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I have learn a lot about North Dallas from this bulletin. I have the opportunity of transfering and work in Plano, TX. I have been narrowing my home searches to Plano, Allen, McKinney, Garland, Richardson, and Wylie. My concern is a school system that provides a good program for children with disabilities. I have two daughters and both are in middle school now. The youngest one is in a multi-needs program, and I would like to know if there is any ISD that has a good reputation program for special needs children as well as good high-schools (oldest daughter). Looking forward to hear from the great people of this bulletin board. BTW - I am visiting North Dallas this coming weekend.
From what I've heard, Plano ISD has a pretty good program for disabled students. If I were you, I'd contact the local school districts and see what the offer. Also I would not recommend Wylie for the commute.
Garland also has several programs for students w/ special needs. Contact the districts and ask about the particular needs that you have and then take a visit to each campus that the districts have for the students w/ special needs.
Thank you for your replies (GoPadge & momof2dfw) about these two ISD. I will be sending inquiries to those two school districs. I read somewhere that GISD does not require to send the children to a particular or closer school. Is this true?
I have been debating between Garland ISD, Plano ISD, Allen ISD, and McKinney ISD. I have not read much about Wylie, so I am not sure if this is a good option. The properties over the internet look atractive and reasonable in price.
I am not sure how good or bad the numbers (School stats) on paper reports represent one thing different than what it is the reality.
My job (IT for a telecom company) can be performed from home, so commuting from a reasonable distance is not a big concern. I am more concerned about other factors that I came accross in this bulleting such as schools, crime, electrical rates or water bills (Plainfield a South-West Burb of Chicago have a rate of 7 to 8 cts/kw and water/sewer fees are about $60/month during the summer).
I was wondering if there are restrictions for installing solar pannels in the north areas of Dallas. It seems to be a good plan for lowering the cost of energy since this is one of the highest bills. ?
Thank you again for all your valuable information and time.
I read somewhere that GISD does not require to send the children to a particular or closer school. Is this true?
The Garland ISD has "open choice" but it is not like you can just go to any school no matter what. Starting in January and going till about Feb 10th is when parents have to fill out and turn in their "choice of school" form. If you move into the area or another schools zone after this time all one has to do is go to the school and be put on the wait list if it is "full". Students that reside w/in the boundary for the neighborhood school get first pick and then those that reside outside of it that chose that school fall in after them. I've known only a few that had to be on a wait list because they had their kids at a school that was not their neighborhood school. All of those got the call either the week before or the first day of school letting them know they got in. If you do not get into your neighborhood school and it was your first pick the district must provide transportation to your second pick.
With kids that qualify for the magnet schools they can come from all over the district. The only ones that have attendance zones are the three gifted & talented elem schools (Walnut Glen, Kimberlin & Hillside). A student that has not tested nor qualified to attend one of the magnets can not pick it. If you attend a magnet school the district does provide transportation to that campus. Only if you live in say the zone for Walnut Glen and you put your child at Hillside because you liked it better or whatever.
Depending on the needs of students that require special needs will depend on which campus they attend. If the child only needs help in reading or another subject along w/ certain types of therapy then they may go to their neighborhood school and be on a "pull out" basis and attend a regular classroom. It just depends on the needs of the students. I've been told by parents of children w/ special needs that the Garland and Mesquite ISD's have an agreement w/ each other that if they have a student that has needs that are not offered at one but the other does they will take them. The Garland ISD also has a program for children as young as 2 that are identified as having special needs. I have known several parents that have gone thru this and all seemed pleased with it. The parent resource center is AWESOME!
Last edited by AustinTraveler; 04-24-2007 at 09:23 AM..
Reason: fixed quote
Thank you 'momof2dfw' for your full explanation of "open choice". It was very good to know all these details and I appreciate your valuable comments.
I will be visiting some houses in Garland his weekend and I will keep in mind the neighborhood's names. I know that my youngest daughter will be in a multi-needs classroom, so I will try to find out through GISD if they can meet her needs or through Mesquite ISD.
I am not familiar with the concept of "Magnet Schools". Are there special requirements for attending to those schools? What is the criteria for qualification? Are those better than the regular schools?
Another concept that I do not understand and I have seen very frequently is "attendance zones". What does that mean?
(Pardon my ignorance but I've been trying to understand the Texas ISDs)
"I am not familiar with the concept of "Magnet Schools". Are there special requirements for attending to those schools? What is the criteria for qualification? Are those better than the regular schools?"
A magnet school is one that is geared towards students that may have a special interest or needs. This is from the GISD website on their magnet programs (found at this link - http://www.garlandisd.net/department...rams/index.asp)
Magnet Programs
Magnet schools feature special programs not offered at other schools - thus drawing students like a magnet. In Garland ISD, there are twelve magnet schools for a variety of students: gifted/talented students, students with a high interest in math, science, and technology, students interested in classical studies, and students focused on college and career preparation.
