S/O: Johnson/Whitman vs Blair/Einstein - which is better - mental health version

[Anonymous]

OP here - thank you for those that talked about Burke and Field. They are on my radar too. DC did not complete 7th so not sure Blair's CAP would even accept them despite so far currently having honor roll-level grades again in 8th grade (school started in early August). I agree that the case loads for these counselors are untenable. I was so very grateful for the counselor we had in 7th grade when all of this was blowing up. If we end up at Einstein, the plan will be as rigorous a curriculum as they can handle/want and definitely will have outside therapeutic resources. That is the plan for any of the schools.

Can I afford private? If you had asked me a year ago I would have said not really. Currently the boarding school is $12k a month (which is a typical price for these places) so now I'm thinking differently. We can afford what we need to afford.

Thank you again for the considerate replies!!

[Anonymous]

OP, CAP is very competitive and only takes a small group of kids. I would not get her hopes up regardless as even if she does fantastic its still hard to get in. I would consider private for a year or two with more support given it sounds like she has serious mental health issues and if you are putting that much into it now, you don't want her to return home, set up for failure and relapse if she's doing well again. You could also push MCPS to pay for a private placement but you'd probably have to sue and that costs more money for an attorney and it could take months to years and you need the support now.

Best wishes to you and your DC. What a difficult thing to go through.

[Anonymous]

On Blair. He will be ok if he joins clubs and/or teams. It is so large one must. Many have trouble with how large it is.
Parent of Blair alum and Blair Junior

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here - thank you for those that talked about Burke and Field. They are on my radar too. DC did not complete 7th so not sure Blair's CAP would even accept them despite so far currently having honor roll-level grades again in 8th grade (school started in early August). I agree that the case loads for these counselors are untenable. I was so very grateful for the counselor we had in 7th grade when all of this was blowing up. If we end up at Einstein, the plan will be as rigorous a curriculum as they can handle/want and definitely will have outside therapeutic resources. That is the plan for any of the schools.

Can I afford private? If you had asked me a year ago I would have said not really. Currently the boarding school is $12k a month (which is a typical price for these places) so now I'm thinking differently. We can afford what we need to afford.

Thank you again for the considerate replies!!

I am so sorry for all you and your child have gone through. My child has not had such serious struggles but at one point we were debating private or public for the next school. On the advice of our therapist we met with the associate principal of the school we were zoned for and had a very upfront conversation about our child’s struggles and specific concerns. They described the level of support they could provide (we were in the process of getting an IEP, which we still have, so it was kind of the range of things we could do and what wasn’t going to be possible). We felt so pleased by the interaction with the principal and staff we decided to try public, got the IEP and things have been good so far. This wasn’t for high school but you could try and just see what they say and what your general impression is. Also the school year is very new- I would encourage you to work hard on the process for accommodations and also apply and visit several private schools and see where you are in the spring. As I said earlier we have been happy with MCPS so far but I’m nervous about high school and if the huge size will be too much. We could consider private for that. I am like you- we can afford whatever if we really need to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:On Blair. He will be ok if he joins clubs and/or teams. It is so large one must. Many have trouble with how large it is.
Parent of Blair alum and Blair Junior

Another Blair parent here. I would not assume these are enough. Blair is great, but it is a large school and easy to feel lost. Counseling resource teacher is wonderful but stretched thin. Many good counselors, at least one that is truly horrible. My kid had anxiety issues, but she did not have the challenge level yours is facing. With such a fragile kid, I would worry about such a large school. Clubs are great, but I don't think that would be enough.

If public, I would suggest Einstein, but the private schools described by other pps sound like they may be the best fit.

I wish you the best in figuring this out. Sending you and your kid compassion and support however you proceed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of the two, Einstein will be smaller and may have less pressure.

And the IB classes would be a decent alternative to the Blair CAP program, even if she didn’t want to do the full diploma. Not as much media production, but strong humanities and writing, at least. My former Eastern magnet kid is enjoying IB.

Are they at Einstein? I had a kid go through Blair CAP and one at Einstein. Einstein is in no way comparable to CAP.

But I don’t think either would work for OP’s child.

[Anonymous]

Did you hire a consultant and a lawyer to get an IEP?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The counselors and other staff for special programs do not get involved with general education students so, yes, it won't help to move and have your child go to Whitman.

This. But if you can get an IEP, he can be bussed to an SESES or even an ESESES if he qualifies. It’s a lot of work to get though because you will need a CIEP.

Given that he was suicidal in school, I’m surprised they are not willing to help more. I had no trouble getting an IEP once we had the first hospitalization and after residential, it was easy to get the CIEP as well. Mine did have actual suicide attempts in school so they wanted to move mine. That might have helped.

[Anonymous]

[

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The counselors and other staff for special programs do not get involved with general education students so, yes, it won't help to move and have your child go to Whitman.

This. But if you can get an IEP, he can be bussed to an SESES or even an ESESES if he qualifies. It’s a lot of work to get though because you will need a CIEP.

