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As I recommended before, check for an ACTIVE chapter of the Autism Society in that area. They are a good source of information on schools. TEACCH seems to be prevalent in methodology in a lot of schools; when there is a method used. I find services hard to come by where my son is concerned, but we are in a relatively rural county.
I have been sending out a lot of emails inquiring about services for my 12 year old son. I have had a LOT of "we don't handle that sort of thing but contact this other person" emails. It's been quite frustrating. Even the Autism Society was not full of a lot of information. My next step is to contact the school district directly in the area I am considering. TEACCH is a great method but not necessarily useful for all autistic children. My son is high functioning so although I am not looking for a lot of services, I do need a school that has a SDC for kids with special needs. I will keep you posted here as I get more information.
I have been sending out a lot of emails inquiring about services for my 12 year old son. I have had a LOT of "we don't handle that sort of thing but contact this other person" emails. It's been quite frustrating. Even the Autism Society was not full of a lot of information. My next step is to contact the school district directly in the area I am considering. TEACCH is a great method but not necessarily useful for all autistic children. My son is high functioning so although I am not looking for a lot of services, I do need a school that has a SDC for kids with special needs. I will keep you posted here as I get more information.
Lori,
I don't recall ... did you mention the area you're considering?
Does anyone know about mainstreaming practices in NC? My son is a high functioning 5 yr old going into kindergarten, and if mainstreamed he would have a teacher's aide to "shadow" him to ensure he stays on task.
Does this happen in schools in NC.
Any other info- appreciated!!!
I can't speak for the entire state, only the area we are in. It seems the "mentality" is either total mainstream, or separate classrooms. Providing an aide for shadowing is not common, as most schools/districts have their eye on the budget. And special education is not where they want to put their $$$.
My son is 12, and at 5 he was placed in a language impaired class. Way back then, there was about 15 kids in the class with 1 teacher, 2 aides and a part time volunteer. Separate speech therapy was not offered, as the focus of the entire class was on speech/language development. He spent K & 1st in that class, with "gentle" exposure to regular ed classes. By the end of 1st grade, his speech had progressed enough to be moved to a "cross cat" class... basically a melting pot of various disabilites. Now, in middle school, he is still in the cross cat. It seems the only choices are based more on severity of behaviors, not anything else.
I really think the state is VERY conservative on spending for personnel. If a district can get away with it, they will assign therapists to multiple schools, giving the children minimal services and calling it a day.
Do I dislike NC?? I didn't until I had a child with autism.
I found your response so sad. It is a shame that there aren't more resources for you up there. I live in Florida, and thought we were limited. I am torn with having more resources, or being near family and having a support system. My son would have cousins his age that adore him, as well as grandparents that dote on him!
Have you ever tried ABA therapy? We would be interested in finding someone qualified to work with our son on verbal behavior. Is your son high functioning as well.
Was he able to cope in a less restrictive environment? Did the teachers work with you to ensure success. They won't have a choice, as I am pretty heavy when it comes to my son!
My son is on the spectrum but he has multiple diagnosis thus, complicating our situation a bit. I don't even typically identify with other parents who have children on the spectrum since he has other impairments that we tend to focus on more, if you know what I mean. However, having said that, a couple of things come to mind. One, when it comes to having children on the spectrum, I typically steer people to New Jersey. Really, the state is quite awesome when it comes to resources and knowledge dealing in this area. If you have choices on where to move, research this yourselves. You may already know that NJ has an incredibly high number of children on the spectrum, I believe I read on Autism Speaks that the numbers there are higher than any other state (or something to that effect). It's being attributed to doctors and educators in the state being well-equipped when it comes to diagnosis, as well as a great number of families who relocate there because of what they have heard about readily available services.
Now, we left Jersey, for multiple reasons. And we love NC. We are making more progress here with my son than we would have ever likely made in NJ. But again, our situation differs from most that I encounter. Additionally, we are in Union County, which I believe is the fastest growing county in the state. Naturally, resources have been stretched here and the infrastructure is struggling to accomodate the incredible growth. However, the exceptional children's department handled our situation beautifully. I also know that many other families chose Union County based upon their child's special needs. I think in another thread, I actually steered you all toward the Charlotte forum, where this topic has been discussed in multiple threads. I am not, by any means saying that UC is terrific, but we have been pleased. And, I was able to find out what I needed before our arrival. Also, the director of EC spoke to me freely prior to us getting here, the department reviewed my son's IEP before our arrival and we had a full fledged IEP meeting days after we settled in. In Jersey, it was an uphill battle just getting them to enforce my child's IEP, which eventually led to us hiring an attorney, an an ugly legal battle ensued and my son missed a year of education. (Admittedly though, a lot has to do on the school district you choose. Also, medical resources and educational resources are two different areas and I still maintain that Jersey is tops when it comes to ASD.)
I am a member of another group where several of the mothers have children who are autistic. One mother in particular, with a very young son, is very knowledgable from what I've seen when it comes to resources in the area (again, this may only apply to Union County). I believe she is also actively involved with Autism Speaks and other groups of the like. If you wanted to PM me your E-mail addresses, I would happily forward your information to her. If you do so, please include an introduction that I can send to her with your E-mail address so she knows in advance what type of information you seek.
