Schools, services in MD, PA or NCI live in chester county, but very close to the montgomery county border. The cost of living for me is about 1.5 of what i'm used to from WI (example oil changes cost MAX of $30 where i'm from orginally, here they are closer to $40) I live in an apartment, one bedroom is about $800/month, 2 bedroom is about $920/month. Look around if your thinking of chester county. Lots of my co-workers live in chester, there a very expensive areas (near west chester) & areas that are more affordable, spring city, north coventry, royerfsford, etc.We are about 30 minutes from Harrisburg. I know about the surrounding areas and counties like Dauphin, Perry, Cumberland, Lebanon, and Lancaster counties are areas I can easily get info about but I can't say I know a whole lot about West Chester. I can attempt to look in our resource stand if I remember to and see if we have anything for that area.... I think housing is cheaper out our way too if you are interested. Is the move job related? If you don't mind me asking that is... We are looking to move out of Florida due to the lack of services here and the school are not good at all. We also would like to have a change of seasons. My husband can get a transfer in those states but we have to be close to a major city. When I say close I mean within a hour drive. To begin with we are going to rent a place before we look into buying. We would rally like to rent a house or townhome. Hi Nikki!
Thank you so much for your help. We had heard that west chester would be a place to look. Just amazed with how much housing costs. I guess it would be chester county. I had thought also of looking closer to pittsburgh if housing would be cheaper and there were good schools. Where in PA are you? Kelly Hi Ryansmom, My son is not yet in school..he is a late fall birthday which in PA puts him back a year for starting. I do know that in PA quality of special education and meeting the needs of children in school depends on the school district as far as Autism Spectrum Disorders go. I have gotten word that some school districts can be trouble some...while others are completely amazing. Do you have any idea where in PA you are looking to move? I just joined the board of a non-profit that has a lot of resources for Autism in all areas including schools so if you do move to PA please let me know! I can give you/send you resources on PA laws and how to advocate for your child in the school setting. Thanks! -Nikki Hello,
We are looking at a couple states to relocate to in May when school is over. The states we are looking at are MD, PA and NC. If anyone can give me any feedback good or bad (please be honest, in FL now and its terrible in everyway possible) We really want to go to MD or PA but the cost of living is sooo much higher than NC but if it would pay off we would do it. Thank You [QUOTE=miranova]kabesntybes, What area of Binghamton are you? What areas of PA were you? I spoke with someone in Ithaca and it did seem "iffy"..focusing now on Pittsburgh areas and south of Boston... Just visited pittsburgh.. let me now if you find out anything about the schools there. Nice city! we are looking all over PA..we know the state itself gives good services just need to find a good school district. We are looking to move in May. thanks to all for the in depth responses! I'm still considering options. I have family in Indiana, so the Pittsburgh option seems better for us if it pans out. Ryansmom, I'm working on the Pittsburgh area and will pm you any information I find out :) [QUOTE=miranova]thanks to all for the in depth responses! I'm still considering options. I have family in Indiana, so the Pittsburgh option seems better for us if it pans out. Ryansmom, I'm working on the Pittsburgh area and will pm you any information I find out :) [/QUOTE] Great Thanks.. we really liked the area, we were there visiting last week. http://www.autism-pdd.net/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=19141&am p;KW=find+an+expert Here's a website where people rates schools, although I'm sure it varies how much information there is on special ed: www.greatschools.org Yeah and even in the Binghamton area there are some not so good school districts. I would stay away from the Binghamton City schools. I live in a country area outside of Binghamton. I lived in rural Northeast PA prior to here. We literally moved 12 miles north just to get better schools. Let me know if you need more info. Hi Kabesntybes! How ya been? I'll PM you a bit later with updates. To Miranova, Lawrence's mom and all others looking at NYS: I vote the Binghamton area, but not the Binghamton School district. They have issues and have been on those lists of schools failing to meet standards. When you are such a large district, there are bound to be problems. There is only one high school. Areas around Binghamton have good schools and affordable housing. I'd stay away from the more rural districts. Our school district is one of the "big 5, "even though we are in the county next door. One public elementary school has between 600-700 students and the other has between 400-500. The private school we send our kids to, is less than 100 for pre-k through grade 5!  . The public school district has been good and my son is making excellent progress. He attends a private Catholic School by our choice, but gets his services from the public school district and his service providers are truly first-rate. Any parent who has received services from the public school district at the public school, I have not heard complaints. In my district, the toughest part might be going up in front of the CSE chair, but then again, when was that ever easy anywhere?  