The lack of understanding of the unique needs of a 2e person made assimilation into a standard school system difficult. Tombolo Academy was thus conceived.
Kids Like Us Australia Ltd is a community services organisation providing educational and well-being support for twice-exceptional, gifted and asynchronous young people In 2012 when Jake and his two younger siblings imagined the organisation that became Kids Like Us they envisaged an organisation where people understood the unique talents and needs of the special group of young people, now defined
as twice-exceptional (2e). Kids Like Us began offering services, primarily as after-school programs, from its headquarters in Beaumaris initially to help 2e kids to understand their strengths, to better deal with their challenges and to be able to share those experiences with others in their cohort. It soon became apparent that while the after-school programs added value to and enriched the lives of the 2e young people and their families, for many the struggle in the school environment continued to present a real challenge. For many the daily challenge was overwhelming. In 2016 Anne and Catherine contemplated the task of establishing a school where all staff understood, scaffolded, and supported the unique learning challenges that face many 2e students on a daily basis. Separate and self-sufficient it was to be a non-standard school that ensured staff maximized the strengths of every student. A school that, rather than separating 2e students from the world, instead taught self-understanding, self-advocacy skills and passion to enable the young people to seek and harness the best that future mainstream schools and life could provide. Such students would not be seen as disabled, but rather as assets to society and the world. Loosely based on the ideals of Bridges Academy in California, Catherine and Anne developed the school and its future mission. Under Catherine’s artful direction a small team was established to bring to life Anne’s vision of a unique inclusive strength-based 2e education in Australia. The process took four years of intense public and private scrutiny to obtain accreditation as a school. The 2e-ness of the school was documented, considered, and then accepted by all the relevant authorities. The doors were opened to the first group of secondary-school 2e students in February 2021. Tombolo Academy was born. Now, as Tombolo Academy students and staff come to the end of the first year, it is time for the staff and Board to proceed as a separate entity. It is time to allow the young school to grow and thrive managed by its own Governance Board of Directors. Not without tears, Anne and Catherine along with others at Kids Like Us have stepped away from Tombolo Academy to continue their work at Kids Like Us Australia. The next step, a crucial mountain to scale, is one where Kids Like Us Australia develops resources and disseminates knowledge to ensure that all 2e young people, Australia-wide, have the broad range of supports they need to flourish. Following its mission, Kids Like Us will continue to actively seek to become the leading voice in twice-exceptionality within Australia. Alongside this, the support services in six fundamental areas will continue to grow, scaffold and influence parents, teachers, students, policymakers and those finding themselves in the tumultuous world of twice-exceptionality:
Counselling and psychology
Teaching and tutoring
Social and Emotional group support
Peer Support
Advocacy
Parent individual and group support
….. Kids Like Us Australia Limited (KLU) is a community services organisation run on a social enterprise model. KLU was established in February 2013 and is a registered charity with ACNC. KLU was created after three children with a strong social conscience identified that there was a need to provide support to other twice-exceptional (or '2e') students, and to reduce the isolation and distress that they saw in other twice-exceptional children in Australia. Since February 2013, KLU has established a steering group of 15 twice-exceptional students, developed programs, trained staff, and currently provides counselling, learning support and advocacy services to students aged between 4 and 23 years old.
