You may feel overwhelmed, unsure, and frustrated about where to start and how to make progress in helping your child with school avoidance.
You may also be an ardent school avoidance advocate determined to improve systemic roadblocks within our schools and government.
You are invited to join our one-of-a-kind community of supportive parents, caregivers, and experts who want to help you at every stage of your school avoidance journey.
As a parent or caregiver, seeing your child struggle with school avoidance can be heartbreaking and confusing.
You are seeking solutions and support for your child’s situation, but the specific information you are looking for seems hidden.
The School Avoidance Alliance Parent Community
is an exclusive online community designed specifically
for parents and advocates like you.
You'll gain access to:
Peer Support: Connect with other parents who are going through the same challenges. Share your experiences, ask questions, and receive empathetic advice.
Live Expert Guidance: Join live Q&A Sessions with experts who can provide personalized advice and answer your burning questions.
Success Stories: Hear inspiring, real stories from parents who have successfully navigated school avoidance and learn from their experiences.
Our network of experts includes psychologists, special education attorneys, educational advocates, parent advocates, school insiders, and other professionals involved in helping us and our kids.
Resource Library: Access a comprehensive collection of articles, resources, and videos to help you understand and manage school avoidance.
Live Peer-to-Peer Support Group: Our highly praised and unequaled peer support group entering its third year, will be accessible only to our community.
Interactive Forums: Participate in discussions on various topics related to school avoidance and find answers to your specific concerns.
Advocacy: Harness the power of your voices and stories to create systemic changes to stop all the B.S. that hurts us and our children.
Regular Updates: Stay informed with the latest research and best practices in managing school avoidance.
1. Understanding Root Causes: Many of our kids can’t articulate what causes their distress, and it can be difficult for us to figure out. Without understanding the causes, it’s hard to determine what we need from our schools and support resources.
2. Feeling Isolated and Unsupported: One of the worst things is feeling like you are in this alone. You may have friends, families, school staff, and other advisors who have no concept of school avoidance and how deeply it affects you, your child who is struggling, and the disruption to your household.
3. Feeling Helpless: You are not the only one who has experienced this at one time or another. We will help you by sharing what works and hearing other families' success stories.
4. Lack of Resources and Information: Finding reliable information and resources can be exhausting. You may be finding the same old, generic, surface-level advice. The advice you seek is beyond packing a backpack the night before. You deserve practical, useful advice, proven strategies, and expert guidance specific to your child's unique situation.
5. Living With Uncertainty: Your heartache for your child, the uncertainty of each day, and school pressuring or fighting you, of course, make you want to cry, scream, or yell. Many in our community feel this way, and we all get it. We are here to support and comfort you, making the journey a little easier for you and your loved ones.
6. Creating an Effective Action Plan: Knowing how to proceed, who to contact, and what to advocate for can be confusing and overwhelming. Our resources, families, and experts will help you make progress and help your child get back to learning.
7. Navigating the School System: Another biggie and a must to support your child effectively is working with your school. You will see and hear how to get what your child deserves from your school team.
8. Understanding Educational and Disability Law: Understanding what a 504 plan and an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) always seems confusing. We simplify the differences, share what they do, and what they should contain. BTW: Most of our kids with school avoidance DO qualify for 504s or IEPs.
9. Not Having a Voice: You know what is wrong with our schools and all the systems that mess with us and our children. We will work together to demand change!
10. The Time Suck: Having access to easy-to-find, well-organized, curated information written by experts and families will save you precious time. You can also avoid neverending internet searches and the time and energy-sucking rabbit holes of unhelpful information.
11. Confidence and Hope: You will feel empowered by having access to other parents, experts, and up-to-date information on resources, best practices, and success stories. Kids do get back to school. We hear many success stories. Small victories and patient wins. You will feel hopeful again.
You’re Not Alone: One of the biggest struggles parents face is feeling isolated. Our community offers a safe and supportive environment where you can share your story and learn from others who understand what you're going through.
Learning About What You Don't Know: School avoidance can overwhelm you and your child, so knowing what steps to take and how to make progress is essential. Our community will help you uncover the unknowns, giving you the confidence and resources to take meaningful action.
Safe and Private: Our contained community platform ensures your privacy and peace of mind.
