Public or private?
My son Charlie has attended both public and private school autism programs and both have their pros and cons. From December 2005-June 2006, Charlie went to an autism/ABA private school. The school was very small; there was a full-time behaviorist (who has her BCBA) on staff; all the students were autistic and autism education was the focus. Charlie has also been in public school programs in St. Paul, St. Louis, and in three different towns in New Jersey and these have varied widely. The public school programs are housed in neighborhood schools; there are non-autistic children in the schools; the bus ride is much shorter. He is currently doing well in a public autism/ABA program.
And a school board’s perspective, the cost per pupil for a public school program is far less (as I posted in Cost-effective autism education = watered down education).
So I read with interest about a non-profit in Olympia, Washington, The Wyatt Holliday Foundation , that is interested in starting an “alternative school for special education students,” according to an article in today’s Olympian. Parents have raised concerns about the school district’s “lack of knowledge” about how to educate autistic children; the use of a timeout box has been a chief point of controversy.
The Wyatt Holliday Foundation was created by Theresa Holliday, whose son, Wyatt, had Asperger’s Syndrome and died in a car accident in 2003.
Jennifer Flinton has a 4-year-old son, Jimmy, in a preschool program for autistic children at McLane Elementary in the Olympia School District. She said she’s happy with McLane’s preschool program but wants to find a specialized private school for Jimmy by the time he’s ready for first grade.
“I don’t feel that any of the school districts in the area are able to meet my son’s individual needs,” Flinton said. “I would think that a private school would be able to more individually meet my child’s educational needs. … That would give him the best chance at eventually having a normal life.”
Based on our experiences seeking the best education for Charlie, Ms. Holliday and the parents in Olympia have a long road ahead of them, and starting the school is just the beginning: Parents will have to make it clear why their child needs to be in a private program vs. a public one.
But based on Charlie’s peaceful-easy mood since starting his new program a few weeks ago, I can say that the effort–the struggle–the fight to get one’s child’s the right education is more than worth it.
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POSTED IN: Asperger's Syndrome, Education, Schoolbus, Uncategorized
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