{"id":772,"date":"2026-06-08T19:03:49","date_gmt":"2026-06-08T19:03:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/miamimovershub.com\/?p=772"},"modified":"2026-06-08T19:03:49","modified_gmt":"2026-06-08T19:03:49","slug":"the-miami-principal-who-tells-failing-kids-the-school-failed-them-miami-autism-dad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/miamimovershub.com\/?p=772","title":{"rendered":"The Miami Principal Who Tells Failing Kids the School Failed Them | Miami Autism Dad"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p><iframe allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"751\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/pdKDJeTSY2U\" title=\"The Miami Principal Who Tells Failing Kids the School Failed Them | Miami Autism Dad\" width=\"1335\"><\/iframe><br \/>\nMiami Autism Dad Victor Antunez interviews Barbie Rivera, Founder and Principal of H.E.L.P. Miami, an accredited K-12 micro-school, and author of Enough Is Enough! The conversation goes back to 1991, 10 days into the school year, when school teacher told Barbie her bright, bilingual 6-year-old son Damon was \u201cmentally handicapped\u201d and would need a lifelong ADHD prescription to learn. Barbie disagreed. She pulled Damon out, started teaching him herself in 1992, and that one decision grew into the K-12 private school she runs today. Barbie breaks down what a year in the wrong classroom does to a 6-year-old who\u2019s come to believe he\u2019s \u201cstupid,\u201d how she gets a child their first win after a lifetime of losses. Along the way she tells the stories of Fabian, who came in sure he\u2019d failed 6th grade and tested from a 2nd-grade to a 9th-grade level in 3 months; Melissa, who finished 10th grade in public school with a 1.0 GPA and is now chasing a doctorate; and Monica, born hearing-impaired and written off by her teachers, now in college to become a speech therapist.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/miamimovershub.com\/?p=770\">Miami-Dade Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces to host third annual beach clean-up in celebration of World Sea Turtle Day on June 16<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\ud83d\udccd Connect with Barbie at H.E.L.P. Miami:<\/p>\n<p>Online: https:\/\/helpmiami.org\/<\/p>\n<p>Phone: (305) 742-4003<\/p>\n<p>\u2014\u2014\u2014<\/p>\n<p>Get Miami-Dade\u2019s best disability resources, local events, and community news delivered to your inbox, FREE \ud83e\udda9<\/p>\n<p>\ud83d\udc49 Subscribe here: https:\/\/miamiautismdadnewsletter.kit.com\/posts<\/p>\n<p>For more shows, go to: cnewstv.com<\/p>\n<p>ABOUT US:<\/p>\n<p>Miami Community Newspapers is your go-to source for Miami community news, offering daily updates, podcasts, and multimedia content. Covering local events, business updates, and lifestyle features across Miami-Dade County, our family-owned media company publishes a variety of neighborhood publications both online and in print. Explore Miami\u2019s culture through our exclusive community podcasts, magazines, and newsletters.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/miamimovershub.com\/?p=768\">Mercedes Makes 2026 EQE 320+ SUV Accessible<\/a><\/p>\n<p>#shoplocal #buylocal #pinecrest #supportlocalbusiness #thatscommunitynews #communitynewspapers #miamidade #miamidadecounty #miamicommunitynews #pinecrest #fredastaire #amerantbank #miamibusiness #communitypodcast #kendall #brickell #palmettobay #southmiami #coralgables #doral #aventura<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/miamimovershub.com\/?p=766\">Fun and Educational Royal Poinciana Festival runs June 6-14, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Miami Autism Dad Victor Antunez interviews Barbie Rivera, Founder and Principal of H.E.L.P. Miami, an accredited K-12 micro-school, and author of Enough Is Enough! The conversation goes back to 1991, 10 days into the school year, when school teacher told Barbie her bright, bilingual 6-year-old son Damon was &#8220;mentally handicapped&#8221; and would need a lifelong<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":771,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[3,23,24],"class_list":["post-772","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cnews-tv","tag-cnews-tv","tag-miami-dade-community-news","tag-videos"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>The Miami Principal Who Tells Failing Kids the School Failed Them | Miami Autism Dad - Miami Movers Hub<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/miamimovershub.com\/?p=772\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Miami Principal Who Tells Failing Kids the School Failed Them | Miami Autism Dad - Miami Movers Hub\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Miami Autism Dad Victor Antunez interviews Barbie Rivera, Founder and Principal of H.E.L.P. 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