FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Marlin Livingston, President & CEO
office: (217) 367-3728
mlivingston@cunninghamhome.org
Cunningham to expand services with acquisition of former Oakwood Junior High
Urbana, IL (February 19, 2026) – Cunningham Children’s Home President/CEO Marlin Livingston announced today that the agency has acquired the former Oakwood Junior High School in Newtown, Ill. Cunningham will repurpose the building as CIRCLE Academy’s third campus.
This expansion will allow Cunningham to welcome even more students and families from counties throughout east central Illinois who need the specialized therapeutic day school services that CIRCLE Academy provides.
With this third campus, Cunningham will have greater flexibility to adapt to changing referral patterns, staffing needs and community demand, while continuing to provide the same high-quality, mission-driven programs at its existing campuses, CIRCLE Academy Urbana (CAU) and CIRCLE Academy Vermilion (CAV).
Livingston anticipates an opening during the 2026-27 school year. While the new campus will ultimately expand CIRCLE Academy’s capacity from 120 to 170 students, enrollment will grow gradually as leadership focuses on building the campus and therapeutic culture.
CIRCLE Academy’s education programs provide a structured, supportive environment for students who live at home but face behavioral and emotional challenges that make success in public schools difficult. With a strong emphasis on family involvement, the therapeutic education model focuses on each student’s individual strengths and needs, promoting academic and behavioral growth while helping them develop the Circle of Courage principles—Belonging, Independence, Generosity and Mastery. Students benefit from individualized special education services, small class sizes, therapeutic counseling, behavior intervention supports and vocational training opportunities.
Contact Mark McCusker, CIRCLE Academy Director of Education, at mmccusker@cunninghamhome.org for more information about this exciting expansion. Looking to join our team? Visit cunningham.org/join-our-team to see openings and apply.