Seeing students who are struggling at school because they dread their day ahead is heartbreaking.

Their teachers have to cope with not only the pressures of these individuals’ performance, but also that of the students around them who suffer from the disruptive effects of problem behaviors.

And trying to negotiate state and school bureaucracy is often a nightmare for parents who just want to help their children.

This is where I come in. I collaborate with the school administrators and families to create strategies that will help a student become much more successful at school, academically and socially. I help them, their families and their schools to resolve problematic behaviors, peer difficulties, and academic performance issues.

These solutions are rooted in isolating causes that have built up over time, often as the result of a long string of connected problems.

I help teachers understand how the impact of family dynamics on students play out in their school lives, and how working within students’ existing school and social networks can lead to improved academic performance. In their natural school environment, students are much more likely to respond positively and consistently to the strategies we create to help them.

How I can help

There are times when communications between schools, students and parents reach an impasse. In fact, it happens all too often.

On one hand, administrators are required to minimize every expense to their severely strained budgets. On the other, parents can feel helplessly trapped in a system they don’t understand, not knowing what they are entitled to or how to ask for it. Students get caught in the middle, like one young high schooler I am working with.

My client is extremely smart, but she suffered at school from a lack of academic challenge and an inability of her teachers to adjust to her learning style. She had become bored, and consequently disconnected from her teachers and her classmates.

Her grades were dropping, and things were spiraling out control despite the best efforts of her single mother—who was seen by the school as simply an emotional and over protective parent. There were tears and screaming. It was a messy, frustrating, stressful time for all parties.

I was able to help because I understood the needs of my patient and also the school system. I was able to advocate for my patient and successfully negotiate with the school for the right services and accommodations she needed to be successful.

I helped the school administrators, too, who were equally frustrated. By being able to speak their language, understand what they were looking for, and communicate that back to the family on their behalf, I was able to save them time and money.

My approach is very effective in difficult, real-life school situations. Through deep understanding, and then calmly explaining, negotiating and facilitating, I can bring schools and families together to achieve our cherished goal—the best education possible for our children.

Take the next step

What’s next? Set up a free consult to learn more about how I can help you help your child at school.

Together we can help students find their way to a successful academic career, and to a happy, rewarding life as a result.

Contact me at 646-389-8020 or online for a free 15-minute consultation.