Save Time and Reduce Stress: Instead of spending countless hours researching and feeling frustrated, you'll have immediate access to curated resources and expert advice, saving you time and reducing stress.
Empower Your Child: Gain insights into effective parent strategies that will validate and support your child. Helping and supporting your child is a delicate balancing act—it’s not easy. It is equally important to be mindful of not fragilizing them. Even though they may not feel it now, they are stronger than they think.
Build Lasting Connections: Form meaningful relationships with other parents who are on the same journey. Share your successes, celebrate milestones, and find comfort in a community that truly understands.
Access Anytime, Anywhere: Our online platform is available 24/7, so you can access support and resources whenever you need them from the comfort of your home.
You have the power to make a difference: Many of you have expertise, ideas, and knowledge to help spread awareness and advocate for change. We have an advocacy forum (discussion room) so you can connect with other families working to reduce systemic challenges.
Localized connections: We also have regional and state-specific communities to help facilitate statewide advocacy and meetups.
"Joining this community was a game-changer for our family. We finally found the support we needed to help our daughter. The resources and advice from other parents were invaluable."
- Sarah, mother of a 10-year-old
"I felt so lost before I joined. Now, I have a clear action plan and a supportive network of parents and professionals. It's worth every penny."
- John, father of a 12-year-old
I am not the kind of person to join a group, let alone talk. I didn't know what to expect, and I’m happy I stepped out of my comfort zone. I have learned so much from the parent course and the other families. I am a single parent, and it is draining and overwhelming to deal with my child’s school refusal alone. My friends, family, and ex don’t get it. I was able to relate to many of the other families' situations.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart to the moon and back. Over four years, there has been not one person, lawyers, advocates, or family. Friends have helped as much as you and the parent community have. I feel so validated and hopeful from the stories of other families who are making progress.
"The expert advice and step-by-step guides have been incredibly helpful. I no longer feel alone in this journey."
- Lisa, mother of a 9-year-old
"The peer support group sessions are fantastic. Getting answers to my specific questions has made a huge difference."
- Mark, father of a 13-year-old
I've missed connecting with all the families, but there is a good reason for missing the group for the best reason: A.D. started going to school three weeks ago as though it were the most natural thing in the world. But we are elated as he had not done a full week of school since before the pandemic. I know this may be a roller coaster, but it's a really good ride right now! I want you to know that we think our ability to be calm about his not going to school for so long is part of what enabled him to start going--and our ability to be calm has so much to do with you, the master class and the parents we connected with, thank you for all the support in the group. thank you!
The master class and community support were
fundamental to us figuring out what was going on with our 12 year old (now 14). We learned so much practical information to help figure out how to help our child. I am so grateful I found it. It is truly worth every penny-highly recommend.
Words cannot explain my gratitude that there are people who care about this, and I don't have to feel so alone.The school avoidance community restored hope when I wanted to give up.
Thank you more than I can say for this community. It fills me with such hope!The experience can be so isolating, and it means so much to me and my husband to hear what others have been through and come out the other side! I am so thankful!
I don’t know what I would do without the group. This has been a long, hard road, and the support and advice has kept me going. I have changed my approach with my son and have a meeting next week with the school that I feel prepared for.
I wanted to take a moment to thank you for everything. Your responsiveness during those tough initial days and the support group and master class, and ALL of the resources. We are beginning therapy with Dr. Dalton's group next week - and I'm feeling hopeful that my kiddo is finally going to get the help she needs.
Join the School Avoidance Alliance Parent Community today for just $17.99/month.
For a limited time, we're offering immediate access to all community features. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to change your and your child's life. Connect with experts and a community that truly understands.
This community is designed for parents of children who avoid school. It provides expert advice, peer support, and practical resources tailored to your needs.
Once you join, you'll receive an email with instructions on accessing our online platform, where all the resources and support groups are available.
Yes, you can cancel anytime if you feel the community is not meeting your needs, but we’re confident you'll find immense value in the support and resources we provide.
Our resource library includes articles, videos, webinars, printable guides, and more, all focused on helping you understand and manage school avoidance.
Our School Avoidance Master Class for Parents is available inside and regularly you will get to talk with leading school avoidance experts via live Questions and Answers.
We regularly update our library with the latest research, expert advice, and practical tips to ensure you have access to the most current information.
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