The Foundation School of Montgomery County

Bright Eyes Early Learning Center has operated since 1991 and is part of Bright Eyes Inc., a family-run company (President Diane Holzberger and Vice President Pete Holzberger) with locations across Montgomery, Frederick, and Washington Counties in Maryland. The Gaithersburg center sits at 7305 Hadley Farms Dr and offers full-time and part-time care for several age groups: infants and toddlers, twos, preschool and pre-K, and school-age children, plus a school-age summer program. The program states that it welcomes individuals of all abilities and supports each child's primary language through songs, activities, and learning key words and phrases to communicate with the child and family. The school follows curricula approved by the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE). Infants and toddlers use the Teaching Strategies Creative Curriculum, with weekly lesson plans built around each child's abilities and teacher observation, covering art, sensory play, circle time, sign language, music, and fine and gross motor development. Preschool and pre-K classrooms run the InvestiGators Club curriculum, which Bright Eyes notes is one of five MSDE-approved curricula and one of two to earn a 5-star MSDE rating. That program moves children through 7 themed units across the year, includes individualized instruction described as suited to all types of learners, and uses observation checklists at the end of each unit. Preschool and pre-K rooms are organized into 13 learning centers, including dedicated Calming and Sensory areas alongside math, science, language arts, writing, dramatic play, technology, and blocks. Daily small-group work pairs a teacher with groups of 3 to 4 children for math, science, or language arts, and children age 2 and up take part in a weekly physical education enrichment activity. Teachers are trained in first aid and CPR and are required to continue professional training. Families meet with teachers twice a year to review progress, and the centers serve healthy snacks and lunches following MSDE guidelines at several locations. Bright Eyes accepts all state and local child care vouchers and offers flexible scheduling to fit family needs. The company has been recognized in several local readers' polls, including Best of Gaithersburg 2019 (Best Child Care Center and Preschool) and the Frederick News-Post Best of the Best Child Care Center award. Prospective families are invited to tour and enroll, with current promotions noted on the site for new and referring families.

The Marcia D. Smith School is an accredited nonpublic school in Gaithersburg, Maryland that operates under Community Support Services, Inc. (CSS). It is approved to provide both day and residential special education to students ages 11 to 21 who have autism, intellectual disabilities, and/or multiple disabilities. Placement runs through the public system: CSS accepts referrals from Montgomery County Public Schools and other Maryland Local Education Agencies (LEAs), and the referring LEA decides whether a student is placed in the day or the residential program. Total enrollment capacity is 25 students, and each classroom holds a maximum of seven students staffed by a certified special education teacher, an assistant teacher, and instructional associates. The program is non-diploma and non-graded, built around life skills, vocational training, functional academics, and community engagement, with instruction tied to each student's IEP. The day service operates 211 days per year (eleven months) from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., while residential education runs 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The school building includes classrooms, recreation rooms, a gymnasium, kitchen, art room, music room, and media center, and classroom materials range from pre-vocational and functional life-skills equipment to computers, audio-visual technology, graded academic materials, and adapted manipulatives. Students also work on skills off-site at libraries, recreation facilities, stores, and internship placements in local businesses, with transportation provided by public transit, Metro Access, or a CSS-owned minivan. Clinical and behavioral support is built into the school. The CSS psychology team supplies behavioral support services and includes a licensed psychologist, BCBA professionals, and behavioral mentors, speech and language therapy is part of the school day, and additional therapies are added as each child's IEP specifies. The program is overseen by a Master's-level Education Director with long experience in the field. Residential students live in a townhouse in upper Montgomery County, sharing a home (two students per residence, each with a private bedroom) with continuous staff supervision, including overnight instructional associates, plus nursing and on-call emergency support. Each residence is licensed by the Maryland Office of Health Care Quality. The school also helps families plan the move to adult services in Maryland, coordinating with Autism Waiver, DDA, or other supports a student already receives and assisting with both the administrative steps and the person-centered planning involved in transition.

Sheppard Pratt School Gaithersburg serves students ages 12 through 21 in grades 7 through 12 with intellectual disabilities, autism, and learning disabilities. The Montgomery County program provides individualized academic and life skills instruction with Sheppard Pratt's full clinical support network. Private tuition and IEP placements are accepted.