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I'm also considering moving the family down to NC from NJ. And like most it's for the same reasons - cost of living, real estate, congestion, etc. But one thing of concern is the type/quality of education/services in NC available for my son (7yr with autism). NJ has very very good programs to offer(primarily due to the ungodly taxes we pay).
So to anyone that has made the move - has it been worth it?
I also am considering the move up from South Florida with a 14-year-old son with high functioning autism. It seems from what I read here that Wake County Schools have a mess on their hands with overcrowding and constant re-districting. Chapel Hill looks like a good alternative to check into. I've never been up there, but am hoping to make a trip in the spring.
I'm also considering moving the family down to NC from NJ. And like most it's for the same reasons - cost of living, real estate, congestion, etc. But one thing of concern is the type/quality of education/services in NC available for my son (7yr with autism). NJ has very very good programs to offer(primarily due to the ungodly taxes we pay).
So to anyone that has made the move - has it been worth it?
I believe that there was a thread in past regarding Wake schools and special needs/autism. You might want to try a search and see if that helps. Good luck.
We are considering a move from Northern Calif to the Raleigh area. Jobs and housing look great, but wonder what will change for our disabled adult son. He needs a day progam and other support services. Where do we start?
We are considering a move from Northern Calif to the Raleigh area. Jobs and housing look great, but wonder what will change for our disabled adult son. He needs a day progam and other support services. Where do we start?
I came from NJ with a special needs child. I will first say, The schools are different here. Special education in NJ is better then it is here. There is also no school nurse here. Though, I have no problem with the schooling for my 5th grader who has no learning disabilities. It has gone great. Fantastic. But, my son is not getting anywhere near the help he recieved in NJ. They changed his IEP. They do not offer the same services we got in NJ. They have different criteria to evaluate and therefore change the IEP's. I almost left after I first got here because of this. But, I gave it time, and him time to adjust. I'm still trying to determine another course of action as far as schools go. Private schools here are very expensive. One school wanted $14k a year. There are 2 or 3 more private schools that are between 12k- 13,500 per year. I'm just being honest here, I'm not bashing. Other then that we love it here.
This is the South and budgets for social type programs are meager.
The safety net here has many holes. Not great for those needing extra help.
True.
A few years ago we had friends leave NC due to what they perceived as the lack of services for their mentally retarded son. I think they moved to VA.
I came from NJ with a special needs child. I will first say, The schools are different here. Special education in NJ is better then it is here. There is also no school nurse here. I'm just being honest here, I'm not bashing. .
Honesty is good here--that's the purpose of the forum. I am curious, what district are you in? I am not familiar with special needs programs in WCPS or DPS (or for that matter how they compare to NJ programs). I can certainly understand the frustration though, and the budgets are limited and getting worse. That said, I'd like to suggest to the original poster to look into Frank Porter Graham ES in Chapel Hill. It is an excellent elementary school, with a focus on autism (actually from my understanding, it runs a premier teaching school for special ed teachers, one of the best on the East Coast and I have heard folks move from as far away as CA b/c of their programming). Again, I understand that OCS also have excellent programs for autistic students, particularly Grady Brown Elementary and A L Stanback Middle School.
I do not know, though how they will compare with what you have in NJ. Good luck!
I came from NJ with a special needs child. I will first say, The schools are different here. Special education in NJ is better then it is here. There is also no school nurse here. Though, I have no problem with the schooling for my 5th grader who has no learning disabilities. It has gone great. Fantastic. But, my son is not getting anywhere near the help he recieved in NJ. They changed his IEP. They do not offer the same services we got in NJ. They have different criteria to evaluate and therefore change the IEP's. I almost left after I first got here because of this. But, I gave it time, and him time to adjust. I'm still trying to determine another course of action as far as schools go. Private schools here are very expensive. One school wanted $14k a year. There are 2 or 3 more private schools that are between 12k- 13,500 per year. I'm just being honest here, I'm not bashing. Other then that we love it here.
Of course it is better. When they offers Teachers Aids for special needs a pay scale of $9 an hour with limited benefits, just what type of help do you think you're going to find at $9 an hour? Everyone knows in the special Ed classroom, it is the Teacher's aids that do all the work.
If you think that is bad, all the agencies offering afterschool respite and day habilitation services pay their help $7 an hour!?!?! And they wonder why so many special needs children and adults get abused? It's discusting what these agencies get away with. Do you know what they bill the government for? About $35-$40 an hour and throw a bone of $7 an hour to some low level immigrant worker while they pocket the rest all under the name of "non profit!" Sure non profit as an entire entity, but hey they pay their executives $500,000 a year salaries. The money needs to get into the hands of those who care and do the work, so that better help is hired.
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