Northstar Academy marks 30 years serving students with disabilities

By AI, Created 7:11 PM UTC, May 27, 2026, /AGP/ – Northstar Academy and Career Center in Richmond is celebrating three decades of growth from a 13-student church classroom to a 10-acre campus serving students with disabilities across Central Virginia. The school’s expansion includes academic supports, social-emotional programming, and career training that now reaches students through age 24.

Why it matters: - Northstar Academy and Career Center has become a major resource for Central Virginia families seeking individualized education for students with disabilities. - The school’s model combines academics, social-emotional learning, and job training in one place. - The expansion matters because it gives students a pathway from early schooling to employment and independent living.

What happened: - Northstar Academy and Career Center marked its 30th year in 2026. - The school opened on Sept. 19, 1996, with 13 students in a Sunday school classroom at Epiphany Lutheran Church in Richmond. - Candace David founded the school with parents and pediatric professionals. - Northstar now operates from a 10-acre campus on Nuckols Road in Richmond. - The Academy and Career Center now sit under one roof for the first time.

The details: - Northstar began in 1996 with individualized instruction, acceptance, and belonging as core principles. - Families later helped move the school into the former Victoria Station property on Shrader Road and turned train-car classrooms into learning spaces. - The school added athletics, dances, prom, music, clubs, yearbook, and other social activities to build inclusion. - Northstar celebrated its first graduating class in 2002. - Under Head of School Dr. Patricia West, the school expanded academic offerings and emphasized high expectations with compassion and support. - Northstar worked with neuropsychologist Peter D. Patrick of the University of Virginia’s Kluge Children’s Rehabilitation Center to develop a social skills program. - The social skills program focused on emotional regulation, conflict resolution, social engagement, and life skills. - Northstar launched Countdown to Employment for high school juniors and seniors as a transition-to-work program. - Countdown to Employment taught job searches, applications, interviews, and work experience through local business partnerships. - After the 2010 economic crisis, the school adopted the Lindamood-Bell Learning Process™ to strengthen reading comprehension and math instruction. - Northstar added Promethean boards, Kindles, iPads, and other assistive tools to support instruction. - The school required special education licensure for all teachers. - Those efforts contributed to accreditation from the Virginia Association of Independent Schools and “School of Excellence” recognition from the National Association of Special Education Teachers, which Northstar has held for a decade. - In 2014, Northstar opened a vocational training center for students ages 16-24. - The program now known as the Career Center offers training in Hospitality, Materials Handling, Construction & Maintenance, Business Technology, and Veterinary Assisting. - The Career Center also teaches executive functioning, workflow management, communication, and independent living skills. - The program became a vendor for Virginia’s Department for Aging and Rehabilitative Services. - Under Head of School Crystal Trent, Northstar kept operating through the COVID-19 pandemic with remote and asynchronous learning. - The school bought the former Strayer University site on Nuckols Road during a capital campaign. - Northstar added a gymnasium and community center, and the 16,000-square-foot facility opened in spring 2025. - The new space expanded athletics, recreation, school events, and community engagement.

Between the lines: - Northstar’s growth shows demand for schools built specifically around neurodiverse learners and students with disabilities. - The move from a single classroom to a full campus reflects a broader shift from basic accommodation to comprehensive student support. - The school’s emphasis on career readiness suggests a focus not just on graduation, but on post-school outcomes. - A student’s comment that teachers help and everyone is accepted underscores the school culture Northstar is trying to maintain.

What’s next: - Northstar says it will keep focusing on individualized support as students move through academic, social, emotional, and professional development. - The combined campus gives the Academy and Career Center room to keep expanding programming and community use.

The bottom line: - Northstar Academy and Career Center has turned a small founding vision into a long-term model for educating and preparing students with disabilities in Central Virginia.