Our Mission & Philosophy

The St. Charles School’s mission is to provide a safe, nurturing and therapeutic setting for students who are in crisis, and who have exhibited severe behavioral issues in the typical classroom setting.

We strive first of all to help children feel safe and valued so that they can begin to heal. We help them to understand themselves and their behavior so that, in time, they will feel empowered to change.

We seek to understand the unconscious needs underlying our students’ behaviors, and empower them to recognize and meet those needs in safe, responsible and respectful ways. In every situation, we strive to motivate children to want to be with their classmates. This helps them resolve issues among one another by learning to listen and respond empathetically to what others feel. They take responsibility for their own actions and responses.

Our Philosophy

Our philosophy for St. Charles School is built on the foundation that every person is unique, has value beyond calculation, and will be treated with profound respect and dignity. Children are equal to adults in terms of human worth and dignity, and we speak to our students with the same respect with which we, as a staff, speak to one another.

In order to access learning, children require both physical and emotional safety, and our first priority is to provide an environment for learning that is physically and emotionally safe for each child and their individual needs. Children struggle when they lack the skills necessary to accomplish needed tasks. We avoid the use of force or manipulation because it teaches a child that those who are bigger and stronger have power, whereas seeking a child’s cooperation teaches them to willingly make choices that are safe, responsible and respectful.

For this reason, St. Charles seeks to engage the cooperation of our students so they can exercise problem solving skills around the things that are causing them to get “stuck” as well as to learn academically. As much as possible, children are given choices within appropriate boundaries so that they do not feel forced or coerced in any way.

St. Charles School

19 Grant Street, Rochester, NH 03867 | 603-332-4768