About Us
From Frustration to Fascination
For more than 30 years, our founder Patti Howell has been a leader in the education field, serving as a teacher, educational interpreter, behavior therapist, school principal, and special needs advocate.
It was a move from Delaware to Virginia that sparked the most transformative chapter of her career. Patti began teaching children with autism and other special needs, and despite her experience, she encountered a unique challenge: The knowledge and tools that had served her so well across the years didn’t seem to be working. Connecting and succeeding with these kids was a whole different ballgame. Fortunately, she was blessed to be taken under the wing of an amazing behavioral therapist. With training, practice and soon, connection, her frustration was replaced by a deep fascination for the brilliant, creative, and loving students in her care. What initially felt like her most frustrating assignment quickly became her most rewarding.​
Over the next several years, Patti realized these wonderful kids and their families needed more than they were getting from the public system. Someone needed to help parents know their rights under school law; someone needed to push schools to provide the supports for these students; someone needed help connect the community and these wonderful families.
One day at church, in the middle of yet another sermon about walking in faith, our pastor issued a new challenge: If you have an idea, if you have something you know someone ought to be doing, where do you think that idea come from? Who do you think is being called to be that someone?
That challenge was the genesis of The Hitching Post Educational Center, a 501(c)3-qualified nonprofit supporting specials families. Since 2017, our team has worked to:
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EDUCATE parents about their rights, teachers about effectively reaching these amazing kids, and the community about autism and other special needs.
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ADVOCATE for special needs families in the school system and, when unavoidable, in administrative proceedings such as Office for Civil Rights actions.
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EQUIP special needs students to succeed and parents to fight for every opportunity their kid deserves.
