next year able to perform with her mainstream peers.
--Submitted by a parent