Where is the best place in NC to live with a low to middle range asd functioning child of 10 years old.
Any happy reports out there?
Who is delighted with their school?
Who is furious with their school?
I am researching areas within NC which may or may not have good provision?
Do you think that it makes a difference being in an area in or around Raleigh Durham, or around Chapel Hill?
Does it make a difference with provisional services for autistic children if they are located in the same county as the university of North Carolina?
I have heard good reports of programmes being good around this area because of the strong emphasis on Division TEACCH. However I could be totally wrong, this is just the impression I get.
Is there anyone out there with any advise on schools/ areas that would possibly be good for a child with low to middle range functioning autism, i.e he does not socialise so would not find it easy to function in a mainstream class and would do better in a specialised autistic class?
Would love to receive any feedback?
Sorry I did not reply sooner. I have not had time to get on the site. We live in rural NC about an hour from Raleigh. I have had a horrible experience with our school system. Even though I have 2 opinions that state my 10 year old has PDD-NOS, they did their own testing and said that he did not. We got this dx in December (not his first dx) and we are still fighting for an IEP. The school did agree to an independent eval and we start that next week. TEACCH is serving my son based on the dx from his psychiatrist. The school system did not believe me when I told them, they had to call for them selves. I am praying things will go well next week, so my son can get some help. He was suspended a total of 18 days this school year for ASD behaviors. That is a short summary, If you would like to talk more and share stories since our kids are the same age- just send me a private message and I will give my e-mail. Are you already in NC or are you coming? I look forward to hearing from you.
Lori
I know there are 4 or 5 NC parents on here... I am surprised you got no response. Although I do believe most have younger children, so that may be the reason.
We were out of town the last week... ironically, checking out another state to live in! But I will try to answer most of your questions.
Best place to be - probably in or near Raleigh. I have heard Wake and Orange County schools are pretty good; the special population logically should get some benefit from this.
We have lived in central NC (Randolph County, which is just south of Greensboro) for almost 15 years. For my NT kids, it has been OK. But I have not been real happy with schools for my 12-1/2 yr old son with autism. Elementary school was pretty good, but our first year of middle school (and the prospect of school from here on out) has been pretty grim. Hence, our search for schools in other states.
TEACCH was originated at UNC-Chapel Hill. So you will probably find more trained professionals the nearer to Chapel Hill you get. We are far enough away (and in a rural enough county) that the special ed classes end up being a melting pot of disabilities. In that sense, I don't see a chance for any of the kids to make much progress. It truly does become a situation of how dedicated (or not) the teacher tends to be.
We were fortunate in that my son received a CAP Medicaid slot early on in his life. This has allowed funding for 1:1 "after hours" services; he frankly has made most of his progress through this intervention than any he has received in school. The waiting list for these slots is getting longer and longer, from what I hear.
Are you still considering moving to NC from UK? If I remember correctly, you are familiar with the TEACCH methodology, right? As I understand, the TEACCH method is quite successful with the moderate to severe children. We experienced TEACCH method in K & 1st grade, but not since our son became more verbal.
I would think somplace around duke would be a good area from what I have heard. I live in NC but at the beach and im not very happy with what they have or dont have in this area to help my son.http://www.fsnnc.org/ Have you been on this site yet? You can make some good contacts and get the real scoop.Matty,
That is a great link. I went to a parent leadership workshop several years ago with Sally Sloop... she knows what is going on.
Sadly, all too often in this state, everything seems to be centered around Raleigh/Chapel Hill area. If you live a bit further away, as we do, you are on your own.
Mary
Thanks v much.
I will take a look
Amy
Hi Amy,
I am just seeing your post. I live in NC. I have not been impressed encouraged or feel that I can find something good enough for my son near where I live. Very far from Raleigh, not too far from Charlotte. I have found the school system to inflexible and outdated in their approach. Sadly I have had to opt out of all public school program and therapy.
Fred is another parent here who lives around Raleigh, he will give you his opinion when he comes on. There was a post another parent shared recently that showed NC ranked one of the bottom five in educating special needs children, I was not surprised. There are parents here who sing the praises of their states but most NC parents on this board do not feel that good about our state.
Below is the post by Micki I refered to earlier:
IDEA Report Cards: Did Your State Pass or Fail?
From The Special Ed Advocate Newsletter.
http://www.wrightslaw.com/
Last week, the U.S. Department of Education published IDEA Report
Cards for the 50 states and 8 territories. The news is sobering.
