Thank you visiting!  We have created this page to help clarify the services available through Meeting Street's special education programs.  We also love talking to you, so please do not hesitate to contact us with questions about our programs and services.  

Meeting Street is a great option for students who:

• have severe or multiple disabilities;
• have an autism spectrum diagnosis; or
• have mild-to-moderate needs that can be supported by a learning specialist.

Please note: Meeting Street is not an appropriate placement for students with significant behavioral needs. 

Meeting Street's Rhode Island special education program is a continuum spanning three schools:

• The Early Learning Center (3 years - 5 years) 
  Meeting Street's Early Learning Center, or ELC, places children with IEPs in the same classrooms as children without IEPs, creating a full-day, fully inclusive educational environment.  Located on Meeting Street's Providence campus, the newly constructed ELC features a multi-lingual Young Learners' Library, adaptive playground and sensory integration gymnasium.  The ELC is BrightStars rated, NAYEC accredited and all teachers are RIDE-certified.  The ELC program is able to accommodate students who require a 1:1 nurse.
• The Grace School (Kindergarten - Grade 8)
  Also located on Meeting Street's Providence campus, The Grace School continues the fully inclusive classroom model of the ELC, capping classroom enrollment at 18 students.  Each classroom has a RIDE-certified general education teacher and special education teacher, with adaptive spaces to accommodate students using wheelchairs or other adaptive equipment.  The school boasts and adaptive track and multi-sport field, therapeutic pool, on-site skills nursing staff and physical, occupational and speech-language therapists who utilize a team approach to bring out the best in each child.  Please note: nursing and therapy services are only provided in accordance with a child's IEP.
• The Carter School (Ages 14 - 22)
  Meeting Street's Providence high school for students with multiple disabilities utilizes a "centers-based" approach to prepare students for adulthood and life after Meeting Street.  The school's three centers include:
  • Academics, with students receiving an RIDE-certified high school diploma at age 18;
  • Vocational Skills, where students work with a job coach to identify career interests, a team of therapists to develop necessary skills, and ultimately, to receive on-the-job-training through a community-based work placements; and
  • Life Skills, where students practice Activities of Daily Living - learning how to do laundry, cook, clean, and care for their personal hygiene - in a mock apartment.

In Massachusetts, Meeting Street offers The Schwartz School, located in Dartmouth, MA, which provides special education to students ages 3 to 22. The Schwartz School provides access to an adaptive playground, therapeutic pool, on-site skilled nursing staff and physical, occupational and speech-language therapists who utilize a team approach to bring out the best in each child.  For our high school students, The Schwartz School utilizes the center-based model outlined above (see: The Carter School).