For elementary and middle school students, there are three different types of magnets:
Gifted/Talented
Math, Science and Technology
Classical
At the high school level, the choices expand to include:
Gifted/Talented
Math, Science and Technology
Classical
Performing Arts
College and Career
Enrollment:
All GISD magnet programs require prospective students to meet specific criteria to enroll. While a limited number of spaces are reserved at each magnet campus to accommodate neighborhood students, admission to a given magnet program is by application only. Once a student is accepted, as long as he/she continues to meet participation criteria, he/she will usually continue with the magnet program from year to year.
For gifted/talented magnets, waiting list placement is determined by rank. In other words, students who have the highest rankings on standardized tests (gifted) or the highest rankings for their portfolio/audition (artistically talented) are placed at the top of the list.
For all other magnet programs, admission of new students and placement on waiting list is by lottery.
Special Services:
Special needs students who qualify for magnet programming have access to the same special education services available at other campuses.
Timeline:
The application process for current Garland ISD students coincides with the annual choice of school period which occurs during January.
Students who are new to Garland ISD may submit application materials at the time of arrival.
Bus Transportation:
Students who live two or more miles from their magnet program are eligible for bus transportation. In the case of multiple campuses offering the same magnet programming, parents are advised to contact the Department of Transportation / Textbooks at 972-494-8530 or via email transportation@garlandisd.net to confirm the appropriate campus.
Garland ISD offers several programs for students with special needs. They offer BA (Behavorial Adjustment) for students with severe mentall illness, and behavioral issues. The BA classes tend to be small, between 5-20 kids per teacher. LIFE classes are for students with Downs Syndrome and other similar disorders. These classes are offered at all grade levels. At the middle school and high school level the offer comething called content mastery which is for students with mild learning disorders. Content Mastery is somehting students go to in addition to there regular courses, and offers tutoring and individual attention. There are other courses and programs for different needs, and sometimes programs vary by school.
"momof2dfw" and "MaryS80" thank you so much for your replies about the Special Ed Programs and the Magnet schools. I learn something new everyday in this bulletin board about Dallas.
These programs seem to be very atractive for the Garland area. It is a bit overwhelming going to different ISD web sites and find details of all the programs, so I really appreciate your comments of first hand.
Are these type of Magnet Schools and Special Programs standard among all North Dallas ISD?
No, these programs are not standard in all school districts. Only a few have magnets. Some school districts use the "pull out" program for children that are gifted. In other words if the teahcers have time they pull out the kids that are gifted for a few minutes every day for some extra work. Some school districts do have a teacher just for the kids to be pulled out of their regular class to do something a little more challenging but it is not an all day thing. Garland does do this if your child is labeled gifted and you do not put them in a magnet. I preferred mine to be at the magnet as they are surrounded w/ it all day and she is with other kids that have the same needs as her, more challenging work. Yet she still says school "is boring", lol. Yes, you could say that these are the "crown jewels" amoung the districts that do have them. If your one daughter is possibly eligible I recommend going to visit some of them. The one for the gifted and talented academically is Austin Academy. They have a robotics team that just about every year places in the top 3 against high schools. One year I was told by a parent they went to the national level and were competing against high schools that had BIG TIME sponsers. The programs offered thru the schools for kids to get involved in are awesome and I have been very impressed.
I totally can understand how all of this could be overwhelming. Even with just two children that are as different as night and day it is challenging to make sure both of them are "right where they should be" when it comes to their educations. I've known several parents that did not even test their children for a magnet after being told by the school that they would qualify. They didn't want to have their kids at different schools. I guess I see it differently in that it is not much of a sacrifice for me to have them at two different schools as they are both TOTALLY different and learn on different levels (and the fact they are 4 years apart they would only be at the same school 2 years in their life anyway). My eldest would have received poor grades in a regular school while my youngest just doesn't have the "thirst" of her older sister. Although having seen the inside of the magnet and how it is so much more "hands on" I know that she probably would do better but her grades keep her from being there. My youngest is the one that does need the extra help but is not on the level of being qualified as having a special need. The only extra help she qualifies for at school is tutoring for reading and then I've provided additional tutoring w/ private tutors. This year w/ the tutoring at school she has come A LONG WAY! So they really do pay attention to the kids and their needs. I do know at her school the BA class is pretty small, I believe 6 students.
The Dallas ISD had the #1 high school in the nation with their magnet, Townview. Any student in the area can attend there even if they do not reside in the Dallas ISD. One of my friends teaches there and she has had a student that went thru the g&t program in Garland from elem thru middle school and then transferred to Townview.
When your here looking around and have any questions about the schools, neighborhoods, etc please feel free to ask.
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