Given that he was suicidal in school, I’m surprised they are not willing to help more. I had no trouble getting an IEP once we had the first hospitalization and after residential, it was easy to get the CIEP as well. [/b]Mine did have actual suicide attempts in school so they wanted to move mine. That might have helped.[b]

OP here- my child was suicidal at school too and taken by me straight to the ER Yes, I have an attorney and still was refused the IEP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:[

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The counselors and other staff for special programs do not get involved with general education students so, yes, it won't help to move and have your child go to Whitman.

This. But if you can get an IEP, he can be bussed to an SESES or even an ESESES if he qualifies. It’s a lot of work to get though because you will need a CIEP.

Given that he was suicidal in school, I’m surprised they are not willing to help more. I had no trouble getting an IEP once we had the first hospitalization and after residential, it was easy to get the CIEP as well. [/b]Mine did have actual suicide attempts in school so they wanted to move mine. That might have helped.[b]

OP here- my child was suicidal at school too and taken by me straight to the ER Yes, I have an attorney and still was refused the IEP.

That's incredible. I know neighborhood kids who claim to have an IEP and likely don't but were able to get this approved because the parents paid for a private diagnosis. That's also probably why there's been this 300% increase in these diagnoses in UMC areas over the past decade, and sadly this makes resources for those with actual problems spread more thin.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:[

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The counselors and other staff for special programs do not get involved with general education students so, yes, it won't help to move and have your child go to Whitman.

This. But if you can get an IEP, he can be bussed to an SESES or even an ESESES if he qualifies. It’s a lot of work to get though because you will need a CIEP.

Given that he was suicidal in school, I’m surprised they are not willing to help more. I had no trouble getting an IEP once we had the first hospitalization and after residential, it was easy to get the CIEP as well. [/b]Mine did have actual suicide attempts in school so they wanted to move mine. That might have helped.[b]

OP here- my child was suicidal at school too and taken by me straight to the ER Yes, I have an attorney and still was refused the IEP.

That’s absurd. Shame on MCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have not been able to get an IEP for my DC who is now at a therapeutic boarding school with major depression and PTSD. Was suicidal at school and asked to leave and was since hospitalized and now elsewhere. The plan is to be back for 9th grade - next year. Currently zoned for Blair/Einstein. Had been a high honor roll student who wanted to do the CAP program at Blair. Home school is Einstein. Whitman has the SESES program for ED kids. If I continue to be unsuccessful with the IEP, is it better to just sell and move to Bethesda for counseling at Whitman or does the fact that Whitman has the SESES program not matter in terms of counseling staff for the rest of the school? Does anyone have insight into counseling at any of these schools?

MCPS public schools follow a standard curriculum and draw from the same pool of teachers. The opportunities available at each school are similar. As to mental health, I don't think there's much if any difference there either. The issues you're dealing with sound serious and although I have little first-hand experience with this, I doubt any public school in the county they're equipped to deal with it effectively.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:[

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The counselors and other staff for special programs do not get involved with general education students so, yes, it won't help to move and have your child go to Whitman.

This. But if you can get an IEP, he can be bussed to an SESES or even an ESESES if he qualifies. It’s a lot of work to get though because you will need a CIEP.

Given that he was suicidal in school, I’m surprised they are not willing to help more. I had no trouble getting an IEP once we had the first hospitalization and after residential, it was easy to get the CIEP as well. [/b]Mine did have actual suicide attempts in school so they wanted to move mine. That might have helped.[b]

OP here- my child was suicidal at school too and taken by me straight to the ER Yes, I have an attorney and still was refused the IEP.

I’m sorry. That’s tough. Is your child’s boarding school in MoCo? When my son was in residential, they unenrolled him from school because he was out of state and I couldn’t get anything accomplished. But as soon as we got back, we were able to get the CIEP and alternative placement. It was a long process though with a few months of virtually no education. I’d try again when you return to MCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:[

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The counselors and other staff for special programs do not get involved with general education students so, yes, it won't help to move and have your child go to Whitman.

This. But if you can get an IEP, he can be bussed to an SESES or even an ESESES if he qualifies. It’s a lot of work to get though because you will need a CIEP.

Given that he was suicidal in school, I’m surprised they are not willing to help more. I had no trouble getting an IEP once we had the first hospitalization and after residential, it was easy to get the CIEP as well. [/b]Mine did have actual suicide attempts in school so they wanted to move mine. That might have helped.[b]

OP here- my child was suicidal at school too and taken by me straight to the ER Yes, I have an attorney and still was refused the IEP.

That's incredible. I know neighborhood kids who claim to have an IEP and likely don't but were able to get this approved because the parents paid for a private diagnosis. That's also probably why there's been this 300% increase in these diagnoses in UMC areas over the past decade, and sadly this makes resources for those with actual problems spread more thin.

You sound insane and uninformed. My child in an UMC area has a private eval and for sure needs an IEP as do her friends who have IEPs. Parents like you are who judge are disgusting.

[Anonymous]

I say Whitman all the way followed by BCC. My kid is at neither but friends with kids at all 3 who are A & B students.