THE MISSION of the Cervone Center for Learning is to provide a traditional college preparatory program for adolescents with significant learning differences. Such access would be as individuals, not as a discrete category of persons. It is believed that accommodations, adjustments, and coping strategies need not compromise the quality or integrity of the various disciplines, and that understanding transcends memorization, verbalization, and coverage. It is believed further that processes bear equal value to content, that there are multiple intelligences, that learning should be a nurturing of success rather than a cataloging of errors, and that the best principles of learning for students with differences or disabilities are the best principles for all students .
― DR. EDMUND V. CERVONE, FOUNDER, CERVONE CENTER FOR LEARNING
MISSION
THERE IS NO ONE BEST WAY TO LEARN.
The Edmund V. Cervone Center for Learning offers bright students with learning differences an individualized program of support within an extensive college preparatory curriculum. Founded by Dr. Edmund Cervone in 1975, the Center has long been on the forefront of thinking about students with learning disabilities. Embracing the idea that there is no one best way to learn, Cervone Center teachers work with students’ individual strengths to help them become effective, efficient, and independent learners.
The best principles of learning for students with differences or disabilities are the best principles for all students.
PRIMARY OBJECTIVES OF THE CERVONE CENTER FOR LEARNING
• To help students take full advantage of the rigorous curriculum at The Pennington School
• To address needs that arise from a student’s specific diagnosed learning difficulties
• To facilitate the development of academic skills needed for independent scholarship in postsecondary education
In most cases, there is the additional objective to transition students out of Cervone Center classes before graduation from Pennington so they can achieve the independence and confidence that will help to assure their success in college.
BENEFITS OF THE CERVONE CENTER FOR LEARNING
• Enrollment in a traditional, challenging, college-preparatory program of study
• Small, parallel classes in English, mathematics, and Spanish with differentiated instruction, taught by skilled learning specialists
• Daily one-to-one Compensatory Skills class that focuses on building strengths and minimizing the impact of weaknesses
• College placement for all program graduates
• Outstanding faculty members dedicated to meeting the needs of a diverse community of learners
• Specialized study hall support for boarding students
• Commitment to a program rooted in the philosophy that there is no one best way to learn
• Fifty years of experience teaching children with specific learning difficulties
ORGANIZATIONAL, EXECUTIVE FUNCTION, AND STUDY SKILLS
The key strategy employed by the Cervone Center is the Compensatory Skills (CS) class, a daily one-to-one class designed to address compensatory strategies. The CS class is part of a student’s regular schedule; no student is “pulled out” of another class to participate in CS.
The CS teacher begins the year by completing an assessment of the student’s strengths and areas of academic need. This assessment includes a thorough review of the student’s academic history and formal psychological and educational evaluations. It may also include the administration of informal tests designed to assess the student’s specific instructional needs. From this initial assessment process, an educational plan is developed. This Compensatory Skills Plan (CSP) is the framework for establishing short- and long-term instructional objectives for addressing individual needs within the CS class and for helping students to develop strategies for managing the academic material presented in other classes, as well as developing skills of self-advocacy. Various instructional methods are used
Develop the skills needed for independent scholarship in college and beyond
within the CS class to address individual needs, as appropriate. Students may also be taught to use assistive technologies, such as audiobooks or voice-recognition and text-to-speech programs, to help them compensate for specific skills weaknesses.
For students with executive functioning needs, compensatory techniques may include strategies for organization, planning, sequencing, task initiation, goal-directed persistence, and the like. Technologies that support these executive functioning skills are implemented to help students overcome skill weaknesses, promote academic achievement, and enhance students’ success.
Strategies for helping students learn to manage the academic material presented in other classes are central to every CS class. Students are expected to develop an understanding of the way they learn best, and attention is given to how well students are using learned strategies in their work in other courses.
ACADEMIC ACCOMMODATIONS
Cervone Center teachers develop an individual accommodations plan for
each student to specifically address compensatory strategies that can allow students to work from areas of strength and learn to minimize the effect of any areas of weakness. For example, a student may be given extra time for test-taking or for reviewing work with a teacher before it is due. These accommodations are shared confidentially with a student’s teachers, who use them to help students achieve academic goals and produce their best academic effort.
ADVOCACY
The CS teacher serves as an advocate for their students. All teachers of students enrolled in the Cervone Center for Learning program receive copies of accommodations plans to identify potential obstacles, and the CS teacher helps other teachers implement those plans. There are ongoing conversations between the CS teacher and the other Pennington teachers, and accommodations plans can be, and often are, adjusted throughout the year based on observed needs. Students learn to develop self-advocacy skills they can rely upon for the rest of their lives.
PARALLEL CLASSES
The Pennington School offers parallel classes in English, mathematics, and Spanish. These classes are taught by content-area teachers who understand the best methods for presenting course material to students who struggle in a specific academic area. They follow the same general curriculum as a standard course, but the smaller size of the class makes differentiated instruction possible and provides more individual attention. Other than these classes, students follow a standard course of study.
ACADEMIC SKILLS AND MATH SKILLS TUTORIAL CLASSES
Any student in need of academic support may request an Academic Skills Tutorial (AST) class or a Math Skills Tutorial (MST) class. Some students enroll in an AST as they make the transition out of the one-to-one Compensatory Skills class. Other students may not be enrolled in the Cervone Center but simply need to learn some additional study strategies. One teacher supervises an AST/MST class with a small number of students and helps them
organize their assignments in order to use their time more effectively. Study skills, testtaking strategies, and writing skills are also addressed as needed. If the student has a documented need for accommodations, the AST or MST teacher will oversee that student’s accommodations plan and serve as an advocate for them.
BOARDING AT PENNINGTON
Students enrolled in the Cervone Center for Learning program who board at The Pennington School are able to take
advantage of educational opportunities outside of the typical school day. The Cervone Center holds its own study hall in the evening, Monday through Thursday, and each session is staffed with Cervone Center faculty who are able to assist with homework and ensure that all academic expectations are being met by students. Boarding can relieve parents of the need to fill the role of teacher or tutor in the evenings, and students can often benefit greatly from the highly organized structure of the boarding program.
“Some of the most valuable lessons I learned as a Cervone student were the basic building blocks of how to learn and how to study. Ways I could listen, pay attention, take notes, study—those are the gifts I took away from Pennington that ensured my success in college, and now in my profession.”
― OLIVER PIMLEY, PENNINGTON ALUMNUS
COLLEGE PLACEMENT
THE CERVONE CENTER FOR LEARNING offers a college guidance counselor dedicated to students enrolled in this program. Finding and selecting the right college for each student is a thoughtful, considered endeavor that begins in Grade 9 with general information and becomes more focused in Grades 10 and 11. The College Counseling team assesses each student’s unique personality, interests, achievements, and goals when composing a suitable college list—a different list for each individual student, one that is personally tailored to meet that student’s needs. At Pennington, we believe it is all about the right fit.
Admission to the Cervone Center for Learning is highly competitive, as the number of new students who can be admitted each year is limited. The program seeks bright students who have above-average potential and a diagnosed learning disability. The program is not designed for students with primary behavioral, emotional, or psychological issues. The Pennington School seeks to enroll students of good character and demonstrated citizenship who enjoy being part of a community that welcomes and encourages the participation of each of its members.
Admission requires an application to The Pennington School, a complete Cervone Center for Learning Supplemental Application Form, and documentation of a learning disability. Both applications are available online. Please visit the website for more specific information, including deadlines, about applying to the Cervone Center for Learning.
