Sheppard Pratt School at Millersville Elementary

A 10-month special education program for grades 1 through 5 runs inside Millersville Elementary School at 1601 Millersville Road in Anne Arundel County, Maryland. Sheppard Pratt operates it. Students have autism spectrum disorder, multiple disabilities, or other health impairments. Because the program sits within a working public elementary school, students share the building's facilities and resources, including the library and media room, art, music, physical education, and aquatics classes, the playground, and a shared sensory and motor skills room. The program is a Type II school approved by the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE).

The program is small by design. It has capacity for 18 students, split into two classrooms grouped by age and grade level to keep the setting calm and predictable. The multidisciplinary team includes an education director, special education teachers, program coordinators, a social worker, resource counselors, and educational assistants. Day-to-day support covers small class sizes with a low student-to-staff ratio, individual and group counseling, support during mainstream classes, resource support, and individualized academic instruction. Speech and language therapy and occupational therapy are provided as needed by the local school system.

Instruction is hands-on and practical. Teachers lean on structure, routines, pictures, and sequencing, and each classroom has an interactive whiteboard and computers for current events, supplemental teaching, and earned computer time. The program builds in sensory breaks, fitness, and motor-skill work alongside academics. Vocational training is a regular part of the day: students take on classroom jobs such as collecting, sorting, and delivering the mail to practice responsibility, language, and problem solving. Staff also take students into the community to work on communication, social, and coping skills as they prepare for more independent futures.

Admission runs entirely through the public system. All students come from Anne Arundel County, and Anne Arundel County Public Schools makes the referrals. There is no private application. Families coordinate placement through their county school team.