FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions

To become a member of Hippo Campus, one person in your family should meet the following three criteria:

• School-age student between the ages of Grade 2 - Grade 12

• Carries a documented diagnosis of one or more of our supported neurodivergent conditions

• Can perform essential activities of daily living — either: 1) without caregiver assistance, or; 2) with self-provided caregiver assistance (if needed)

If your family doesn't meet the above criteria, we also offer exemptions for families and individuals who understand our mission and would benefit from being a part of our community.

There are three key areas of higher-support needs to consider when becoming a member:

• Personal care / personal hygiene / toileting

• Elopement concerns

• Regular physical altercations/incidents

While Hippo Campus strives to accommodate all people with various support needs, we are constrained by certain staffing limitations. If you or your family member requires monitoring or regular assistance in any of the three areas listed above, you will be expected to provide your own caregiver assistance while using our facility.

As of today, Hippo Campus is being designed for school-age students who carry one or more of the following diagnoses:

• Autism

• Discalcula

• Dysgraphia

• Dyslexia

• Echolalia

• Tourette syndrome

By supporting children with autism and other related neurological conditions, we do serve a significant portion the Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) community — one in eight children currently diagnosed with ADHD is also diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. So in that sense, Hippo Campus will support some children with ADHD.

An important point to consider is that ADHD is significantly more prevalent than autism and other forms of neurodivergence, and would require a 4x-larger facility to serve the local population.

There are some practical concerns to consider when creating our center — namely that most neurodivergent people thrive with routine, orderliness, predictability, and structure. Hippo Campus will be designed with that in mind. Therefore, if we were to try to serve everyone, we might not serve anyone well at all.

If your family with ADHD (as a primary diagnosis) is interested in becoming a member, you may do so under under the terms of our exemptions policy (see below).

Yes, you can become a member of Hippo Campus even if you don't qualify under the primary conditions listed above!

Hippo Campus is welcoming to all types of people, so long as they understand and can actively support our mission of creating a social and recreational space that allows neurodivergent people to thrive.

Practically speaking, this means being able to follow the rules set forth by the space.

Prospective members seeking this type of exemption would be required to attend a new member onboarding meeting where we would outline the rules of the space, explain why those rules are in place for our member base, and answer any questions you may have.

Examples of people who might want to join via exemption include:

• Neurodivergent adults outside of the K-12 age bracket

• Families with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs)

• Youth who gravitate towards neurodivergent people and their interests

• Families comfortable with neurodivergence via extended family, friends, etc.

• Volunteers considering careers in social work, OT/PT, medicine, teaching, etc.

• Families who feel they would benefit from the structure of Hippo Campus