Benhaven School

Benhaven was founded in 1967 by Amy Lettick, a teacher and mother of an autistic child. Originally a day school, Benhaven was conceived to serve children whose handicaps were preventing them from receiving an appropriate education in existing public and private schools. As community needs emerged over the next ten years, Benhaven also evolved to provide the services that they needed. Residential services, vocational training, and adult day programs were added over this period. In the course of working intensively with a small group of individuals, Benhaven developed a unique and specific expertise in working with autism. Benhaven also developed a heightened awareness for some of the issues that were impacting services for this population in the community at large. Benhaven’s mission is to enable people with autism and pervasive developmental disorders to participate in community life, exercise productive control over their own lives, have meaningful relationships and associations, be gainfully employed, and experience happiness and personal satisfaction. Benhaven’s mission is to enable people with autism and pervasive developmental disorders to participate in community life, exercise productive control over their own lives, have meaningful relationships and associations, be gainfully employed, and experience happiness and personal satisfaction.