History

Welcome class, to Springall 101. This page will give you a brief overview of the history of our foundation.

The History of Springall Academy

Springall was founded in 1972 by Dr. Peter Springall. He began with five students from two different families. His goal of creating a unique program to meet the needs of unique students was just beginning. The school was founded on the premise of educating students in an intensive, structured, individualized program. As the school population grew, he moved the program to several locations all within the Hillcrest area. During the early years the locations were rented classrooms from local church schools. Each of the churches that cooperated was very welcoming, but by 1988, with a total of 70 students, it was finally time to find a more permanent location.

The next step was renting a former public school site on top of beautiful Mt. Soledad. That school site was ideal for Springall; beautiful views of the ocean, large classrooms, a Physical Education Room, a large playing field, and room for growth. Dr. Springall continued to expand the school and its programs. During the La Jolla years, a vision therapy program and a guidance program were added. The school also celebrated its 25th Anniversary at the La Jolla location.

In the Fall of 1999, Dr. Springall retired from being the Executive Director of Springall Academy. Dr. Arlene Baker took over as Director. We were all familiar with Dr. Baker because she had already worked at Springall for twenty years.

Dr. Baker, much like Dr. Springall, was a visionary. She added a part of our program that we now consider an integral part of our curriculum- namely, the Workability Program. The Workability Program provides opportunities for our students to get prepared for the world of work. As only the second Director of a school that has been going since the seventies, the program has been able to maintain its integrity while changing with the times.

In 2004, Dr. Baker noted that continued growth meant the need to find a new location for our school. She found another public school site that was ideal for the next chapter of Springall. The site, located in the San Carlos area of San Diego, is in a quiet community with a public park nearby. The site is also walking distance from a city bus line and many community stores. This location gave us many opportunities to connect with the community for career activities and community service learning.

After twenty-nine years of service to Springall, Dr. Baker chose to retire from Springall Academy in the Fall of 2008. She left a legacy of growth and prosperity. In fact, in her years as Director, she continued the Workability Program that she started and began a Garden/Greenhouse project which we named “Baker’s Garden” in her honor.

In the Fall of 2008, Dr. Heather Dierolf became the third Executive Director of Springall Academy. She is also not a new-comer to the Academy. In fact, she started as an Assistant in 1994. When asked, she said she remembers telling Dr. Springall, that she wanted to be Director one day. He and Dr. Baker were pleased to be able to pass the torch onto her.

As Springall Academy continues to grow and evolve to meet the needs of today’s special education students, one thing remains the same. We continue to be an outstanding program with dedicated staff whose primary focus is the student.