tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28229731.post1315575499678483897..comments2023-09-21T04:43:51.314-04:00Comments on Autism Bulletin: Questions and Answers About the Florida Autism Center of Excellence in TampaMichael Goldberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09643466399327386644noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28229731.post-78690440401477768222013-04-23T15:00:48.059-04:002013-04-23T15:00:48.059-04:00 Ive been doing alot of research to (FACE)and it ... Ive been doing alot of research to (FACE)and it seems since they are backed by QUEST several things have turned around for the better! Im looking to move to the tampa area in the next year if anyone can help me with good niehborhoods and towns please email me pamperedshawna@gmail.com Auti Momnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28229731.post-87031371448095378182013-01-16T08:26:51.519-05:002013-01-16T08:26:51.519-05:00Well they are now backed by Quest. Inc. the school...Well they are now backed by Quest. Inc. the school has been a blessing for my daughter. This is her 1st year there. She is 6. When she first started attending another school in plant city where we live (30min from FACE) they baby sat her is all..they would send her home several times aweek for out bursts they didn't want to deal with..that's when my daughters ST told me about FACE. After a few months my nonverbal daughter who used to despise singing...is talking and singing...everyday. I am so thankful for the school..it is worth every penny i spend on gas. Its a great school..n they genuinely care about the well being of the kids.they have a sensory room, aba on staff, they do animal therapy which has also helped my daughter to be way more social than she use to be...and they have not sent her home once. They work thru her meltdowns, and have a much better student/teacher ratio. N they group the kids with others that have similar functionality.. N they really help the older students to be able to graduate and function in the world as independently as possible...,I recommend it to every parent i meet with a child with autism. If u cant afford the tuition schools our extra therapies like my family, then this school is the next best thing. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28229731.post-10086471631395847702011-02-17T14:13:15.521-05:002011-02-17T14:13:15.521-05:00I am looking in to moving to the Southern Tampa ar...I am looking in to moving to the Southern Tampa area, but I've been unsuccessful in finding ANY support system that even comes close to what I have here in Nebraska (yep, NE is about 5-10 years ahead of major cities/states - it's mind-blowing). <br /><br />I haven't seen feedback on this school in over a year - has anything changed with it?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28229731.post-16930399560946299902009-02-08T13:16:00.000-05:002009-02-08T13:16:00.000-05:00I stumbled across this website and felt that it wa...I stumbled across this website and felt that it was my duty to leave my experience with the FACE program for others to see. Both at the Dale Mabry and Chelsea Campuses, where I spent a lot of time at over the 07-08 school year, this program is not anywhere what it appears to be. In my time spent there, teachers were no where near "highly qualified", many coming from other professions before stepping into a school environment. "Training" for teachers included throwing power points for them to read explaining children with Autism. What goes on on the classroom is another story, many times teachers acted more as "babysitters" for the day than anything else. Getting organized has nothing to do with it, you have people that don't know how to deal with this population!<BR/>The hardest part was that newsletters were being sent home to parents talking about trained professionals and how they were working with your child one-on-one, with specialized academic and behavior training implemented and etc. What a joke! It felt unthetical to me that individuals would sign off on that letter when nothing even close to that was occuring at the school. I have a very strong passion for children in this population and it broke my heart to see that they were not receiving the so-called specialized intervention. And as far as the school being in its formative stages-should these children suffer that the school is not able to provide trained professionals or intervention? I never considered this school a positive environment for the population. I hope that since I have left this school system things have changed, but I am quite confident that it will never be what they "claim" it to be.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05796247547058810666noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28229731.post-47470801166465799172008-11-09T14:21:00.000-05:002008-11-09T14:21:00.000-05:00So what is the verdict on the current state of FAC...So what is the verdict on the current state of FACE? We have a 3 year old on the autism spectrum and are moving to Tampa. We currently live in Atlanta and have been very impressed with the number of free autism schools in Tampa. We are looking at FACE and Academies of Excellence and are looking for info from parents with children there. Any info or advice would be greatly appreciated.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28229731.post-24154025747599201272008-10-12T00:51:00.000-04:002008-10-12T00:51:00.000-04:00A question about FACE's financial records. Where...A question about FACE's financial records. Where will information such as the operating budget be available for viewing by the public? I've looked through the fldoe site, but have had no luck.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28229731.post-32352029809003867662008-09-29T20:17:00.000-04:002008-09-29T20:17:00.000-04:00I have to say that I suprised by the comments left...I have to say that I suprised by the comments left here about FACE. My child attended last year and returned this year and I think things are going very smoothly. There are no new teachers, only the same ones from last year and they actually promoted several assistants this year. My child loves being at FACE and I have found them to be a great staff to deal with. The school is coming together nicely.