A few suggestions. (I'm the coordinator--local volunteer leader--of
CHADD [Children and Adults with Attention-Deficity/Hyperactivity
Disorder] of Northern Virginia.) First, contact chapters of CHADD in
the areas of Southern California you're considering. Web site for
CHADD is www.chadd.org. You can search for chapters there, or go
directly to http://www.chadd.org/findchap2.cfm?cat_id=7&subcat_id=36&state=ca.
Pose your question to the coordinators; they should be able to help.
Having said that, there is a lot of variation within a school
district. In Fairfax County, Virginia, for example, some schools
provide excellent support and others provide terrible support. Within
a district, it largely depends on the particular school's
administrators. The coordinators may know. Parents who belong to the
local chapter certainly will.
I don't know if California issues school "report cards" the way
Virginia does. One clue in Virginia is to look at the school-by-school
statistics and see how many kids in any particular school have been
identified as special education kids. Factor out/eliminate "centers."
Schools with abnormally low numbers likely are denying services to
kids who should qualify. On the other hand, schools with abnormally
high numbers may have other problems. I'd try to find schools around
the mean, or perhaps a bit above.
Hope that helps. |
