Sobesky Academy is considered a separate school setting and is part of Jefferson County Public School's Special Education continuum of services. As a Jefferson County Public School, Sobesky students are expected to follow Jeffco’s Code of Conduct and have access to the same curriculum and academic pacing as their typical peers.
Sobesky Academy’s program is designed to provide more intensive services than a student is able to receive at a neighborhood or alternative school setting. Students may be in need of service due to determinations of emotional disability, autism, or other heath impairments that create barriers to a student’s ability to learn. Our trained and experienced professional and para-educational staff is invested in promoting growth and skill building in the areas of social emotional learning, behavioral self-regulation and academic gap filling through the provision of a therapeutic and educational environment that is structured, predictable, consistent and supportive.
Services provided include executive function training, social skills training, direct mental health support, crisis intervention, group counseling, and academic instruction provided by special education teachers who are highly qualified in the content areas they teach. Every student at Sobesky has an Individual Education Plan that includes a Functional Behavior Assessment and a Behavior Intervention Plan. In addition, student goals are written to define lagging skills that can be progress monitored for growth on a daily basis.
The north star of Sobesky Academy is to meet the individual needs of each student in a way that allows for skill building and practice that results in a student reintegrating into a less restrictive environment with typical peers.
Parental, guardian and outside support system collaboration are vital components of Sobesky's program. When parents and the program staff collectively support students in changing their cognitive, emotional and behavioral responses, significant progress can be made.
The length of a student’s enrollment at Sobesky Academy will be determined by the IEP team. Evidence of readiness to transition back to a less restrictive environment will be documented by successful skill building around goals established at the start of enrollment. To assist in a successful transition back to a less restrictive environment, a gradual reintegration may start with one or two classes and build to include unstructured times and increases in workload and homework. Regular communication and an identified point on contact for the student and the family in the home school are also important. Student-centered transitions which also take into consideration the resource needs of the receiving school have been shown to be the most successful type of transition.