Royce Learning Center is the Coastal Empire’s only center for children and adults with learning differences. Our mission is provide the necessary comprehensive services that will enable children and adults with learning disabilities, attention deficit disorders and literacy needs to reach their maximum potential, educationally, emotionally and socially; and to heighten public awareness of the lifelong issues associated with such differences and the interventions available, locally and nationally. Our organization supports three distinct but interconnected programs: Chatham Academy, The Tutoring Center and Adult and Community Education (ACE).

Chatham Academy is a fully accredited independent day school, grades one through twelve, for children with learning differences, offering both a college prep and practical studies curriculum. Classes are limited to ten students each and they are grouped according to skills level. School size is currently 102, with a growth potential of 150 students within five years.  Our goal is to educate children with learning differences through high school graduation.

The Tutoring Center is a one-on-one tutoring program that employs over 40 certified teachers who work with children and adults in several areas of need. As its name implies, each student works with one tutor. Schedules are set up for the location and times which best suit the students. Virtually all of the private areas schools and many public schools send students to this program. Adults also attend for specific skill needs (i.e. help in passing a nursing exam). This program also administers an SAT prep class held at the Jewish Educational Alliance (JEA) of Savannah. The Tutoring Center is partially funded by United Way, is a No Child Left Behind state-approved provider and is a resource support for public and independent schools in Chatham, Effingham and Liberty Counties.

Adult and Community Education (ACE) serves adult learners from age 16 and up. We provide individualized instruction for personal goals such as literacy, General Educational Development (GED) and Commercial Drivers License (CDL) through United Way funding and a sliding scale fee structure. ACE pairs adult learners with trained volunteers who will work with you one-on-one to help each learner achieve their goals. Additionally, we partner with other area agencies to reach as many learners as possible. Royce Learning Center provides lead teachers and teaching expertise for the class at Union Mission that is held for residents of area shelters, as well as for the City of Tybee Island, Housing Authority, Effingham Center and the Wesley Community Center. We believe that improving literacy of adults in our area will improve our community, both economically and socially.

Royce Learning Center began in 1970 and has been serving the community in many capacities over the last thirty six years. We estimate that approximately 41% of Chatham County adult residents (over 70,000 people) read below a sixth grade level, an 11% increase in just ten years. The graduation rate for Chatham County public schools is 54.3%, 14% lower than the national average. Four to six per cent of our counties student population cannot succeed in a traditional school. There are an estimated 5,000 students with Learning Disabilities (LD), Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in Chatham County.

Since 1990, Chatham Academy has worked with approximately 1500 students, a number which represents about thirty per cent of the LD/ADD/ADHD students in our community. ACE, Royce’s Adult & Community Education program, has taught over 7000 adults to read. Additionally, The Tutoring Center serves independent and public school systems in Chatham County, as well as surrounding counties, and is a supplemental provider through the No Child Left Behind Act.