The Lawrence F. Hickey Center
For Child Development
Astor Services: Bronx, NY Early Childhood Programs
The Lawrence F. Hickey Center for Child Development, located in the northeast Bronx, was developed to meet the emotional and cognitive needs of a special group of 3 - 5 year old children. These children display serious emotional disorders accompanied by an inability to learn or respond to structure, and have difficulty getting along with others. They are typically rejected from nursery programs and kindergarten after an initial assessment or after only a few short weeks of enrollment.
The primary goal of the therapeutic nursery program is to enable children to proceed to a less restrictive public school setting by providing treatment and remediation of the problems which brought them to the Center. Most frequently, those presenting problems are a combination of emotional and social ones, as well as developmental delays and learning disabilities.
The Little Red Schoolhouse
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Located at 4010 Dyre Avenue, the Center was built in 1877 as a two-room public school (P.S. 15). The school has always been known in the community as The Little Red School House. The school house was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in April 1981. The Astor Home for Children purchased the Little Red Schoolhouse in 1991, and the building was named The Lawrence F. Hickey Center for Child Development.
The Lawrence F. Hickey Center for Child Development is licensed by the New York State Office of Mental Health as a children’s day treatment program. It is approved by the New York State Education Department to provide special education and assessment services to children. These funding streams enable children to receive a comprehensive array of services at no cost to their families. The program is approved to serve forty children and it is always at capacity. Over 80% of the children are from families that are at or below the poverty line.
Services Offered
Services provided include cognitive behavioral treatment; special education; and speech and language, occupational and physical therapies. A range of other assessments may include hearing, vision screening and physical health. Services are provided by psychologists, social workers, teachers with early childhood and/or Special Education training, and health care professionals. The staff also includes a child psychiatrist and a nurse.
The Center runs an interactive Parent Support Program which meets weekly to discuss a range of parenting and child development issues.
Referrals are accepted from a number of resources including early intervention programs, day care centers, parents and pediatricians.
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