The Childhelp School of Village West is a non-public school, is designed for children and youth who require a therapeutic environment as a component of their elementary, intermediate, or secondary education. The school serves students with socio-emotional and behavioral needs that cannot be accommodated in a public school. It provides children with high quality supervision, structure and individual accommodations to ensure personal and academic success.

At Childhelp, our goal is to meet the physical, emotional, educational, and spiritual needs of abused, neglected and at-risk children. We focus our efforts on prevention, intervention, treatment, and community outreach. Childhelp programs and services help children from any situation and let them experience the life they deserve: one filled with love. The principal theme across all of our programs is to provide children we serve with an environment of compassion and kindness. The Childhelp School of Village West offers special education instruction, behavior intervention, including development and modification of Behavior Modification Plans, as well as Language and Speech Development and Remediation. The campus can service 120 ambulatory students including those that are residentially placed at the Merv Griffin Village of Childhelp, and those community students that are placed by local education agencies in Grades K-8.

The primary disabling conditions and eligibilities for attendance are: Emotional Disturbance, Specific Learning Disability, Other Health Impairments and Mild Autism. The campus is able to serve some Intellectually Disabled (Mild/Moderate and Moderate/Severe), and English Language Learners (ESL).

Our Mission

Childhelp School of Village West’s mission is to provide a safe and nurturing learning environment with emphasis on behavior management, social emotional learning, citizenship, academic excellence and community-based instruction that will prepare students for successful transitioning and/or post-secondary education.

Our Vision

Childhelp School of Village West’s vision is to empower students with self-advocacy skills and a growth mindset that goes beyond students’ varying and different abilities.

Our History

In 1978 Childhelp founders Sara O‘Meara and Yvonne Fedderson created a treatment program for children who experienced child abuse, neglect and abandonment, providing a twenty-four hour therapeutic environment to help them heal. That sanctuary, now called Childhelp Merv Griffin Village continues to support abused, neglected and at-risk children. Originally, the Childhelp School of Village West was created for residents of the Village, but it became clear there were children in local communities who needed the specialized educational support that Childhelp offers. Now, the school is open to students referred by neighboring school districts and SELPAS.

School Campus

The Childhelp School of Village West is located on the 123 acre campus of the Merv Griffin Village, complete with rolling hills of green grass and dozens of mature trees of many different varieties. Offering an ideal environment for healing and growth, the peaceful grounds are spacious and provide a safe haven outside of the hustle and bustle of the community. The Children’s Activity Center is a fully functional gymnasium, with basketball, volleyball, a stage and electronic scoreboard, but many of our Non-Public School students prefer to play with the Adaptive Physical Education equipment specifically designed to stimulate the senses and encourage development. The Ranch is one of the most popular elements of our program, with horses, ponies, goats, chickens and even a tortoise for the children to interact with. Our campus also enjoys a full library and computer lab, two outdoor play areas with playground equipment, and 10 full-sized classrooms, including our autism program with dedicated sensory space adjacent to the main campus.

Our Student Population

Childhelp School of Village West is approved by the California Department of Education (CDE) to provide educational and behavioral management programs to the following student population:

• Emotionally Disturbed
• Autism Spectrum Disorder
• Intellectual Disability
• Multiple Disability
• Specific Learning Disability
• Other Health Impairment
• Speech and Language Disability

Childhelp School of Village West has contract with 5 SELPAs and 11 school districts within Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Our student population is from diverse cultural backgrounds and we coordinate a “Multi-Cultural Fair” event. During the event, students vote on a country and food of choice. Teacher assists students to research 10 facts about that country and its cultural heritage. Staff and visitors gets a passport to visit that country and an opportunity to learn fun facts about the country. Students also travel to other classrooms to experience other country’s cultural backgrounds.

School Accountability Report Card (SARC)

Every school in California is required by state law to publish a School Accountability Report Card (SARC), by February 1 of each year. The SARC contains information about the condition and performance of each California public school. Under the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) all local educational agencies (LEAs) are required to prepare a Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP), which describes how they intend to meet annual school-specific goals for all pupils, with specific activities to address state and local priorities. For more information about SARC requirements, see the California Department of Education (CDE) SARC Web page at http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/ac/sa/. Click button below to see our current Childhelp School of Village West SARC.