Merlin Day Academy
Merlin Day Academy is a unique, sensory-integrated therapeutic school that believes all children with disabilities can learn with the right instructional, environmental, and therapeutic support. It was founded by Dr. Laura Hawkesworth Mraz.
Their mission is to provide students, ages 6 to 14 years old, with neuro-diverse learning needs an intensive, individualized special education that cultivates relationship-based, family-centered care to strengthen students’ educational and functional skills through building self-efficacy to become active, successful participants in their community.
History
Merlin Day Academy provides individualized support to children that recognizes their specific strengths and needs. Our special education in a therapeutic environment is ideal for children with
- Autism Spectrum Disorder
- ADHD
- Sensory Processing Disorders
- Behavioral Disorders
- Cerebral Palsy
- Down Syndrome
- Genetic Conditions
- Developmental Delay
- Expressive Language Disorder
- Gross Motor Delay
- Hearing Impairment
- Intellectual Disability
Merlin Day Academy and their sister companies work together to support you and your children across their development! Eyas Landing, their outpatient multidisciplinary therapy clinic, provides occupational therapy, applied behavior analysis (ABA), developmental therapy, physical therapy, speech therapy, language therapy, nutrition, and feeding therapy services to Chicago area families and Merlin Day Academy students. Blue Bird Day, their therapeutic preschool and kindergarten program, is an intensive rotational therapeutic program designed to provide children with the tools they need to succeed in a classroom environment. Merlin Day Academy, their therapeutic special education school, provides educational instruction with therapeutic supports to provide children with autism and other sensory and developmental conditions with an ideal environment for learning.
Merlin Day Academy has been approved as a non-public private facility by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE), but we are waiting on their per-diem rates from the Illinois Purchased Care Review Board IPCRB before we can implement IEPs. We expect everything to be completed in September 2023.
The Merlin Day Academy team works collaboratively to cultivate relationship-based, family-centered care to nurture and sustain clients’ self-efficacy skills to become active, successful participants in their community. Their interdisciplinary team members include:
- Therapy Case Managers (TCM)
- Learning Behavioral Specialist 1
(Special Education and Therapeutic Teachers)
- Social Workers
- Occupational Therapists
- Physical Therapists
- Speech-Language Pathologists
- Board Certified Behavior Analysts
- Registered Behavior Technicians
- Neuropsychologists
- Concierge Administrators
External Links
- Merlin Day Academy Official Website
- Merlin Day Academy YouTube
- Merlin Day Academy Instagram
- Merlin Day Academy Twitter
- Merlin Day Academy Facebook
