Our Team of Educational Consultants: We Care About Your Child’s Future

I first came to meet Dana during an extremely difficult time as my son was increasingly displaying antisocial behaviors in his early teenage years. I was becoming concerned that he was pursuing a path of self-destruction, and it was impacting our family life. Despite having worked with many well-meaning providers who were certain they understood and could help, none of the measures we had undertaken (private schools, tutoring, family therapy, individual therapy, etc.) were working. Dana stayed in constant contact as my son moved from assessment to intensive therapies designed to address the root causes of his behaviors. At one point, when his prognosis looked bleak, Dana found an emerging program that was having success with similar cases. Dana got us in, and it was in this placement that we were able to break through and change what would have been a dark trajectory.

I have a teenage son with a mellow personality who struggles in school. He got caught up in drug/alcohol use by following the “in-crowd” and ended up in some legal trouble. We hired Dana and discussed whether placing my son in a therapeutic boarding school that focused on drug/alcohol or brushings with the law was a good fit for my child since he is so impressionable. Dana reassured me that yes, he would be a good fit because all the behavioral issues stem from emotional problems (mostly low self-esteem). The way they manifest their behavior is just different. Dana was right, he is now in a therapeutic boarding school out of state fitting in well and making great progress, bonding well with his peers. I’m so thankful to have found Dana and recommend her highly to anyone who is considering hiring an Educational Consultant.

I was referred to Dana by a Therapist who told me that I needed to explore some options for my 16 year old extremely depressed & anxious teen. We spent months working with Dana, she was extremely supportive and provided guidance and strength throughout the entire process. During this time, my son was diagnosed on the autism spectrum, with severe anxiety and depression. Per Dana's recommendation, after 3 months at an Outdoor Therapeutic program my son was moved to a Therapeutic Boarding School specializing in teens with Asperger's syndrome (executive functioning, social and memory challenges). This course of treatment may very well have saved his life.

Our 20 year old daughter has had a serious problem for the last 4 years with with anxiety, depression and marijuana addiction. We tried therapy, medication, outpatient rehab and one inpatient rehab. We tried tried being flexible and we tried tough love (kicking her out of the house). Nothing has worked. She is not willing to quit using marijuana, and it's very clear to us that her marijuana usage makes her depression and anxiety much worse. Our daughter's therapist recommended that we speak to an educational consultant about a possible longer-term placement for our daughter. We are lucky to have found Dana, who’s experience and compassion saved us from many sleepless nights and countless hours of research, had we continued to do this on our own.

When we needed to send our son away, we had no idea where to start. There must be thousands of boarding schools and programs out there. Unfortunately, when we tried to place him on our own, my son flunked out of a local rehab program, the psychiatrist there referred us to Dana. I can't imagine how to approach finding a boarding school without some kind of guidance like this. It would have been a total crap shoot. Dana was able to find a therapeutic wilderness program and then a boarding school, both were exactly right for our son. The cost of hiring a consultant may seem expensive, but that is nothing compared to the cost of losing our son. He ended up where he needed to be, and is doing well after 14 months, he has been safe and supported and challenged -- and also, at his particular school, he got sober plus had fun. And he's graduating next month!

My professional relationship with Dana has spanned over six years. During this time I've come to know her as a person with great compassion, intelligence, integrity, and a great sense of humor. Her frank approach is rare and refreshing. She has been a tireless proponent for my son, and she's helped me become the parent he needs. Looking back, I realize how fortunate we were to have found Dana. I'm certain that the work we did helped my son immensely. He's now attending college and embarking on a productive young adult life. And I know that I provided the very best resources available because of her guidance. It was all worth it.

Dana Dean Doering is a wealth of knowledge and support and we could not be more grateful to her for the guidance and insights she offered while we were making the challenging decisions of whether or not our boys needed additional support outside of our state, and what programs could best provide the unique supports each one of our boys needed.

Dana is very well versed and knowledgeable about the different options throughout the United States and which programs are the best fit for specific challenges a child is having.  We fully trusted Dana, and the options she presented were very much in line with our needs, and we could not be happier with the outcome and the experiences our boys had at the respective programs they were at.

We recommend Dana, and will continue to do so, to any families who are in the very challenging and stressful position of figuring out the best next step for their son or daughter who is struggling after exhausting all of their local therapeutic options.  Dana gave us hope, insight, understanding, experience and a depth of knowledge that was most helpful to us during this very difficult time.  We would not be where we are today without her help - she truly cares about these kids and the families she serves.

Dana guided our family through years of educational success. We have two boys with very different needs. One of my sons is a smart, conscientious kid, who suffered a traumatic brain injury and has ongoing medical needs. We needed a school environment that would challenge his strengths, support his areas of higher need, and nurture his potential. With the TBI and his medical needs, our homelife had become quite intense. His father and I, and his brother, were all living a life that was largely dictated by our other son’s needs. We needed help understanding how to support him at home, so that our family could be healthy and joyful. Dana helped us find a school that held my high needs child to elite, college-prep standards, asked a lot of him, and also gave him the support that he needed to make this possible. She coached and counseled us on behavior management techniques and how to manage our own patience and compassion fatigue. Dana also helped us to find ways to create special space for our younger son, so that his needs weren’t overshadowed by his high needs brother. 2 years post injury, our family is strong, our house is filled with joy and laughter, and we are able to problem solve any challenge together. Dana truly saved our family by giving us support and the tools to thrive as a whole family no matter the challenges we face.