Only 9 states met the standards for educating children with
disabilities
Alaska
Connecticut
Hawaii
Michigan
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Tennessee
Virginia
Wyoming.
36 states and 3 territories fell into the "needs assistance"
Alabama
American Samoa
Arizona
Arkansas
Bureau of Indian Affairs
California
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Guam
Idaho
Illinois
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montanaq Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
Ohio
Oklahoma
Palau
Republic of the Marshall Islands
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Texas
Utah
Vermont
West Virginia
Wisconsin
or 5 states and 5 territories"needs intervention" categories.
Colorado
Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands
Washington, DC
Federated States of Micronesia
Indiana
North Carolina
North Dakota
Puerto Rico
Virgin Islands
Washington
If these states do not significantly
improve how children with disabilities are educated, they face
sanctions,
including loss of federal funds.
Weaknesses cited by the U.S. Department of Education include:
States fail to ensure that local school districts comply with the law.
States fail to comply with requirements about the transition from
school to college or work.
Good Luck to you.
Concernedpa.
__________________
Thanks for your information.
Unfortunately, I am getting the same general opinion from all that NC is not good.
But the question lies if NC is not good where is good.
So with Only 9 states meeting the standards for educating children with
disabilities
Alaska
Connecticut
Hawaii
Michigan
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Tennessee
Virginia
Wyoming.
How good are these standards. Tennessee, I have friend who is american and was living in UK, she has just returned to live in USA. She has gone to Tennessee with her 2 normal NT kids. She had only good reports regarding nomral schools in Tennessee but I am not sure of ASD provision.
I assumed that NC would be good because of TEACCH methodology, but that does not seem to be.What also puts me off the american school system compared to UK for example. Is all the state schools incorporate the disabled/special needs/asd kids into mainstream within special classes there do not seem to be any specialised schools for asd except private ones which cost a fortune and you have to then fight the state to get the funding because youve had to pay for it out of your own pocket for a long time.
There are mainstream schools which accept special kids but there is the choice in the UK of state funded special schools.
What choices are there in the USA for specialised autistic schools?
Are there special state schools?
If so, are they any good.
There seem to be a few in Long Island NY, another area where I have been looking, but then you have the high taxes.
So it seems that where the taxes are higher you have a chance of recieving better services
Where the taxes are low, your on your own!
I relocated here from NYC in 2004 after researching and the impression from the literature on autism, with many originating out of NC, that NC was a more progressive state. Boy, was I ever wrong. I live a stones throw away from Greensboro in the same county and there is only one school here that services students with a "severe to profound" disability; they're all warehoused in one school and its disgusting (no PECS system or any other scientifically sound approach). Outside services are nonexistent due to how the mental health system is arranged here - children with ADD, ADHD and LDs get more support because they are categorized as having a mental disability, whereas ASD is deemed a developmental disability, so you will be up that famous creek without a paddle AND a boat. TEACCH only serves preschoolers, so they arent any help, although they will consult with any school system or classroom if asked, and they are rarely asked. There is one private school, the Mariposa School, near Chapel Hill, but if you are not financially solvent enough to afford their tuition, or if your child is already somewhat verbal, they would not be a good option for you since their curriculum focues primarily on increasing communication skills; once theyre verbal, you are pushed out to the public school system.
Thus, in my honest opinion, unless you are absolutely forced to do so and have the financial means to locate and hire your own individual specialists, do not enter the state of NC because you will be sorely disappointed and looking to relocate again after a few years of living in abject horror and disbelief.
Hi Pat,
Thanks for the honest reply.
After a lot of research, I have now decided that Long Island is the place to be, the services, special schools, regular schools, everything seems fantastic and you get the services. I know the taxes are high, but we have now ruled NC OUT COMPLETELY. It just doesn't seem acceptable I would rather pay higher taxes and get the good schooling that have to pay for it privately and have to arrange it all myself.
Thanks
Amy
You are quite welcome, I'm glad I was able to be of some help. Should you get to Long Island and still find yourself unsure as to what to do, please let me know; NYC service provision is one area that I am quite familiar with.
Hope all goes well with you and yours in LI.
Riegelbeagle
I am in NC and understand completely. We are just over the limit for Health Choice Insurance and way over for medicaid. I teach school and my husband is diabled. Our insurance does cover OT, but that is it. We have been trying to go through an agency to get some respite or a worker to help at school. We will most likely be turned down because we do not get medicaid. I have considered just quitting work and let the government support us. Not really I have too much pride, but it is not fair that ASD children can not get help in NC!