Parents searching for a school where their child can get a little more one-on-one attention may want to make a stop at Education Destination. It’s a Lafayette center that’s creating new routes for children with learning disabilities.
The trip leading to this destination began with an educator who spent 16 years teaching in public sectors. After a long run, she decided it was time to open a place that can be a home for children with learning challenges.
“Majority of our kiddos that I was seeing was not getting what they needed. The full service that they needed. There were boundaries I wanted to break,” said Kelly Roussell, the Executive Director of Education Destination Specialty School.
Roussell took a leap of faith, stopped teaching at public sectors, and opened Education Destination in 2013. “We were very very blessed for that one student. The first student that knocked on the door and it just took off from there,” she said. “Each child is unique. Different. That’s okay. Different needs to be accepted.”
Not knowing where this path was headed, a former student who struggled herself, she created an academic curriculum and social environment that helps many overcome their battles. “Just gives me the wind in my sails to continue every single day to extinguish the stigma around Autism and learning disabilities.”
The center offers high-level support for K-12th grad students with a variety of challenges including; ADD, ADHD, Autism Spectrum Disorder and more.
“The first day I picked her up. She asked if she could come back tomorrow,” said Lou Hulin, the grandparent of a student of the school. Hulin said her 10-year-old granddaughter wasn’t reading at all back in September of 2018.
“We really started noticing changes within a couple of months,” said Hulin. The staff said her granddaughter’s social maturity, reading and writing skills excelled tremendously.
“It was God sent to us,” said Hulin. “If you’re on the fence about changing your child’s school, if you’re not getting what you feel your child deserves, give education destination a try,” she added.
Founded on family, school, and community, Roussell said it’s a school of choice for parents who may feel they have limited choices for their child. “That every, every, every child gets a chance and deserves that chance to become what God intended them to be,” said Roussell.
The staff takes pride in their social learning skills at the center for identifying and addressing trigger factors of anxiety that interferes with a student’s growth.
EDS is a Non-profit center for K-12th grade with a seven to one classroom ratio. The staff includes educators, paras, and volunteers from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.
Education Destination is located at 150 Industrial Pkwy, Lafayette, LA 70508
For more information, visit https://www.educationdestination.org/
