Where in CT are you coming from? I moved to Dallas from eastern CT 4 summers ago. I'm in East Dallas and I can't say anything about the school system - my experience with ECI was not great and I have tried to avoid having anything to do with DISD. I love our pediatrician in Dallas and am very happy with our pediatric neurologist in Plano (we had a one month wait to see him) and will forward their names to you if you want, they have been understanding and supportive and take my concerns seriously. I have heard from other mothers that the Lake Highlands area in east Dallas is part of the Richardson school district and that the services RISD offers are great.
I have a wonderful dev. pediatrican here in Lewisville Dr. Mike Rios..he has been an expert in autism for over 20 years and I have never had to wait more than 2 weeks ever...the catch is that he is private and doesnt accept insurance but if you already have the evaluations of schools,, speech, OT and PT ect..he knocks the price down..we paid 0 for over a 3 hour evaluatiion along with over a 2 page write up on her...all her follow-ups for re-evals have only been 5..the one on our insurance had over a 8 month waiting period in Ft. Worth!
I had previously talked to the teacher on the phone about V, and his strengths, weaknesses, explaining that there are some personal things going on and my concerns regarding how that was impacting him, and how we are working on potty training. So, I approached her about the subject of potty training at the meet the teacher, and she tells me she suggested we put him in pull-ups while he's at school. Huh? He hasn't been in pull-ups during the day for months, and I see this as a step backwards.
Then I tried to talk to her about modifying his IEP because we are seeing some regression in areas we thought were mastered (most likely due to the issues at home, divorce, moving, etc.) and she brushes me off with "well, it's up for review in October"...umm, no, I don't want to wait until October...WTH?
And I had to fight with them about him getting bus service from his private pre-K that he attends in the morning...
Sorry, not trying to hijack, just ranting a bit...they are suppose to match services that you were getting in the previous district, but they did their damndest to try to get out of what they could
IMHO, the McKinney ISD was far superior in what they offered and how easy they were to work with over the Plano ISD, and the Plano ISD is so highly touted as exemplary around the DFW area....so, not seeing it...
ETA: I can also recommend a developmental pediatrician if you need one...but be forewarned, I don't think they are that easy to get in with here in Dallas; we had to wait 4 months for our appt and we only got that one because there was a cancellation...our scheduled appt was 2 months later...
No, they don't offer ABA in Plano ISD, at least not at my son's school...and the ST only comes in periodically, to do her 15 minutes with each kid, or whatever amount of time they've been allocated in their IEP...
V's classroom is integrated, where there are general population kiddos (parents are paying the school district for pre-K, and disadvantaged kids there through the Head Start program)...I'm not certain that this is the best placement, but it's how all the classes are structured...we've only been in school a week, so it's hard to say so far...
I live in Lewisville and have some great connections for doctor and dev. pediatrician..the school I am not that crazy about but Coppell, Carrollton and Frisco are known to be generous with services. Dallas schools are terrible..in the news all the time~they have the lowest ratings of all..unless you live in North Dallas where the rich people pay high taxes for good schools:) They just passed that law in Aug. for schools and insurance companies to pay for ABA & speech/OT/PT services for kids with autism so you may do well whatever school you choose..Sarah gets speech 15 min. 2x a week and thats it..hardly note worthy! The magnet schools are good but so many kids want to get in so they hold lotteries for them..it is for middle school here..not sure for elementary? I have a great BCBA and ABA therapists but you have to live in Lewisville or Flowermound to get them..actually Flowermound has an autism classroom which Lewisville doesnt..it has a good reputation:) Good luck! Hi. It's been a long time since I've posted, and I apologize for that.
I live in Southwest Dallas area - avoid it like the plague.
Although I'm pleased with the therapist and teachers my son has, it has taken an advocate and moving to due process to resolve the issues created at the administrative level so that my 3-year old son gets even a minimum of the services he deserves, and we're still not completely done with his evaluations - and they're at least 90 days out of compliance so far (we started this LAST March).
I also know that Red Oak just recently terminated 41 staff members, and are looking at cutting their budget yet again - beginning in the special education services - because of a 2 million deficit last year and a new superintendent hired to curb spending.
I'm in the Plano ISD and my son is getting Early Childhood Special Education for free five days a week. He is three and will continue this school until he starts kindergarten where they intend to mainstream him along with a possible aide throughout the day if he needs it along with continuing his speech therapy as well. His classes have a teacher, two teachers aides and a speech therapist at all times. He has eight kids in his class. Five are there for communication/special ed and the other three are NT for modeling purposes. His teacher is certified in special education and early childhood education. He has learned so much being there already. I know Dallas ISD is terrible. But here in Plano and Frisco they offer a lot and you don't have to beg for it. If you already have a dx it will not be hard for you to get services at either of these districts.[QUOTE=swankyankee] Where in CT are you coming from? I moved to Dallas from eastern CT 4 summers ago. I'm in East Dallas and I can't say anything about the school system - my experience with ECI was not great and I have tried to avoid having anything to do with DISD. I love our pediatrician in Dallas and am very happy with our pediatric neurologist in Plano (we had a one month wait to see him) and will forward their names to you if you want, they have been understanding and supportive and take my concerns seriously. My dd gets speech and OT at Baylor in Dallas and I can't say enough how happy I am with the experiences we've had there. My dd is also going to a university run preschool for children with ASD and I'm very happy with that too. I have heard from other mothers that the Lake Highlands area in east Dallas is part of the Richardson school district and that the services RISD offers are great.My son (who has what I would call moderate autism) is 12, and we moved back to the DFW area last fall after being away from Texas for 12 years. We purchased a home in Frisco ISD, and my son has been attending Frisco ISD schools since last fall. I would not consider Frisco ISD to be generous in what it offers in terms of autism. The program my son was in last year (we moved 1/3 of the way through the school year) at his FISD elem. school was "adequate", but not outstanding. It's too soon to tell what the middle school program will be like. But, I can say for a fact that the previous two school districts he has been enrolled in (one small district in Oklahoma, and one LARGE district in the suburbs of St. Paul, MN) had a MUCH better handle on providing services for children with autism than Frisco ISD does. It was quite a shock to me. FISD does not have a dedicated Autism program, and both other school districts my son has attended did.