You know, beyond the typical, there are also other services your children qualify for, depending on your child's individual needs. The downside is even with approval, waiting lists can be very long. But, if any of your children receive Medicaid benefits, I would discuss the desire to relocate with the Medicaid caseworker. They might just have some information available to you, or can bridge the way through the transition. No, all workers aren't this helpful but it's worth a try. On the same note, you may or may not know that certain children qualify for Medicaid benefits regardless of the parent's income. These benefits usually open the door to other services. Plus, a lot of the therapies and specialists private insurers regularly deny, Medicaid regularly approves and without co-pays. The program is likely called different things, in different states, (and I don't think all states have this provision) but if your child comes to NC with this coverage, it can be transferred.
Finally, I don't know if this was mentioned earlier, but have any of you contacted ARC? I know from experience that ARCs across the country vary widely when it comes to availability of services and it depends upon funding but here in Union County, the ARC has been wonderful. They have some really knowledgable people in place, whose job it is to link you to resources. ARC has wonderful liasons in place, often family members who have been there, done that. They have first hand knowledge of who to call, what's a wasted effort and are great even when you just need someone just to listen to you vent. From what I understand, they even assist parents with IEPs. A division of ARC handles my son's case management, which linked him to community support personnel (sometimes called "one-on-one") and respite services. Now, neither of these worked out for us, but that is because of my son's unique issues.
I'm rambling at this point. Just wanted to throw out some thoughts off the top of my head. Please remember, NC is not alone when it comes to educating those with special needs. Across the board, the entire nation is failing. Limited funding is likely to be an issue wherever you go. Also be aware that overall, NC remains a rural state outside of a few pockets and services are bound to be limited in those instances too. So, like anywhere else, what may be true in this county, may not apply in that county.
And to be frank, since I have children whom are extremes of one another and have dealt with this on both ends, it's considerably harder to get a gifted child what they need, than it is to get an exceptional child what they need. We have lived in enough places to know this. Simply put, if a district has excess funds, legislature is more likely to enforce mandates that protect the disabled population than it is to protect the other end of the spectrum. And then, there's no monies left over to deal with the rest, even if the law is supposed to protect them too.
Please feel free to PM me. I will TRY to reply in a timely manner and I will try to help to the best of my ability.
If you aren't sure of anything else, please know that your children are already ahead of the game, they have already won the largest part of the battle, and that is simply by having you all as mothers. There are not nearly enough children out there who have people willing to fight for them, willing to research these things to the end, to ensure that they receive the best. I know, not so long ago, my son was one of those children. And every day I feel sick knowing that he lost so many precious years, while he waited for a family to come into his life. And because of this, we are forever behind the curve ball.
Sara,
Thanks so much for the info, I am going up for a visit, and will research UC. Do you know anything about Catawba, Hickory Counties?
New Jersey not an option, we want to move close to family and they are in NC. We would stay in Florida otherwise.
Please forgive my ignorance but are Catawba and Hickory both counties? Or is Hickory a city in Catawba County? I tried looking up both but did not find a Hickory County.
I have no personal familiarity with Hickory or Catawba but a google search came up with this:
It's a PDF file/brochure with special needs resources. Maybe something there is helpful? I've copied here items that appear most useful. Of course, some or all might be duplicated info already presented in this thread. The items in bold are the ones I would definitely reach out to, with the thought that even if they cannot help you, they can likely direct you to the appropriate agency, particularly any group that can connect you to other parents with children on the spectrum. Why reinvent the wheel? Again, good luck! Sara
Autism Society of North Carolina
Local: 256-5202
Toll free: 1-800-442-2762
505 Oberlin Road, Suite 230
Raleigh, NC 27605 Autism Society of North Carolina
Provides services for NC residents with
autism and related developmental
disabilities
Children’s Developmental Services
Agency (CDSA)
(Formerly Early Childhood Intervention
Services - ECIS - and Developmental
Evaluation Center - DEC)
466-5594
3314-12 16th Avenue SE
Conover, NC 28613 North Carolina Early Intervention Branch
Through a team approach with several
professionals, this agency provides an
in-depth evaluation of a child’s medical,
psychological, educational, physical, and
speech-language needs. Child service
coordinators assist families in locating
services and therapies (such as speech,
occupational, or physical) as well as other
support resources. Parents and others
may refer children to the CDSA.
Conover School
464-9532
108 7th Street Place SW
Conover, NC 28613
www.nccs.k12.nc.us/conover/conoverschl (broken link).
html
Public education for mentally challenged,
autistic, and augmentative communication
needs students, ages 3-21. Serves
children in all 3 school districts in Catawba
County.
Exceptional Children’s Assistance
Center (ECAC)
1-800-962-6817
P.O. Box 16
Davidson, NC 28036 ECAC - Exceptional Children's Assistance Center
Parent training and information center
offering parents of children with
disabilities information, assistance, and
workshops on laws, IEP’s, etc. Parent
newsletter available.
Family Support Network - HOPE
Network
326-5953 or 256-5205
P.O. Box 5413
Hickory, NC 28603 Family Support Network of North Carolina
Email: fsn@charter.net
Provides information and referral for
parents of children with special needs.
Can also provide parent-to-parent
matches for families of children with
similar disabilities if desired. Serving
Alexander, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba &
McDowell Counties.
Summer Camp Directory Family Support Network of North Carolina
A listing of summer camp opportunities in
NC and around the country for children
with special needs.
Autism Support Group
Meets bimonthly at Hickory Church of
Christ on Fairgrove Church Road.
Call 256-5202 for more information.
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