My husband and I did all our homework and research and have been able to advocate effectively for our son. I'm in one of those areas that are not city-like as NYMommy mentioned. I'll give you an idea of home prices where I'm at. My house is a 50-year-old ranch, about 1600-1800sq ft up and in basement of living space, in a nice neighborhood. A year ago, my house was valued at $120K. A house for sale a few doors down form me with a little more sq footage and more updates is listed for $144K. A few streets up from me the houses are $200-300K, most newer. I have a 2 family rental property in the village valued about $80K for a 100+ year-old building in a decent, but not stellar neighborhood. Other areas around Binghamton you can find nice houses in nice neighborhoods for the $75-$90K range. Compared to NYC area, houses are a bargain around here. Rents are very reasonable. I get $725-$750 for my 3 bdrm apts. In NYS, school-age children with autism are required to receive 5 days a week speech in :30 minute sessions, not to exceed groups of 2. My son actually gets 4 direct services, 2 group, 2 indv., and one indirect service which is where his kindy teacher and the speech therapist have a conference. In the Binghamotn area, we have the Children's Unit for Treatment, aka Institute for Child Development. They work specifically with children with autism, from preschool to school-age. My son did his last year of preschool there and what a difference it made. The school district picked up teh tab. It's not school district's first choice because it is "restrictive" but if you truly feel its the right place for your child and ICD agrees and you can advocate effectively then you can get in there. They also do from kindergarten to upper grades, I think through age 12. (5th-6th grade). There are organizations in the town I live in where children with special needs are willingly welcomed. And I really haven't run into anyone locally who thinks my kid is a "bad kid" or anything like that. Feel free to PM if you like. kabesntybes, What area of Binghamton are you? What areas of PA were you? I spoke with someone in Ithaca and it did seem "iffy"..focusing now on Pittsburgh areas and south of Boston... I maybe the only person liking the services I get in NC. I have had some wonderful people on my side, that has made all the differences. I think servies are really all about how you work with your community though. I've been feeling pretty grateful for my community lately! I'm in a military town though, so maybe the base is putting some pressure on the level of services. Binghamton has some really beautiful areas that are not city-like.fellow moms on the search:Lately, I've been looking into the Pittsburgh area since this would keep us a little closer to some family. Specific districts: North Allegheny, Pine-Richland, Mt. Lebanon and I've just found this: http://www.paceschool.org/enrollment/index.html I live about 35 miles north of Binghamton, in Chenango County. I looked on their websites...The Binghamton city schools had some information about classroom set-ups that seemed interesting, but I don't want to live in a "city" setting. I didn't find much when I looked at surrounding counties. I will call and see what they have to say. thanks! I have heard really bad things about Ithaca. I am in Binghamton area and it is very good here! I have talked to parents in Ithaca and their services are horrible. I also used to live in rural PA and we had nothing there. We moved to Binghamton area for the schools. Hope this helps I was told east of Syracuse is good. I'm personally in love long distance with Ithaca, but have not heard about their special ed.....going to make calls soon! Difficult when I work all day/week!I would very much like to be included in this discussion. I have lived in NC for 5 years..have a 9 year old Autistic and a 12 year old possible Aspie (we find out tomorrow actually). I HAVE GOT TO GET US OUT OF HERE! We did try the Raleigh area in 2008 and that was just as big of a disaster as we have now, so it's time to leave the state. There is nothing here, schools are a joke and we have no help. From my research, NC is a no-go. Spoke with the autism society there and school districts. Although, I was slightly impressed with Raleigh - or was it Durham? I can't remember, just decided it was too risky. I am looking to move THIS summer as well, if you'd like to share notes! We have been in SC & GA, and location does make a difference. There are NO resources within a 3 hour radius of where we are. Sometimes, i don't think people realize just how bad things are in these certain states. I've heard Florida is terrible (minus a couple of really good & expensive private schools). NY? Everyone who lives there seems to rave about the services. Also Delaware has a state wide program, although not sure what the status is after budget cuts.... I also met a mom who moved from Texas to south of Boston for schools. That was a year ago - I'll try to find her and see how things are going now. I live in upstate NY and I'm very happy with the services my son gets. Not excited about the school service and choices here in my part of NC. Not much choices. Maybe if you are close to UNC/Duke you might have better luck. Concernedpa. NYMommyof3 If you dont mind me asking, what part of upstate NY do you live in? I moved from NY to FL back in 05 when my son was 1. He was diagnosed with Autism and a few other medical issues at 2 1/2. I too am a single mom and believe it or not, I cannot get any help from the state. The schools are horrible and there are few services FL offers, Because my son is high functioning he does not qualify for what few programs FL has. It's as if we are being punished because of this. He still has issues with communication, social and behavior skills as most ASD children do. So far we are in a county that has a decent elementary school program, but nothing after that. With budget cuts on the rise, ESE classes were cut big time (they were completely removed from a local junior high). He is in a mainstream class, but the teachers aide is shared between about 8 classrooms, therefore he is left to fend for himself most of the time. I too am looking to relocate back to NY or somewhere in the North that has much better servies than FL. I lived in Long Island in the half hollow hills district. That district is amazing but the homes and area is pricey. I'm so glad I found this website, I thought I was the only parent in FL fed up with the schools in this state. It's good to know I'm not alone. Yes, I would also like to know what areas in NY are best...Lawrence Mom, i pm'd you :) |
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