Whether your child is struggling to attend, stay in, or engage with school, Successful School Transitions is here to help.

Designed For The Times

Given the uncertain educational landscape during the COVID-19 pandemic and the variety of school formats that children have had to endure, our programs have been tailored to meet the range of students’ needs and take these realities into account. Many children have struggled to adjust to remote learning, a hybrid model, or in-person learning that looks very different than what they were used to. This has exacerbated school refusal and avoidance problems, and introduced a whole new way of interacting with teachers and peers that has been challenging for many students. Learn more about how we address school refusal in the time of COVID-19.  

The Director’s Perspective

Determined problem-solvers with extensive experience and expertise working with kids, Erica Miller, PhD and Rebecca Sachs, PhD, were driven to create Successful School Transitions to address school refusal issues.

“We observed that traditional therapy did not meet our patients’ and their families’ needs… and we saw that school staff could not always meet with students and support them when they needed it most.”

• As licensed clinical psychologists, they had both worked in various settings for over two decades and repeatedly encountered students with profound difficulties attending school, getting to school, or both.

• Dr. Miller and Dr. Sachs saw an opportunity to create an organization that tackles the problem of school refusal head on, with concrete strategies that deliver results.

• Approachable and down to earth, Dr. Miller and Dr. Sachs work as a coordinated team, capitalizing on individual expertise and strengths. With collective experience working in schools, private practice, hospitals, and research settings they have honed their diagnostic skills to best understand school refusal and avoidance.

• They are often sought out to make sense of the most complicated behaviors in struggling children.

“We decided to not simply accept this frustrating reality. Instead, we would create a program we knew our students and families deserved.” 

Dr. Miller and Dr. Sachs will demystify the most confusing information in a practical way for you, your child, and professionals alike. Your family will benefit from their expertise as they devise a comprehensive plan to get your child back to school and functioning at their best as quickly as possible.

Filling In The Gap

Successful School Transitions was created to address all the gaps in the current system. We have seen too many families burnt out from the burden of trying to help their children attend and participate in school. In many cases, families have tried traditional therapy, which has not solved their problem. Teachers and counselors in schools often do not have the time or expertise to support students with crowded classrooms and busy caseloads. Even when families understand the source of their child’s avoidance, they may lack the knowledge of how to best help their child on a daily basis. That’s where we come in.

At Successful School Transitions we can hit the ground running, working with your family, your child’s school, and other stakeholders to quickly develop and implement an effective plan with creative and proven strategies for success.