Esther B. Clark Services at Children's Health Council - Palo Alto, California

sarah G.

Went there did interview with high hopes they could help. Turns out they cannot help. They didn’t even give my son a chance. Now I’m starting from square one after I felt it was a perfect match. I don’t understand how my son can get help if he never had a chance. Or even a trial. Just an interview, I feel hopeless as a mother, it’s sad they didn’t give him a chance at least. It’s a hopeless feeling knowing there are not many resources for special needs children when they need it most. I feel like they just judged us and left us hanging. I was honest about my sons needs and I feel like they just rejected my application for no reason.

Karen J.

EBC changed the trajectory of my kid's life and I will forever be grateful for them. My kid hated school with a passion I can't even articulate into words. After three years at this school, he was a different kid. He showed kindness. His regular public school had really destroyed him. They said that he wasn't dyslexic. EBC said that he was. The public school said that he was low IQ. EBC said that he has math ability (and he does).

If you are so frustrated with your school and feel like giving up, this school can actually help you. They can help your kid.

I felt safe during our years at EBC because I knew that they wanted what was best for my kid. I wasn't always comfortable with some of the things that happened at the school. My kid lost privilege to go on A LOT of field trips because of behavior issues, which seemed pretty minor behavior issues to me. But, I understand now that they wanted their EBC graduate to reflect well on them. =)

I would recommend EBC to anyone struggling with behavior issues with their kid.

Jacqueline H.

I graduated from EBC years ago, but I still have mixed feelings about EBC, mostly negative. On one hand, I've met some nice people there (mostly students), but also had unpleasant experiences with some of the staff members, and was also bullied by another student there (although I was not as severely bullied as the bully's main target). I felt the staff didn't handle the bullying as well as they could have, and thinking about the bullying years later, it still stings. I don't have many positive feelings towards this place, but I do know people who have gone to EBC and thought it helped them (or their lives) change for the better. Luckily I was never physically restrained and forced into "quiet rooms" (padded rooms which weren't usually quiet), but that happened to other students as a last resort when students were violent. EBC is a very strict school, and has a pretty stressful environment-I was completely unprepared for this the first few weeks I went there (I don't recall being told about the Quiet Rooms or physical restraint before going there, and my parents didn't get a tour of the school before me going there due to "confidentiality reasons"), but for the most part, I eventually became desensitized. I know this review has been pretty negative so far, but in the school's defense, there was group, individual, family, and art therapy, several times a week at EBC, and there was a therapy dog there as well. If you're thinking of enrolling your child in EBC, this is my opinion: I can't say I recommend this school for everyone, or even that I don't recommend it for everyone. It really depends on the situation and the person if EBC will be a good fit for them or not. These are all just my opinions based off of my own experiences-some people may agree or disagree. I personally don't think EBC was the right environment for me, but I still graduated from there. During my time there, several students did get kicked out of EBC, though, so while there are many success stories of people graduating, it's not a fit for everyone. I don't want to offend or upset anyone, or discourage people from going to EBC- but I'd recommend truly taking the time to think and consider if EBC will be the right place for you before you go there.

Will M.

It was nice the first year. The second year my teachers targeted me but were not awful and there was some benefit. The third year was when I left. The teachers gave me really easy work and would follow me and my friends so they could get us in trouble for dumb things that never happened. They would punish me for no reason. I started going to my new school for half the day and EBC for half the day before I fully transitioned. I had a teacher who made me stay in a side room for the half at EBC and she would tape paper over the window. She did this for no reason, enjoyed harassing me, and called me passive aggressive even though I was not. Another teacher also targeted me and my friends, who threatened to sue the school. New teachers have started doing the job their for their future job applications and just treat the kids like dirt. They also tried to make me stay so they could be haterz. Yo dawg! Haters hatin for shallez!!! Now my new school (public) is good and I have all As! Pepe the frog is always watching you ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Kevin L.

I'm fairly certain that most of the people posting one or two star reviews are either currently at EBC or just recently left. Having put about four or five years between me and EBC, I can confidently say that Esther B. Clark is an amazing program that absolutely changed my life. It helped me deal with my issues and become an infinitely better person. I am so glad I went through this program. Now, to be fair, it was hard. Insanely hard. But that's not really the program's fault. Overall, I have this program and the many staff working there to thank for who I am today. It's an amazing program and I can't sing the praises of it enough.

Meghan R.

This school helped my son so much. even though he didn’t see it at first he wants to go back to finish there his name was mark I hope Keith and Craig see this you guys were his favorite.

nova S.

This school is disgusting.All the teachers are built like nfl linebackers they would have to pay me to ever go here again i saw a 8yr old boy drinking toilet water once would not recommend at all.

Mark H.

I used to go here and I did not do great but now I realize I should have done better because this school is awesome