Our new partnership with Preschool of the Arts supports all of their campuses in Manhattan

Clay is unrolling a multi-center partnership with  early childhood operator Preschool of the Arts in New York City. Clay specializes in behavioral health services for young children and acts as the first pediatric behavioral health platform to integrate with preschools.

Clay, a virtual behavioral health solution designed specifically to support young children, today announced its statewide partnership with Preschool of the Arts, a best-in-class operator of early childhood education schools. Clay is the first virtual behavioral health platform integrating with early education centers and comes at a critical time as the mental/emotional health crisis threatening young children has worsened post-COVID.

This partnership acknowledges the important role and responsibility early childhood education schools have in turning the tides on the mental health crisis.

Preschool of the Arts was formed in the East Village over 20 years ago with the mission to provide families downtown with a stellar preschool experience. As our school began to develop a reputation for excellence in education as well as a warm and welcoming atmosphere, we saw the need to expand in order to better serve our community. We wanted to ensure that each of our schools retained the character of our original vision for Preschool of the Arts while being accessible to the local communities downtown. It is inspired by vision, driven by mission and informed by the latest research in early childhood education.

“ Educating the next generation is an awesome responsibility.  When determining our academic goals and values, we must consider the whole child. Heart, Mind, Body & Soul. During the formative years of early childhood education, we have the opportunity to set the norm for the way our children will view and engage with the world and we must ensure that we are offering joyful, respectful and emotionally healthy interactions. Partnering with CLAY, and the individualized resources they offer to the families in our community, guides our students towards positive habits and a robust tool box for life.”

– Sarah Rotenstreich

Founder, Preschool of the Arts

Starting this fall, Clay will serve as the behavioral health partner to Preschool of the Arts’ community (students, parents, teachers), with comprehensive behavioral health services including developmental and behavioral screening for early identification, personalized strategies, and behavioral support to drive better outcomes both at home and in the classroom, and proactive training for teachers around behavioral health.

“ Partnering with one of New York City’s leading preschools allows for Clay to serve many more families across Manhattan. By working with Clay, POTA demonstrates their commitment to proactively address behavioral and developmental concerns in the early years of a child’s life.  ”

– Alex Schinasi

President and cofounder of Clay

About the team

Founded by repeat technology entrepreneurs Lee Rotenberg, Alex Schinasi and Omri Mendellevich, Clay is joined by a team of best-in-class clinicians with decades of experience at leading institutions such as Boston Children’s Hospital,  NYU Langone and the Family Institute at Northwestern. They are backed by healthcare thought leaders like Jonathan Bush of Athenahealth & Zus, Mark Frank of Sondermind and Scott Flanders of eHealth.

About the Product

Clay’s product allows for schools and their families to access a behavioral care team on demand when behavioral concerns arise. Their proprietary technology automatically assigns age-appropriate developmental & behavioral screeners, scores results and creates meaningful behavioral health assessments with care navigation on what to do next and evidence-based strategies to address the concern. The platform also powers teacher groups and parent groups moderated by behavioral coaches for immediate support.

The Clay app allows educators and families to keep a pulse of children’s behavioral and developmental challenges and to enable points of intervention when needed.

To learn more, contact [email protected]