Pinnacle Academy - Bradenton, Florida

Tamela B. V.

We have been so pleased with Pinnacle Academy over the past three years my son has attended. He has made friends and is able to learn at his pace and his level. These were things that did not happen in his previous school experiences . The teachers and staff have been wonderfully supportive and they know my son well. Pinnacle provides everything a parent longs for in a school, a caring, safe environment for their child to learn and grow!

andy S.

My son has been attending Pinnacle Academy for 4 years and we are so thankful that this kind of school exists right here in Lakewood Ranch. We tried 2 public schools and 1 other private school before landing at Pinnacle . The public schools were not equipped to provide the type of learning environment he needed . We are so glad that our son has found a home where he feels comfortable being himself and is not ashamed of his learning challenges . The small class sizes and specialized learning environment is unique and it gives him the freedom to learn in a safe environment. We highly recommend Pinnacle Academy !

Gregory J.

My son has been attending this school for 2 years. I just wish we found this school sooner. He has ADHD and was failing miserably in public school due to his condition. Understandably, the public school system couldn't give him the specialized and one on one guidance/support that he needed. From day one its been a success story. He loves the teachers and the curriculum and he looks forward to going to school everyday. He went from all failing grades to the Honor Roll in very little time. Beyond the grades though, they also focus a lot on career develop. They provide so many options that you never even knew existed. This school is definitely a blessing and comes highly recommended!! The staff are truly caring and devoted to each child equally. Thank you Pinnacle Family for saving my son!🙏

Cara D.

Where to start....Pinnacle Academy has been a life saver for our family! When our son started there at 3 1/2 yrs old he was nonverbal and was unable to express his feelings without melting down. Within 6 months he was talking and had made major improvements with his abilities to express himself. The wonderful teachers at Pinnacle have been an amazing blessing for our son! They have treated our son with a true love and passion for helping him achieve every goal within his reach. Fast forward 5 1/2 years and he is right on track for his abilities and grade level. During his IEP meetings goals are set and as he masters them, new ones are put in place. His father and I are shown examples of his work and graphs showing his progress and where he is excelling and where he needs an additional work. We have utilized the additional services offered at Pinnacle to help our son meet the goals that he needed extra help achieving and it has worked out just as planned. Over the years we have built a family relationship with the staff and other parents at Pinnacle and we would not want it any other way!! We feel at ease having our son there and we know that he is not only being taught what he needs but he is being taught with the avenue that allows him to learn at his level. I can not express enough what a true blessing Pinnacle has been for our son and how much we cherish the love that is shown to our son. I would also like to add a comment about the cost and the fundraisers that are at the school. If you have not toured the school to see all of the AMAZING things that are provided to the children, then you really can not comprehend how the funds are allocated right to the children! I wish my daughter’s high school was even half as amazing as Pinnacle! I have never understood a parent not wanting to invest in their child’s education. It’s the best ROI you could ever wish for! The children are our future! We must cherish, love, nurture, and invest in them!

Chuck N. J.

During the admissions process, our son was evaluated by student peers who provided facility with feedback about his mannerisms, maturity, and personal opinions of him.
The school boasts, “…brain-based multisensory learning that empowers students with language and learning differences…” It was not made clear if the students providing facility with their assessments of our son received specialized training or possess other credentials to legitimately form an educated opinion (in our case, a make-or-break opinion) for a student with “learning differences” and disabilities that limit his ability to respond to social cues.
A week after his final shadow visit at Pinnacle Academy, the administration informed us he was not accepted partially based on the escorting students’ opinions that he was immature. She added that a teacher and other students reportedly heard him cursing in a classroom. Yet when he was escorted to my car by faculty and I inquired about his day, she reported everything went well. If the allegation was true, facility failed to report the incident to us and failed to correct him in class.
Our suspicion is that Pinnacle Academy takes advantage of their ability to handpick students to fit their mold and help inflate numbers – similar to the culture of the Manatee County School District. While our son was excited about the potential to attend Pinnacle because of the small class sizes and “petting zoo,” we were unsure how their practical applications aligned with their advertised theories based on conversations with the administration. Nonetheless, we continued the process because we allowed his enthusiasm to trump our apprehension. Sometimes you’re better off being told “No.”

Radu O.

We've struggled for many years to find a perfect learning environment for our daughter and because of that she has changed many schools and teachers. Since she was 11 month old she went through Early Intervention, then through the Special Needs and ESE programs, and the older she got the further behind she was. We felt that the public system just wasn't equipped with the necessary tools to help her succeed.

It is so great to see the incredible progress our daughter has made in her first year at Pinnacle and we are extremely happy to have finally found a school that offers the individualized curriculum, attention and learning strategies to help her succeed. Her teacher Mrs Kristina has done an amazing job in finding our daughter's strengths, earning her trust and sparking her curiosity and desire to learn.

Stephen F.

Pinnacle has been a God send for our Son and our family! Compared to a public school, this is another world entirely - this is definitely not a one size fits all progam. Our Son's teacher Mrs Joy has patiently taken the time analyze our Son's strengths as well as impediments to progress and created a learning environment which resulted in tangible growth and improved outcomes. The love and care she has for the kids is truly inspiring to us and our Son actually looks forward to going to school even though he knows he won't get to watch youtube and will have to do his work. We lived in Houston and Austin which had very good schools and programs but we moved to Florida based on the recommendation of a family we know who had children at Pinnacle and we have not been dissappointed.

Stephen

Jenn C.

My son has Asperger's and after attending several schools that didn't work for him, he attended Pinnacle Academy for five years from eighth onward. He found, what he describes as “a home” at Pinnacle. Pinnacle Academy has a nurturing environment and a unique ability to truly teach each student’s individual learning styles within a classroom. There is such a positive vibe on campus, you know everyone that works there loves what they do, but also has a deep commitment to every student and family that attends Pinnacle. My son flourished at Pinnacle and is currently a college freshman living on campus.