“Brightmont gave my daughter
confidence and helped her love learning
again.”
– Parent of 8th grader
School Avoidance - Brightmont Academy Speaker Series featuring Jayne Demsky
October 9, 2025
Brightmont Academy Speaker Series
In this informative session of the Brightmont Academy Speaker Series, we are joined by Jayne Demsky, Founder and CEO of the School Avoidance Alliance and author of Overcoming School Avoidance, for a practical and compassionate conversation on understanding and addressing school refusal.
Jayne brings both national expertise and personal experience to this discussion. Inspired by her own family's journey, she built the School Avoidance Alliance to better support students, families, and schools — work that has trained thousands, earned national recognition, and been featured in outlets like USA Today and The Washington Post. She offers parents and guardians a clear, grounded look at why school avoidance happens and what families can actually do about it.
In this session, Jayne discusses:
- What causes students to avoid school
- The most common school avoidance scenarios families encounter
- How to recognize the difference between everyday reluctance and genuine avoidance
- Practical parenting strategies for responding to school refusal
- How to work alongside your child's school as a partner in the process
- Ways to support your child while protecting your own well-being as a parent
This conversation is designed to empower families with the knowledge and tools they need to respond to school avoidance with confidence rather than fear, and to partner effectively with schools to support their child's return and long-term success.
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