About
"Whether as a school administrator, or an advisor to parents, when I work with a family looking for direction and support, I let them know that I understand their circumstances — and that there are always solutions."
That's been the foundation of more than fifty years of work in special education and behavioral health. Not the credentials, not the programs — but the belief that every family deserves someone in their corner who truly understands the system from the inside, and who won't stop until they find a way forward.
In 1977, Mr. Kahn purchased a struggling special education school serving students with behavioral disabilities and built it into a multi-school system with a statewide reputation in New Jersey. In 1979, he led staff in developing one of the nation's first school-wide behavioral management systems — helping students who couldn't manage their behavior in any other setting finally find stability and academic success.
In 2002, as the special education administrative representative, and board vice president, he helped lay the groundwork for what became Bergen's Promise — serving as a founding board member to help establish it as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and the designated Care Management Organization for Bergen County. Today, Bergen's Promise has served over 13,000 youth and families. He remains its Board President.
More recently, in 2017 Mr. Kahn was brought in as a consultant to build Paradigm Therapeutic High School from scratch within CarePlus NJ — navigating the full NJ DOE approval process, opening the school in 2018 as Executive Director, and then leading the development and state approval of a second campus, Paradigm Therapeutic Middle School, which opened in September 2025.
Along the way he has trained educators nationally in school-wide behavioral management systems, presented at national conferences, taught behavioral management at the graduate level at CUNY, co-founded ProPrep — a NYC teacher training company — consulted for nearly two decades through ED&M Consulting, and established the Committee on the Handicapped (COH) compliance infrastructure across all 32 NYC school districts at the dawn of federal special education law.
Strategic Focus
Institutional Leadership & Program Stability
Advising school boards, districts, and private organizations on building and stabilizing special education systems. The work focuses on:
Infrastructure & Compliance: Ensuring programs meet rigorous state standards while remaining student-centered.
Program Stabilization: Restructuring underperforming schools to improve both educational/clinical outcomes and operational efficiency.
Executive Mentorship: Preparing the next generation of directors to lead complex special education school environments.
Family Advocacy & Special Education Advisory
Acting as a strategic navigator for families who need an expert hand to guide them through the system. Services include:
IEP Navigation: Interpreting regulations and evaluations to identify the appropriate educational setting for a child.
The Wraparound Approach: Ensuring that the progress a child makes in school is supported by a stable strategy at home and in the community.
Education
Advanced Certificate, School Administration
Brooklyn College, CUNY
MS, Special Education
Yeshiva University
BA, Psychology
Long Island University
Professional Affiliations
Current Member
Bergen County Children's Interagency Coordinating Council (CIACC)
Active presenter on student school avoidance and re-engagement strategies.
Conference Committee Chair
NAPSEC — National Association of Private Special Education Centers
Led effort to elevate the organization's national conference profile.
Member & National Conference Presenter
Council for Exceptional Children
Presented at national and state conferences including Arkansas and Nevada.