SALISBURY, MD - Elected officials and local stakeholders got a closer look Thursday morning at plans for a specialized education school set to begin serving students on the Eastern Shore of Maryland as soon as 2027.
Chimes International provides specialized care to children and adults with cognitive and physical disabilities, including a Baltimore school that supports students from 4 to 21 years old and beyond.
Chimes purchased a building on Mt. Hermon Road earlier this summer and is finalizing plans to transform what was once a church into a state-of-the-art special education school for students from eight counties.
"The Eastern Shore has 7000 students with a need for these sorts of services,” Chimes CEO Steve DaRe said. “We're not just teaching and educating, but we're also supporting the child – the whole child, so that they're successful in their educational journey."
Maryland Senators Mary Beth Carozza, Johnny Mautz and Delegates Sheree Sample-Hughes and Barry Beauchamp were in attendance for Thursday’s event. Senator Carozza told WBOC News the progress being made is an example of local, state and federal partners working in concert.
"We have a group called Healthy Minds, for sure, and working with the Greater Salisbury Committee and with the Wicomico Public School systems, recognizing that we had students that we could not serve in our public schools,” Carozza said.
Chimes is one of three organizations on the Eastern Shore seeking to meet that need, in addition to the Benedictine School in Caroline County.
For families of children with disabilities, finding an appropriate educational setting can be challenging.
Andy Pape knows that experience firsthand. His son, Owen, attended multiple public schools across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge before the family was connected with Chimes.
"My journey through the public school system, you know, in one word was long,” he said.
The county school system in Western Maryland eventually told the family they could no longer meet Owen's needs.
That is when Chimes came into the picture. Owen began receiving one-on-one care, meeting him where he was behaviorally and unlearning public-school practices that didn't serve his specific needs.
"This was an eye-opener for us to see progress,” Pape said. “Heartwarming for a dad and for a parent that we can actually see him move forward.”
Chimes serves students from about ages 4 or 5 through 21. The organization also helps students transition into life after school.
"We're there to help them find work, find debilitation or other programs,” DaRe said.
Chimes expects to open the school in phases, with 50 students expected to attend when it opens in 2028, with potential pilots as early as 2027. Eventually, the school is expected to serve an additional 80 students and employ more than 130 people.
