Which school districts are best for child with Asperger's in Southern Chicago Suburb or NW Indiana? (Arlington Heights: real estate) - Chicago Suburbs - Illinois (IL) - City-Data Forum

Chatham · 09-30-2007, 03:07 PM

We are considering a move from Dayton, OH to the Chicago area and will be visiting in a couple of weeks to look around. We have three kids and our 7 year old daughter has Asperger's and we want to make sure that she is in the best school system for her needs in a Southern Chicago suburb or NW Indiana. My husband would be working in Gary (I know, I know . . . ). We would be hoping to spend between $500,000 and $600,000 for a house. Any towns that have a small-town, family friendly feel to them? We are very sad to have to leave our town here - it is a fabulous, old fashioned town to raise kids in! We hope to find something similar with a good school system and a good special ed. dept. - although our daughter needs minimal help but would love the support to be there if she needs it down the road. Thank you in advance for your input!

DADASGIRL · 09-30-2007, 04:58 PM

I guess it truly depends on what amenities you're looking for in a neighborhood/community and what you can tolerate & what you cant live without. I;m not familiar with Dayton, but I know Chicago & unfortunately, its a city divided into the haves & have nots. The southern suburbs of Chicago have their share of have nots. Some areas have deteriorated into urban nightmares, (Harvey, Dolton, Markham, Robbins ) others are abundant with upwardly mobile, working class folks ( Merrionette Park, Tinley Park, Crestwood, Olympia Fields, Country Club Hills ). They are all within an earshot of one another. The good isnt really isolated from the bad. Many Black/African Americans moved to the south burbs to escape the crappy conditions in the city limits, and depsite what the news portrays, there are far more minority families doing right than wrong. Public Schools arent the greatest, perhaps due to "white flight" ( Record breaking #'s of whites leaving an area when several non white families moved in ) those to the NW of the city outshine those in the south burbs. There are some great homes & developments nestled in the southern Cook County area, the amount you're willing to spend will go quite far. In terms of NW Indiana, there is no tax on food and I believe their public schools are better rated than those in south suburban IL.

zacksmom47 · 10-01-2007, 02:06 AM

I have a son who is autistic. He has been enrolled in Tinley Park schools. I suggest you look into the Tinley Park area. The elementary district of arbor park is wonderful as is the Tinley Park high school. I have had no problems. The teachers are very caring. Tinley students go to 3 different high schools so be sure to ask the real estate agent which district the home you are looking at is in. The community is wonderful. Great park district and a beautiful downtown area. This is a very kid friendly town.

Chatham · 10-05-2007, 08:02 PM

Thank you Dadasgirl and zacksmom47 for your replies. I am thinking that we should look at Orland Park, Tinley Park, and Frankfort. In NW Indiana we are thinking of looking at Valpo, Chesterton, and Crown Point. Any places that I am leaving out that would be worthwhile to see while we're there for just a couple of days looking around? Thank you again for your input. I will also post this under Indiana too.

NewtoChicago · 10-07-2007, 02:49 PM

I noticed this topic and was wondering what other suburbs near to Chicago would have a good high school for a 14-year old Aspberger's girl? I've heard that New Trier is great academically, but worry that with her average academics and special needs, she may not get the individual attention she needs there. What other public high schools would be good?

ahava · 10-07-2007, 03:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NewtoChicago

I noticed this topic and was wondering what other suburbs near to Chicago would have a good high school for a 14-year old Aspberger's girl? I've heard that New Trier is great academically, but worry that with her average academics and special needs, she may not get the individual attention she needs there. What other public high schools would be good?

New Trier is also a huge school and highly competitive. I would look at smaller schools with small class sizes, like Homewood-Flossmoor, Hersey (Arlington Heights), Niles North, Oak Forest, Deerfield, Highland Park, and Vernon Hills.

NewtoChicago · 10-07-2007, 03:56 PM

ahava, thank you for those suggestions. We would also like to be within 1/2 hour train commute to downtown Chicago. Many of those areas with smaller schools seem to be farther out from the city. Would Evanston or Western Springs, Riverside or LaGrange be a good option, or are the schools to large there?

ahava · 10-07-2007, 05:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NewtoChicago

ahava, thank you for those suggestions. We would also like to be within 1/2 hour train commute to downtown Chicago. Many of those areas with smaller schools seem to be farther out from the city. Would Evanston or Western Springs, Riverside or LaGrange be a good option, or are the schools to large there?

Lyons Township is a large school but has very small class sizes, plus it has two campuses (freshmen and sophomores attend one and juniors and seniors attend the other) so it feels like a smaller school than it is. I think it would be a good option, as well as Riverside-Brookfield which is a small school with a larger class size than these other schools but still lower than the median for the Chicago area. Evanston is a large school with comparatively large class sizes so I wouldn't suggest it.

sbd78 · 10-07-2007, 06:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chatham

Thank you Dadasgirl and zacksmom47 for your replies. I am thinking that we should look at Orland Park, Tinley Park, and Frankfort. In NW Indiana we are thinking of looking at Valpo, Chesterton, and Crown Point. Any places that I am leaving out that would be worthwhile to see while we're there for just a couple of days looking around? Thank you again for your input. I will also post this under Indiana too.

I don't know much about the Indiana suburbs you are looking at but Orland Park, Tinley Park, and Frankfort are all great choices if you choose to live in Illinois. All are great burbs with excellent schools. If you want to check out schools in areas you are interested in, GreatSchools.net is a great resource.