Pure population of students diagnosed with High Functioning Autism, Gateway Academy is the first private day school for grades 6-12 in the State of Arizona that specializes in a pure population of students who are categorized as academically capable with a primary diagnosis of High Functioning Autism.
To see if our school is a perfect fit for your child, please review the following admission standards, areas of concern, required testing and assessments for admission into our school.
Admissions Standards
Gateway Academy seeks students who:
- Are categorized as Twice-Exceptional (academically capable with a primary diagnosis of High Functioning Autism.
- Seeking an academic curriculum, which emphasizes academic/social/emotional development.
- Have a discrepancy between IQ & Achievement on a standardized assessment.
- Struggle with homework overload.
- Have difficulty in large classroom settings.
- May have been bullied, teased, and isolated.
- Demonstrate motivation by the student and his/her parents to become part of Gateway Academy.
- May have other co-existing disorders such as: a diagnosis of ADHD/ADD; Anxiety; Depression; OCD; or Social/School Anxiety.
- Present no significant behavior problems. Any behavioral problem must be able to be controlled by verbal redirection without use of physical intervention.
- Have a primary diagnosis of High Functioning Autism.
Areas of Concern:
These issues warrant a more detailed interview process and a possible denial of admissions:
- History of physical aggression, (not as a result of environmental triggers).
- Intermittent behavior problems.
- Poor ability to self-regulate, need for intensive 1:1 attention.
- Limited ability to work independently.
- History of drug abuse or addiction.
- Academically no more than 2-3 standard deviations below grade level.
Assessments
All evaluations must be current (3 years) and, if not, families must commit to having updated evaluations completed prior to admission or when the 3-year mark is reached.
Evaluations may consist of the following:
- Psychoeducational
- Neurological
- Speech and Language
- Occupational Therapy
- Standardized Educational Testing
This testing can be scanned and emailed to:
[email protected]
Tests and Immunization Policy
Vision and Hearing Tests need to be completed yearly and is the responsibility of the family.
All students must be immunized in order to attend Gateway. Gateway has an immunization policy, for health reasons: to protect the student, the other students and staff, and to avoid having an unvaccinated student contract a disease that requires the entire school to be quarantined. Please find the link to the Arizona immunization requirements:
Gateway Academy does not allow for exceptions otherwise permitted under Arizona law.
Gateway Academy does not discriminate against students based upon race, color, national or ethnic origin, sex, disability, or age.
