Our Outcomes

Beyond the Label Ranch

The “Beyond The Label” (BTL) Ranch is a beautiful 5 acre ranch located in Agua Dulce, Ca. Our students enjoy the opportunity to escape from the hustle and bustle of the city. BTL ranch represents the first time for many students.

For many, it is their 1st trip to the countryside. For others such as our young adults, who participate in our weekend Spectrum Shield Safety with Law Enforcement training, it is their 1st time sleeping away from mom and dad. For others, it’s their 1st time swimming or playing outdoor sports. Many students with autism and other special needs have daily after school programs. Additionally, many find it difficult to keep up with the fast pace of most outdoor activities. We are always proactive and looking for solutions to life’s simple challenges.

We encourage you to partner with us as we build a spacious 4200 sq. ft. Sports & Leisure Park. 

Our park will include:

  • A one-mile walking path with water fountains
  • Innovative urban outdoor park benches and seating
  • Obstacle courses and a 50 x 84 ft. regulation size Sports Court =

Our park will enable our children and young adults with Autism and other developmental disabilities an opportunity to exercise, play, and socialize with their peers in a safe setting that’s designed with them in mind.

We can make this a reality with your support!

Spectrum Shield

The Los Angeles Speech and Language Therapy Center and D.O.P.E. (De-escalating Officer Patrol Encounters), offer an intense 3 day, 2 night program to train young adults with ASD how to safely interact with law enforcement.  Law enforcement officers also become familiar with the range of behaviors and characteristics associated with autism.

The overall objective of Spectrum Shield is to promote trust, greater awareness, and create a positive dialogue to ensure the safety of all children when interacting with law enforcement regardless of race, zip code, ability or disability.

Ideal Participant

  • 18 years +
  • Verbal
  • Moderate to high functioning
  • Demonstrating moderate independence in the community (i.e. takes public transportation, drives, enrolled in community or other college program, employed part/full time)

Program Highlights

  • Weekend training at a beautiful 5-acre ranch just north of Los Angeles
  • Led by Dr. Pamela Wiley and Retired LT. Stan Campbell
  • Law enforcement from various agencies assist with training

Wiley Center Lawndale Center

The Wiley Center for Speech and Language Development center is located at:

15432 W. Hawthorne Blvd

Lawndale, CA 90260

We offer the following services at this location:

WASL; Therapeutic Preschool

Wiley Academy for Specialized Learning (WASL) preschool is a therapeutic language based preschool program for children 3-5 years old with autism spectrum disorder and other special need. Children are exposed to a range of language based methods to facilitate growth and development in communication.

Ideal Participant:

  • Speech and Language delays 
  • Autism diagnosis and/or other Developmental delays
  • Ability to follow simple adult directives
  • All children must be ambulatory

Program Highlights

  • All classes led by licensed or clinical fellowship speech-language pathologists.
  • Rolling Enrollment
  • Small 1:3 and 1:2 staff to child ratios
  • Evidence-based practices embedded throughout the course of the school day

Employment Training Learning Labs

Transitioning from high school to the adult world can be quite daunting for those with Autism. Research shows that young adults with ASD have worse employment outcomes and earn lower wages the first three years after high school than young adults with other disabilities.

Workplace Social Skills And Employment Readiness Program

Our Employment Readiness program serves a diverse group of students with a vast array of interests. Initially, students receive intense workplace social-skills training and on-site job training in our UPS, Outback Steakhouse and CVS Training Center. Upon successful completion students are placed in customized internships or job-shadow opportunities of their choice. Tailored placements such as these provide our students an opportunity to practice their “dream jobs” in a safe setting without the risk of failure or long-term commitment. This approach opens their eyes to the infinite number of employment opportunities available while providing them the social skills and confidence needed to attain and retain employment in an area of interest to them. The final phase of our program culminates in assisting our students secure meaningful paid employment.

Ideal Participant:

  • 18+ years
  • Moderate to high functioning ASD or other diagnoses
  • Adequate receptive and expressive language skills to process information, converse with others using age appropriate language.
  • Able to self regulate emotions, behavior, and function relatively independently

Program Highlights: 

  • Targets the social skills needed to navigate effectively in the workplace
  • Taught by licensed Speech-Language Pathologists
  • 16 hours a month of instruction
  • Onsite UPS Store Training Center (Hyperlink to individual page, Connect with Wiley Center website)
  • Onsite Outback Steakhouse Training Center (Hyperlink to individual page, Connect with Wiley Center website)
  • Coming Soon onsite CVS Training Center (Hyperlink to individual page, Connect with Wiley Center website)
  • Meaningful on/off site internships
  • Meaningful employment consistent with students unique interests and skill sets

Please take a look at our videos to see our Employment Readiness students working in action:

UPS Learning Lab

To help young adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) realize their true potential. In 2017, the Los Angeles Speech & Language Therapy Center partnered with UPS to offer real-world job training for young people with autism in the UPS Store Workforce Training Lab. This unique replica will serve as a job training site and where staff will provide students with a training curriculum tailored to their learning needs. The goal is to prepare young adults for meaningful employment. All paid internships are funded by the fundraising efforts of the Wiley Center for Speech and Language Development a 501c(3).

Students learn a range of valuable skills including customer service and cashiering. The UPS Store Workforce Training Lab is the first program of its kind nationwide to be located in a speech clinic.

Program Details

  • Young adults must have successfully completed the Employment Readiness Workplace Social Skills Program 
  • Services provided include printing, copying, packaging, laminating, shredding, packaging, and sale of merchandise.
  • Services are free of charge to the public
  • Interns work for the valuable job experience and TIPS

Outback steakhouse

In 2018, Outback Steakhouse began a partnership with the Los Angeles Speech and Language Therapy Center and built a training facility within the center. The training lab enables our employment readiness students an opportunity to learn about life in the restaurant business in a safe setting before pursing employment in a restaurant setting. 

Program Details

  • Young adults must be enrolled in the Employment Readiness Workplace Social Skills Program 
  • Training includes standards of service, making a lasting impression, the art of communication, customer attentiveness, problem solving and teamwork.