Elementary catholic school and special education

[Anonymous]

Considering enrolling my DC to a catholic school. 4 years old, ASD - are there any supports in catholic schools? Interested in PG, Alexandria, Arlington, or Montgomery. Another parent told me her little attends a catholic school and it's working out, but challenging.

[Anonymous]

Look at our lady of Lourdes in Bethesda, they do a great job of inclusion.

[Anonymous]

Lourdes and St. Bart’s in moco have dismantled their special rescourses. No longer assisting students with inclusion needs. Look elsewhere.

[Anonymous]

Our children are in an Arlington diocese school. One of my children is dyslexic. Not the same as ASD, but wanted to share the experience.

The good-they do want my child to succeed. Most teachers are understanding. Since DC has a diagnosis, they have no problem giving him accommodations (within reason). Access to audiobooks, speech to text, text to speech, modified spelling lists, opting out of foreign language,extra time, priority seating, taking certain tests in the resource room etc.

The not so good-the cost of all the professional services, which are the only thing that helps DC advance, are all on us. Some teachers need a lot of reminders to follow his SAP. The actual environment is hard for DC bc it’s very, very heavy on the ability to spell, read fluently and write.

[Anonymous]

Highly recommend Our Lady of Mercy in Potomac, they have a wonderful Resource and Learning Support Division that has been wonderful for my child and is very amenable to implementing accommodations. The school also allows occupational therapists from TLC and speech therapy from ABC Speech.

https://www.schoololom.org/Page/1802

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Highly recommend Our Lady of Mercy in Potomac, they have a wonderful Resource and Learning Support Division that has been wonderful for my child and is very amenable to implementing accommodations. The school also allows occupational therapists from TLC and speech therapy from ABC Speech.

https://www.schoololom.org/Page/1802

Do they have a reading specialist?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Lourdes and St. Bart’s in moco have dismantled their special rescourses. No longer assisting students with inclusion needs. Look elsewhere.

Huh? Where’d you get that? That’s not true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Lourdes and St. Bart’s in moco have dismantled their special rescourses. No longer assisting students with inclusion needs. Look elsewhere.

Huh? Where’d you get that? That’s not true.

Sadly, it is.

[Anonymous]

St. Bart’s has ended it's resource depth. 1 teacher leaving. Other 2 moved to homeroom and math. No reading specialist. It's over. Don't feel bad. They did it quietly. Many families have not figured it out yet. No announcement was made.

[Anonymous]

In Arlington Diocese, there were really no supports for colleague’s high functioning ASD child. They were very upset when the school kept telling them that it was entirely on the parents to support the child.

[Anonymous]

You will get very minimal supports OP.

Unless your DC is very high functioning and you can supplement supports out of school I would not recommend.

[Anonymous]

Public schools have way better resources for this. Unless you choose a private school specifically dedicated for your child’s unique situation you might find yourself feeling very frustrated.

My cousin has 2 children on ASD / Asperger Syndrome and ended up pulling her kids out of a very expensive private elementary school and enrolled them both in a supportive private school that was specifically geared towards their ASD needs instead of shoehorning them into a school where they were not being treated well.

It sucks but regular private schools just don’t have the capacity to handle it and it’s their choice about who to admit.


Hugs. I know this is difficult.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Public schools have way better resources for this. Unless you choose a private school specifically dedicated for your child’s unique situation you might find yourself feeling very frustrated.

My cousin has 2 children on ASD / Asperger Syndrome and ended up pulling her kids out of a very expensive private elementary school and enrolled them both in a supportive private school that was specifically geared towards their ASD needs instead of shoehorning them into a school where they were not being treated well.

It sucks but regular private schools just don’t have the capacity to handle it and it’s their choice about who to admit.


Hugs. I know this is difficult.

+1. Maddux or Auburn could be good if you want private as they are geared towards kids with social and/or language challenges. Otherwise public is probably a better option because mainstream private schools generally just don't have the staff or expertise to provide supports.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:St. Bart’s has ended it's resource depth. 1 teacher leaving. Other 2 moved to homeroom and math. No reading specialist. It's over. Don't feel bad. They did it quietly. Many families have not figured it out yet. No announcement was made.

If no announcement was made, how do you know?

[Anonymous]

My kids are graduates of a MoCo Catholic middle and elementary school. One of them has ADHD and may have ASD. In hindsight, I think he would have been better off at a school more equipped to address his needs. Take a look at the McLean School in Potomac. If you must do Catholic, visit open houses at the schools you’re considering and ask lots of questions about the resources or inclusion programs. At one time, St. Bart’s was pretty good. I’ve heard similar that they are ending the program. Our Lady of Mercy has the best reputation in MoCo.