What is the best state to live in with children who have special education needs (disabilities)?

Answer 1

I have no idea about states but I know that CFISD ( Cy-Fair Independent School District) in NW Houston Texas has a GREAT special education program .. My brother has been in it his whole life.. Plus housing there is cheap

Answer 2

I am a special education teacher in New Mexico. We have people moving to our state because of the special education programming offered.

However, it is not just whether the state has a good special education program as a state. It really depends on the school district, and the individual teachers.

In my district, there are a number of excellent special education teachers, and a couple that are awful (but able to hang on to their jobs because they manage to stay just above the point of firing). I have students that have been transferred to my program by parents who went "shopping" within the district and prefer my program to the one at their neighborhood school (usually where those couple of "why are they still teaching" types are).

I am also a parent of a child with special needs, and my personal experience has been that the teacher IS the program. If you have a good, well-trained and committed special ed teacher, your child does well regardless of funding or state guidelines. Every time my son moves up into new programming, I make sure he's with a good teacher, and will "shop" and transfer him if needed.

The one factor that the state guidelines are key on, is student to teacher ratios. If the caseload cutoffs are too high, even the best teacher will be too overwhelmed to provide good services.

New Mexico's cutoffs are a smidge high, especially for B and C level kids, and often because of the rapid population shifts common in a border state, a sped teacher can suddenly find him/herself being way over the cutoff for a while (until the district can respond and hire someone extra, or the kids move again).

Answer 3

As the mother of a child with disabilities I can tell you they all seem to be the same. They have different names for the programs but more or less they are the same. You will have trouble with getting the schools to do what they are suppose to do no matter what but educating yourself is key. There are some excellent advocates out there and my advice is to check out the ones in your area. Chances are the schools and other organizations (schools, mental health centers , etc) are not offering you all the help that is available. An advocate can get things done you would never imagine.

Answer 4

I'm a mother of two special ed children, both are boys. I've lived in FL. , SC. and TN. All three states have pretty much the same programs. You just need to look into whatever local programs that are available. Try starting with Early Screening Program or Health Dept. They know all of the resources. Bad news is, is that you will probably have to fight for what you need but once you get the ball rolling, it gets easier. Good luck to you.

Answer 5

I would think that all states in this day and time have programs that are for special education needs. Going thru agencies such as the United Way, March of Dimes etc could give you some names of programs in whatever state you are in. I don't think there is a "best" state to live in.

Answer 6

Consider California!
I work for the special ed dept. in Lake county Calif and we have a great special ed dept. These students are treasures. You need to find a family of educators that work together from kindergarten through high school.

Answer 7

It doesn't really matter what state you live in, but the best programs are going to be in the major cities. i.e. I live in northeast indiana and have a stepson who is autistic. There are virtually no programs around here specialized for autistic children around here, but 3 hrs away in Indianapolis is Riley Children's Hospital (where we spend lots of time) and Ball State Speech and Audiology Clinics. I definately recommend checking out colleges/universities and see what they have to offer as well.

Answer 8

Being the grandparent of a special needs child with a specific learning disabilitiy I think washington is one of the best states to live in. They have been a godsend for my grand daughter, who is doing very well in middle school and getting ready to start high school in the fall.

Answer 9

Very possibly California. We seem to have a great many programs. It would of course depend on what part of the state, especially if they have orthopedic handicaps, because just getting around can be a problem. Santa Cruz County's bus service is pretty progressive in that regard, but when you get to the less densely populated areas, you could have real trouble.

Answer 10

Not Florida. There is low funding, and long waiting lines for post-graduate services for people with disabilities. Georgia and the Carolinas are better southern states at this time.
Dr. D