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28229731.post-76278113018815237732008-06-06T18:26:00.000-04:002008-06-06T18:26:00.000-04:00I'm the original poster of the comment on 12/27 th...I'm the original poster of the comment on 12/27 that says "FACE talks a good game..."<BR/><BR/>The school year has finally ended, and my child will NOT be returning to FACE, as many of my child's classmates will not be returning. The school is a complete and total disaster. Even the first President of the PTO withdrew her child from the school before the year was over!<BR/><BR/>We were sold a bill of goods. The teachers left in droves, there is NO campus security (several children have been lost, including mine), the teachers who stayed are for the most part under-trained for the job, and the administration continually lies and makes promises it never intends to keep.<BR/><BR/>The only way that "something great" will be built over time is if ESA is not involved in building it! This company is despicable IMHO, and will do anything it can to pull the wool over a parent's eyes.<BR/><BR/>Buyer Beware to anyone considering FACE!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28229731.post-41573633628512326592008-01-12T10:08:00.000-05:002008-01-12T10:08:00.000-05:00Thank you for your comments. It's clear that the F...Thank you for your comments. It's clear that the FACE school is in its early stages. We would all hope the school builders there have the opportunity to build something great over time. These comments show how challenging it is to start a school from scratch, and just how critical the need is for services to educate children with autism.Michael Goldberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09643466399327386644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28229731.post-30351570619140306002008-01-11T17:49:00.000-05:002008-01-11T17:49:00.000-05:00Wow. I just came across the blog while searching f...Wow. I just came across the blog while searching for more information about FACE. I am having a terrible time with my child's school, and I am learning early that the public school is just not cutting it in regards to children on the autisim spectrum. One thing the previous comments have is that it seems to be a positive environment for our kids.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28229731.post-71322233691836734652008-01-08T23:18:00.000-05:002008-01-08T23:18:00.000-05:00The talk is great and I so desperatly wanted to be...The talk is great and I so desperatly wanted to believe what I was hearing; it just is not the case. My son came to school with his homeroom teacher just fired one day, no calls to the few parents that had her as a homeroom teacher so that we could prepare our kids. I talked to the staff and nicely expressed my frustration with this. They agreed and then another main teacher was fired weeks later again with no communication to parents. Calls were not returned. I only knew because my child was crying that the teacher's chair was gone. Both teachers had high qualifications and were replaced with teachers who did not have the same. It appeared to be a financial decision. Not what you do to kids who can't handle change. All of that could be overlooked if academically anything were up to speed. Sitting in class revealed 45 min of crossword puzzles, in spite of repeated attempts with staff asking to increase difficulty. There is just no way the school is up to state standards and I know for a fact that some teachers were hired with no experience with Autism. Math teacher is a gem. Nothing is black and white and that is what makes leaving difficult. Lots of sweet kids and sweet staff. Dream is great, but there is a long way to go before implementing it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28229731.post-12786176342819364172007-12-27T12:41:00.000-05:002007-12-27T12:41:00.000-05:00Thanks for your comment. It's clear that this is a...Thanks for your comment. It's clear that this is a school in its formative stages. From afar, it would appear the student-teacher ratios do not allow as much one-on-one instruction as kids with autism need to make progress. Still, your note reporting about your child's advances is a hopeful sign. I hope you and other parents will keep <EM>Autism Bulletin</EM> readers informed about FACE because it's an important model that others around the country will be watching.<BR/>MichaelMichael Goldberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09643466399327386644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28229731.post-55893035366931674852007-12-27T12:36:00.000-05:002007-12-27T12:36:00.000-05:00FACE talks a good game, but the reality is MUCH di...FACE talks a good game, but the reality is MUCH different. Most of the teachers are not "highly qualified", most have had little or no training in ABA save for a couple of weeks over the summer, and many are working on temporary certificates. It has taken MONTHS for the school to "get up to speed" and get organized. Turnover has been horrific. The 8 to 1 and 15 to 1 ratios are unrealistic. Teachers are prohibited from interacting with parents outside of the school (can't give out private phone numbers, etc.) or face being fired. If it weren't for the therapies my child receives at the school (which far exceed what would be offered through the public schools), I would probably have taken my child out a while ago. That said, I must admit my child has done quite well there now that they've gotten their act together (somewhat) and I'm hopeful that I will continue to see progress. I will re-evaluate our enrollment at the school at the end of the year.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com