Walden School is a learning center for the deaf located near downtown Framingham. It is a non-profit organization that educates and treats deaf children from the ages of 8 to 21. It is licensed by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Board, as well as the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care Board. The staff is over 50 percent deaf and exceptionally skilled in American Sign Language. Its goals are to enable deaf children to function in home and school environments, and help them to be able to fit into society seamlessly.