PARTNER OF THE YEAR
Celebrating extraordinary impact on student success
Every year, schools nationwide face challenges in providing essential support to students—especially those with diverse needs. 7.5 million students in the U.S. received special education and related services in the last school year, but there simply aren’t enough clinicians to meet the demand.¹ As a result, districts are tapping into remote special education-related and mental health services to help bridge staffing gaps and expand onsite bandwidth. Our Partner of the Year award recognizes inspiring districts that go above and beyond to support students, lead with empathy, and embrace innovation to empower all learners.
Congratulations to our 2024–25 award winners! Thank you for making a difference for students with special needs.
CALEXICO, CA
Calexico Unified School District
Calexico Unified School District (CUSD) is committed to fostering student achievement and addressing the unique needs of its 11 schools. Facing ongoing challenges with finding bilingual SLPs and high provider turnover, CUSD tapped Presence to augment their on-the-ground team with teletherapists—providing speech therapy to almost 130 students. Through innovation, collaboration, and a student-focused approach, this partnership highlights how districts can use teletherapy to support all learners. By embracing teletherapy in its schools, CUSD ensures high-quality special education support, empowering all students to learn and thrive inside and outside of the classroom.
“We partnered with Presence because my own son was receiving services from Presence in another district. When I learned his services would be delivered via teletherapy, I thought, well, that’s interesting. I reached out to his school to observe and thought, this is very effective. If we ever need this in Calexico, I’d consider Presence. Now, we’re working with them, and it couldn’t be going better for our staff and students.”
DENNIS PRICE
Special Education Director at Calexico Unified School District
LABELLE, FL
Hendry County School District
Hendry County School District (HCSD) serves over 7,500 students across 11 campuses in a rural community of 40,000+. Flexibility and open communication are at the heart of HCSD’s partnership with Presence, ensuring students receive the speech and language support they need—even as district needs evolve. The ability to quickly adjust services is key to HCSD’s success, with parents and staff seeing firsthand the positive impacts of teletherapy. This year alone, Presence delivered over 5,300 sessions and 157,000 minutes of therapy to HCSD, supporting nearly 370 students. The district’s collaborative approach showcases how rural districts can use teletherapy to provide high-quality student services.
“During IEP meetings, HCSD teachers and parents have reported positive changes in the student’s communication in the classroom and at home.”
JANE B.
VIRTUAL SCHOOL
Learning Network
Learning Network partners with schools and districts to create flexible, personalized learning experiences for students nationwide. Working with Presence since 2015, Learning Network expanded access to assessments, speech-language services, occupational therapy, and behavioral mental health support—even for its bilingual students. Together, this year’s partnership supported nearly 500 learners with over 89,000 minutes of teletherapy.
“We’ve built a strong partnership with Presence that has grown alongside our needs. Their team provides us clinicians who ensure our students receive the services they need to thrive.”
PATRICK LAMBERT
MOBILE, AL
Mobile County Public Schools
In Alabama’s largest school district, student needs are increasing, but staff to support these needs are not. Presence clinicians support the onsite team by providing seamless services to ensure student assessment needs are met. Presence clinicians provide psychoeducational assessments throughout the school year and handle gifted testing over the summer months, reducing the workload for district providers. Nakia Brown, Supervisor of Psychological Services states, “We find that every single year our number of evaluations needed is increasing while our staff size does not. Not only is the volume of evaluations increasing, but the depth as well, requiring more time to ensure we are appropriately evaluating our students. The volume, depth, and breath of assessments have pulled our staff in many different directions.”
“I’ve been here almost 10 years and can attest to the difference Presence has made. They save our staff time and allow our team to push in and focus on needs at the school level. We receive several hundreds of gifted referrals each year and Presence has been instrumental in assisting us to get those evaluations done timely. With all of our timelines and responsibilities, I sincerely appreciate Presence and their flexibility and willingness to cater to Mobile’s specific needs. The presence of Presence is undeniably felt and valued.”
NAKIA L. BROWN
MONAHANS, TX
Monahans-Wickett-Pyote Independent School District
The Monahans-Wickett-Pyote Independent School District (MWPISD) is located in West Texas. The small district takes pride in its steadfast community of dedicated administrators, teachers, and staff—all committed to doing what’s best for the students they serve. MWPISD and Presence clinicians come together to enhance speech and occupational therapy services, using tailored teletherapy services to provide support to bilingual students. Strong district leadership and open communication empowered this year’s partnership, resulting in over 8,500 minutes of impactful therapy sessions.
“We’ve partnered with Presence for bilingual speech therapy and occupational therapy and have had great success. Our Presence SLP has been our biggest victory, helping with bilingual speech. Our parents are grateful, and we’re grateful that our kids are getting the support they need.”
ANTHONY AGUNDIZ
WILSON, NC
Wilson County Schools
Wilson County Schools’ motto, “Learn, create, inspire,” motivates its 1,650 staff members to serve 10,165 students across the district. First collaborating with Presence to deliver psychoeducational assessments, the district has since expanded its partnership with Presence to include behavioral health and mental health counseling, as well as support to its Pre-K students. Together, Wilson County Schools and Presence clinicians delivered 570 therapy sessions and over 100 assessments. The district’s welcoming, collaborative approach fosters a strong partnership that continues to grow year after year.
“We have improved in our state rankings, thanks in no small part to the work of Presence clinicians. They provide effective, efficient assessments for our students. I have never had a parent concern about a Presence school psychologist or their findings—a remarkable credit to their work. Virtual testing delivers very valid results, keeping our parents happy and ensuring students get the support they need.”
RICHARD STOVER
What makes a Partner of the Year?
Whether from rural, urban, or virtual school communities, Partner of the Year award winners consistently embody excellence in special education and mental health services and represent the following core values.
Equitable service delivery
Adjusts service models to accommodate special needs
Thoughtful innovation
Explores new student support strategies with an open mind
Dedication to students
Provides timely referrals and puts students at the forefront of their decision-making process
Empathetic leadership
Recognizes each student and educator as unique with individual strengths and aspirations
Feeling inspired?
Schedule a free consultation and learn how Presence teletherapy solutions can help your district thrive.