Samara Learning Center is one of the few organizations in Oregon that specializes in working with kids who are neurodivergent (ADHD, dyslexia, high-functioning autism, etc.). We are named after the helicopter-like winged seeds of a tree, such as a Big Leaf Maple. Similar to samaras, kids need the right environment to grow strong enough to reach for the sky and flexible enough to bend in the wind. We teach kids to “Soar with Your Strengths” through our Samara Day School, MAPLE Tutoring program, Samara After-school Program (SAP), and our Elective Collective (enrichment opportunities, like Social Skills Improv Class, Stop-Motion Animation, etc.).

Samara helps kids find their individual pathways to success while participating in the cultivation of society to best guide them on their way. Therefore, Samara additionally co-facilitates Central Oregon Attention Deficit Disorder Info./Support Group (COADD), part of Central Oregon’s Decoding Dyslexia, and speak/present at community engagements. In addition, 2023 was the 6th year that Heather Chatem, Executive Director, spoke to the Teacher Education program at OSU, Cascades as an expert for a “Variety of Learners.” At least 30% of the people in the penitentiary system have been identified as being neurodivergent, but almost the same percentage also makes up the entrepreneurs of the US. Let us all help the successful pathway more likely to be traversed.