One thing that really makes Joey Lockwood happy these days is getting mail.
Joey, who is low- to mid-functioning on the autistic spectrum, will turn 11 at the end of the month, and his mother put out a call on Facebook for letters and drawings to be sent to him via the U.S. Postal Service.

Read the rest of the article on the Press of Atlantic City website.

This event is a great way to meet other parents and to give back to those who support and help our children. All parents are welcome, whether you are a member of the PTO or not.

PTO Teacher Appreciation Day Sign Up Form

Advocates, parents, teachers and policy makers across the country and in Canada raised awareness by blowing bubbles at 1:15PM on April 22. Last year, more than 57,202 people took part in the event from 300 locations.

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“We are very proud to have Dr. Pumariega join the Y.A.L.E. School’s team as a consulting psychiatrist,” said James Morrow, Y.A.L.E. School Williamstown principal.

“Dr. Pumariega brings years of experience working with children and adults with developmental disabilities who have co-occurring mental health needs,” added Alvin Doyle, the principal at the Northfield campus. “He has been able to establish an immediate rapport with our students and families.”

Services include, but are not limited to:

• Psychiatric evaluations and consultations for students
• Classroom observations and treatment recommendations
• Medication recommendation and prescriptions, as needed*
• Consultation to Y.A.L.E.’s Child Study Team
• Liaison/outreach services to students’ current mental health providers
• Parent training, information and support regarding psychopharmacological and psychiatric treatments.

*Neither the Y.A.L.E School, nor sending school districts are responsible for payment of any prescribed medicines.

Due to demand, the Y.A.L.E. Medford campus has added a new classroom for younger students, and is currently accepting referrals for children grades K-2. The campus serves those with social learning disabilities such as Asperger’s, high-functioning autism and ADHD.

The campus provides an intensive and highly individualized program. It offers accommodations and supports so students can tackle challenging academics while developing the executive, social, emotional, communication and coping skills they need for independence.

“We are more than a school, we are a family,” said Dr. Sarah Allen, Ph.D., campus supervisor at the Medford program. “Each student is nurtured, and their strengths are fostered. Here, they know they are valued, respected and safe.”

This year, students at the Y.A.L.E. School’s Cherry Hill campus showed that they were up for the challenge – the FIRST Tech Challenge!

FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) is a nationwide robotics competition intended to help middle and high school students discover the excitement of science, technology, programming, engineering and math. It offers a traditional, yet competitive challenge with an accessible robotics kit.

Team “Robo-Y.A.L.E,” as students called themselves, began meeting last fall under the supervision of club coach Matthew Brady, a Y.A.L.E. School Cherry Hill teacher. Starting from scratch, they met with mentor Tim Clarke from Moorestown Friends School, in Moorestown.

“Right away, our students started looking at robots from a different point of view and their creative juices started flowing,” said Dr. GW Krauss, coordinator of the First Tech Challenge program.

Over the next three months, they continued to meet and their ideas grew. They sought guidance from Y.A.L.E. School staff Scott Reader and Ron Gordon in the woodshop department, and got outside help from local mechanics to build a complex claw for their robot.

Once their robot was built, team Robo-Y.A.L.E. took part in local meets, with students from Moorestown Friends School stepping in to assist.

“It may have been called a competition, but whenever there was a question, the students could ask other competitors and receive an answer,” said Dr. Krauss. “Our students even helped other competitors repair their robots.”

Because this was Y.A.L.E.’s first year of competition, expectations for winning were not set high. However, with each passing round, the team moved higher in the rankings and by the final competition, Robo Y.A.L.E. placed 16th out of 30 competitors.

“FIRST Tech Robotics is a natural match for our students, many of whom have a strong interest in science, math, engineering and technology” added Krauss. “With this experience under their belts, they are sure to do even better in future competitions.”

Krauss plans to sharpen the team’s skills by participating in ‘mini competitions’ with other First Tech Challenge groups in the South Jersey area.

The YTV crew recently visited Team Robo-Y.A.L.E. during one of the LEGO® Robotics Club’s meetings to learn about the club and its most recent First Tech Challenge competition. Find out more about the club at students.yaleschool.com/robotics

After a short training period, eligible students will have the option to advance to jobs with increasing responsibilities. As part of the partnership with GreenVision ®, Y.A.L.E. students will also learn about sustainability and participate in yearlong environmental service-learning projects in the community.

GreenVision® is 99.7% landfill-free and has already recycled over 1,255,404 pounds of e-waste to date.

For more information, e-mail Noah McKay (Northfield) at nmckay@yaleschool.com or George Candia (Williamstown) at gcandia@yaleschool.com.

For more information about GreenVision® visit www.gvinc.org