School Of Play

What School Of Play does

School of Play is a small, private Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy provider based in McKees Rocks (Robinson Township), Pennsylvania, serving children with autism spectrum disorder across the Greater Pittsburgh Area. The company delivers individualized ABA therapy using a play-based, naturalistic methodology — including a Naturalistic Developmental Behavioral Intervention (NDBI) approach for toddlers — across four settings: in the child's home, in school, in the community, and at its center on Clever Road. Program offerings cover the full pediatric autism age band, with a Toddlers program (ages 1-3), a Preschool-Prep center-based program (ages 3-5, 9am-12pm), a School Age Center-Based afternoon program (12:30-3:30pm), and short-term School-Based behavioral interventions in partnership with elementary and preschool classrooms.

The company's service model is grounded in a structured seven-step treatment process (observation and assessment, plan creation, intervention, adjustment, skills transfer and fading, ongoing data collection, and discharge upon goal attainment) and emphasizes systematic skills transfer to parents and caregivers so treatment can continue beyond direct clinician hours. School of Play also runs a 40-hour Registered Behavior Technician (RBT) training program and a three-level Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) supervision track for Master's-level students, creating an internal clinician pipeline and an adjacent professional-development offering. The organization is led by a small team (1-10 employees) with BCBAs holding over a decade of supervision experience.

Revenue is generated primarily through insurance reimbursement, with in-network status across Cigna, Highmark BCBS, United Healthcare (Optum), UPMC, and Medical Assistance via CCBH in Allegheny County; private-pay arrangements are also offered. Go-to-market is sales-led and referral-based, relying on direct family inquiries (phone, email, online intake form), payer network positioning, and community-resource referrals rather than paid digital marketing. As of July 20, 2024, School of Play is transitioning into Ivy Rehab for Kids, with Ivy becoming the parent operating company.

Name

School Of Play

Legal name

School of Play

Website

https://schoolofplay.net

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

School of Play is a small, private Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy provider in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania, delivering play-based, naturalistic ABA services to children with autism across home, school, community, and center-based settings in the Greater Pittsburgh Area. As of July 2024, it is transitioning into Ivy Rehab for Kids.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Pediatric Behavioral Therapy Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Child and Youth Services (624110)

SIC

Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090)

akta.pro primary industry

Social Skills, Play Skills & Group ABA Programs (EDAKAHAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Parent/Caregiver Training & Family Consultation (ABA) (EDAKAHAG), Autism-Specific Schools & Programs (EDAKAAAA), Autism Early Intervention (Educational) (EDAKAKAB)

Keywords

• ABA therapy services
• Autism behavioral therapy
• Applied behavior analysis
• Pediatric therapy services
• Special needs support

Headquarters

HQ city

Mckees Rocks

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Insurance Reimbursement: School of Play is in-network with major health insurance providers including Cigna, Highmark BCBS, United Healthcare (Optum), UPMC, and Medical Assistance. Services are billed through insurance as medically necessary ABA therapy.
2. Private Pay: Private pay rates are available for families without insurance coverage or who prefer to pay out-of-pocket. Contact for pricing details.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

School of Play provides Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy for children with autism in the Greater Pittsburgh Area, delivered through home-based, community-based, school-based, and center-based settings. Services include individualized treatment plans addressing self-injurious behavior, aggression, communication, social skills, toilet training, and anxiety, with emphasis on naturalistic play-based learning and skills transfer to parents and caregivers.

Product overview

School of Play is an Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy provider for children with autism, offering services through multiple programs: School-Based interventions, School Age Center-Based therapy (afternoon), Preschool-Prep (ages 3-5), and Toddlers (ages 1-3). Core services include ABA therapy delivered in home, school, and community settings, along with parent/caregiver training. The organization also provides professional development through an RBT Training program (40 hours) and a three-level BCBA Supervision Program for Master's students seeking supervision hours toward licensure.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Therapy

Quantifiable outcome

• Children meet outlined goals and graduate from the program

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Ivy Rehab for KidscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 July 2024School of Play is joining Ivy Rehab for Kids and will transition to the Ivy website on July 20. The care, team, and commitment to children remain the same, with expanded resources from Ivy supporting more families in the community.
• CignacoreOthersIn-network insurance provider for ABA therapy services in the Greater Pittsburgh Area.
• Highmark BCBScoreOthersIn-network insurance provider for ABA therapy services in the Greater Pittsburgh Area.
• United Healthcare (Optum)coreOthersIn-network insurance provider for ABA therapy services in the Greater Pittsburgh Area.
• UPMCcoreOthersIn-network insurance provider for ABA therapy services in the Greater Pittsburgh Area.
• Medical Assistance / CCBH (Allegheny County)coreOthersMedical Assistance health insurance accepted in Allegheny County through CCBH for ABA therapy services.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• ACES ABA: ABA therapy provider offering clinic-based and in-home services for children on the autism spectrum with a similar insurance-billed operating model to School of Play.
• Centria Healthcare: Large national ABA provider serving children with autism across home, clinic, and school settings with insurance billing. Direct competitor in service line, delivery modes, and payer contracts.
• BlueSprig Pediatrics: National ABA therapy provider operating clinic, home, and school-based programs for children with autism. Closely comparable to School of Play in service mix (1:1 ABA, parent training, center-based) and insurance-billed revenue model, though at much larger scale.
• Autism Learning Partners: National ABA provider delivering in-home, school, and center-based services with parent collaboration programs, closely mirroring School of Play's parent-training and skills-transfer approach.
• Behavioral Innovations: Multi-state ABA provider with center-based and in-home services for children with autism, plus parent training components. Comparable in therapy modalities and insurance-based reimbursement.
• Lighthouse Autism Center: Regional ABA provider with center-based programs focused on early learners with autism; shares the center-based model (e.g., School of Play's Preschool-Prep and School Age programs) and parent-coaching emphasis.
• Hopebridge Autism Therapy Centers: Multi-state ABA and pediatric therapy provider with center-based and home-based programs for children with autism. Comparable to School of Play in delivered modalities, payer-driven model, and family-centered approach.
• Kadiant: ABA therapy provider serving children and adults with autism across multiple states with home and center-based delivery, comparable to School of Play's insurance-driven, multi-setting service model.

Broad incumbents

• Ivy Rehab for Kids: Multi-state pediatric therapy network and the announced acquiring parent of School of Play; broader incumbent offering PT, OT, speech, and ABA across many locations, providing the platform into which School of Play is being integrated.

Emerging players

• Cortica: Multidisciplinary autism care provider combining ABA with medical, speech, and developmental services under one payer-billed model; relevant emerging peer as payer and family preferences move toward integrated pediatric autism care.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/school-of-play

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about School Of Play