Woodbury Reports Educational Consultant Services helping families find the right schools

Lon Woodbury is an educational consultant who began working with Schools and Programs for struggling teens in 1984. Lon earned his B.S. and M.A. degrees from the University of Idaho. He is a long-time member of the IECA. He provides a nationwide referral service for parents of adolescents with behavioral and emotional problems. Lon publishes a Directory, the “Parent Empowerment Handbook,” based on his research into quality schools and programs and to empower parents in their efforts of finding the best placement for the child who is making poor decisions. He also publishes an educational newsletter, Woodbury Reports, for parents, professionals and schools or programs to provide current information on what is happening not only in the network but in the public school system. Prior to becoming an educational consultant, Lon taught in the public school system and worked with the U.S. Senate and the Executive office of the President on public policy.

Loi began working as an educational consultant with Lon Woodbury in 1998. She is now in private practice, but continues to work as an affiliate of Woodbury Reports. Loi is a member of the IECA, and earned a BS in Communications and an MA in Secondary Education with doctoral work in Educational Psychology. While working in the Woodbury Reports office, Loi was editor of the Woodbury Reports™ newsletter. She taught Journalism and edited the Rocky Mountain Times newspaper for CEDU's Rocky Mountain Academy, an emotional growth boarding school in North Idaho. She also was a founder and director of a private K-8th grade school in North Idaho.

Curriculum Vitae

Linda Zimmerman, MA, LPCC
New Mexico Licensed Professional
Clinical Counselor #1667
Albuquerque, New Mexico
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Linda began educational consulting with Lon Woodbury in January 2001. She has a master's degree in child/clinical Psychology, and extensive clinical and administrative experience in working with troubled children and adolescents. She is a nationally recognized specialist in attachment disorders and/or adoption issues. In 1990, Linda founded an innovative treatment program in New Mexico for attachment-disordered children. She has worked as a clinical consultant for several programs both internationally and in the United States. She is the author of a number of professional publications. In 1996, Linda received an award from the City of Albuquerque for "Woman on the Move" acknowledging her accomplishments in the field of children's mental health.

Larry is an educational consultant who has devoted over 40 years of his life to the development and leadership of schools and programs for troubled adolescents and their families. Larry is a member of the IECA and has collaborated with Woodbury Reports since the inception in 1989. He began his career at Boys Town in Nebraska where he served as a counselor and coach. Larry’s experience with all types of wilderness, residential, and outpatient services for youth is extensive. After developing and managing more then 10 programs throughout the country, he has a unique perspective and understanding of programs for youth. In the late 1980s, Larry developed the Western Youth Network to assist parents and professionals in finding the right help for adolescents.

Judi began consulting in 2003 after navigating the ever-changing waters of special needs programs for her son alone – not aware that educational consultants were available to help. Since 1974, she has worked with organizations assisting families in solving problems facing their children – developmental delays, substance abuse, ADHD and depression to name a few. Her work as head of the foundation at a psychiatric institution in the Midwest, coupled with her personal experiences led Judi to recognize her passion for families struggling with troubled teens. Her master’s in Early Childhood and doctorate in Educational Leadership support her work . She began collaborating with Woodbury Reports in the spring of 2006, writing and doing research and is now an affiliate.

PARENTS WITH TOUGH QUESTIONS NEED THE RIGHT ANSWERS!

Woodbury Reports consultants work hard at finding these answers!

Poor decisions can put your child’s future at risk, and there are several questions to consider!

How do parents decide when the time is right for a residential placement?
When nothing else works and all other options are exhausted. Most of our clients have already tried everything they can think of, including counseling, local programs, and/or school interventions, but none of them worked. Parents often see the world of residential placement as a very confusing and different world from the one they inhabit. Our jobs as independent educational consultants is to help these parents through a complicated maze of conflicting claims and information, and help them decide the best direction for their family. We help them to focus on realistic expectations and decide if the critical decision of residential placement is a necessity. Based on our many years of personal experience, ongoing networking with other professional consultants and our annual survey, we advise parents on which programs are best for their child.

How should parents compare different schools and programs?
Nothing is more important in making comparisons than good advice from other parents, educational consultants and other professionals. A parent should add to that their own common sense and personal experience with organizations and businesses by evaluating the school or program in important areas which include financial stability, if they have a clearly defined philosophy, and has strong leadership. When working with a parent, we draw on our many years of personal experience in working for and with schools and programs for struggling teens. Our consultants at Woodbury Reports have access to the vast volumes of information flowing into our office for publication in our monthly newsletter, website and the pre-screened directory, “The Parent Empowerment Handbook.” Our ability to provide a quality service to the parents we serve is increased exponentially by the informal feedback we receive daily from hundreds of consultants and the staff at numerous schools and programs. The parents who use us as their consultants tap into this wealth of information. We have four consultants associated with our office, which allows us to provide internal peer reviews and improve the quality of our information.

How do parents ensure that a prospective program is a proper “fit” for their child?
This is the most important question a parent can ask. Even if a school or program offers the highest quality of care; if it does not fit the unique needs of that particular child, the program may not return the child the parents are hoping to see. When parents choose what appears to be the best school or program without the expertise offered by a consultant, the enrollment often results in failure because it does not fit their child’s specific needs. In our consultations, we gather as much information as we can from the parents and child professionals who have worked with the child. This information gives us a clear picture of the strengths, interests, problems and individual needs of the child. We compare this information with the knowledge we have gathered over the years from comments and surveys of several quality schools and programs, and suggest those that would best match the child's and parent's needs.

Does a short-term or long-term program best fit the needs of your child?
This really depends on what your child needs. If your child’s behaviors have not been evident for a long period of time or is not too severe, a short-term program might fit their needs. However, even a short-term program must include a sensible long-term plan. By the time parents come to the realization that residential placement might be necessary, the problems are often long-lasting, and it takes a long-term program for their child to learn new thinking patterns. A short-term program is often used to assess the child’s needs and used as a preliminary step to determine if the child requires a long-term intervention.

What program is most likely to help your child?
The one that understands your child’s needs, and specializes in working with children who have similar problems. Anything else, such as upscale appearance, success in helping a friend’s child, or general reputation might lead to a decision that will lose valuable time. Our role is to work with you, the parent, as a partner to understand your child's needs and identify the best possible match for your entire family. We guide parents through the complex maze of programs and help you find the success your son or daughter deserves.

For more information how we can help you, call our office at
208-267-5550.