New to ADHD - does MCPS screen?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As I recall, you start the process by asking the school counselor and principal for an IEP conference. At that conference, they and the special education staff will discuss the assessments necessary. MCPS does pay for assessments; however, it has limited resources to pay for assessments out of its budget. You will get in line for them to pay for the assessment and they will not provide services until it is done and determined that an IEP or 504 is appropriate.

It was suggested to us to pay for the assessment out of pocket to get it done and so that MCPS could move forward with the IEP/504. Sadly, they are expensive and families at Title 1 schools may not have the resources.

Inaccurate info

What's the accurate info?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As I recall, you start the process by asking the school counselor and principal for an IEP conference. At that conference, they and the special education staff will discuss the assessments necessary. MCPS does pay for assessments; however, it has limited resources to pay for assessments out of its budget. You will get in line for them to pay for the assessment and they will not provide services until it is done and determined that an IEP or 504 is appropriate.

It was suggested to us to pay for the assessment out of pocket to get it done and so that MCPS could move forward with the IEP/504. Sadly, they are expensive and families at Title 1 schools may not have the resources.

Inaccurate info

What's the accurate info?

MCPS does the assessments. There is no wait time - it gets done within their guidelines. There is no line to wait in until MCPS comes up with money to pay.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As I recall, you start the process by asking the school counselor and principal for an IEP conference. At that conference, they and the special education staff will discuss the assessments necessary. MCPS does pay for assessments; however, it has limited resources to pay for assessments out of its budget. You will get in line for them to pay for the assessment and they will not provide services until it is done and determined that an IEP or 504 is appropriate.

It was suggested to us to pay for the assessment out of pocket to get it done and so that MCPS could move forward with the IEP/504. Sadly, they are expensive and families at Title 1 schools may not have the resources.

Inaccurate info

DP was accurate to us

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As I recall, you start the process by asking the school counselor and principal for an IEP conference. At that conference, they and the special education staff will discuss the assessments necessary. MCPS does pay for assessments; however, it has limited resources to pay for assessments out of its budget. You will get in line for them to pay for the assessment and they will not provide services until it is done and determined that an IEP or 504 is appropriate.

It was suggested to us to pay for the assessment out of pocket to get it done and so that MCPS could move forward with the IEP/504. Sadly, they are expensive and families at Title 1 schools may not have the resources.

This is not how it works. To start the process you talk to the principal or counselor and let them know you believe your child has a disability that impacts their ability to engage in the curriculum. A meeting will be set to discuss whether an evaluation and if yes what type. MCPS will then perform the evaluation. Another meeting will be set to review the results. Then finally if it is agreed your child needs accommodations and/or services, a meeting will be set to develop a plan.

If you want an ADHD evaluation you can get it quickly through your pediatrician.

DP. That was not the case for us. I did all that, but school refused to test, saying kid was above benchmarks. Pediatrician sent in a referral, but there was a year-long wait. We were lucky that kid was in an NIH study, so we were able to get some accommodations based on that while waiting the year for our eval.

[Anonymous]

Mom with ADHD of a ADHD child here in MCPS. Please post over in special needs forum. There is a ton of inaccurate information and responses here, OP. MCPS does not screen for this. If you notice an issue, first speak to your student’s teacher, then the guidance counselor, and then talk to your pediatrician. Typically a formal diagnoses of ADHD is done via a neuropsychiatric evaluation and it is administered by a neuropsychologist. It takes a while to do and can be costly - some providers change 5-6000 or more and insurance may or may not pay. We opted to get on waitlists for the neuropsych at KKI in Baltimore and CNMC - they are each about a year long. That meant for us that insurance would cover the cost of the testing. Others choose to go with private psychologists who do this. Some also just go to their pediatrician to try and get a diagnoses and meds but honestly It’s better to do the full work up because they look at other conditions it could be like autism, anxiety, etc. and can give a complete diagnosis. With kids who are neurodivergent, there can be multiple things going on and more than one issue. For our kid, it was both anxiety and ADHD. After the exam the neuropsychologist provides a full report and they meet either you and give you the diagnoses and a report suggesting next steps. This includes specific suggestions for school, then you take this to your MCPS school administrator and meet with them to determine if a 504 plan (school
Accommodations needed for a disability) or an IEP plan (to address needs from a disability that is impacting the student’s academic performance/education) is needed and they will take it from there. Some kids need just a 504 (like ours) because her academic performance was fine, she just had attention and behavior issues and needed additional supports in class. Some kids need an IEP. It just depends. Then you follow up with a pediatrician of child psychiatrist if you want to pursue meds. There you go - please ignore some of these other bad and inaccurate responses. I just did this this year so I know.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As I recall, you start the process by asking the school counselor and principal for an IEP conference. At that conference, they and the special education staff will discuss the assessments necessary. MCPS does pay for assessments; however, it has limited resources to pay for assessments out of its budget. You will get in line for them to pay for the assessment and they will not provide services until it is done and determined that an IEP or 504 is appropriate.

It was suggested to us to pay for the assessment out of pocket to get it done and so that MCPS could move forward with the IEP/504. Sadly, they are expensive and families at Title 1 schools may not have the resources.

This is not how it works. To start the process you talk to the principal or counselor and let them know you believe your child has a disability that impacts their ability to engage in the curriculum. A meeting will be set to discuss whether an evaluation and if yes what type. MCPS will then perform the evaluation. Another meeting will be set to review the results. Then finally if it is agreed your child needs accommodations and/or services, a meeting will be set to develop a plan.

If you want an ADHD evaluation you can get it quickly through your pediatrician.

DP. That was not the case for us. I did all that, but school refused to test, saying kid was above benchmarks. Pediatrician sent in a referral, but there was a year-long wait. We were lucky that kid was in an NIH study, so we were able to get some accommodations based on that while waiting the year for our eval.

If you send in a formal request to for a 504 or IEP accommodation I believe the school is legally required to do something.

My kid was also meeting benchmarks but they were a distraction to themselves and others. Unable to complete work. Just using the checklists we were able to get a diagnosis and a 504 plan. Was certainly not a smooth ride after that but this was the start of getting him some help.

-- Parent of ADHD kid in MCPS

[Anonymous]

PP again... Should read

"If you send a formal requests to principal for 504 or IEP screening"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Mom with ADHD of a ADHD child here in MCPS. Please post over in special needs forum. There is a ton of inaccurate information and responses here, OP. MCPS does not screen for this. If you notice an issue, first speak to your student’s teacher, then the guidance counselor, and then talk to your pediatrician. Typically a formal diagnoses of ADHD is done via a neuropsychiatric evaluation and it is administered by a neuropsychologist. It takes a while to do and can be costly - some providers change 5-6000 or more and insurance may or may not pay. We opted to get on waitlists for the neuropsych at KKI in Baltimore and CNMC - they are each about a year long. That meant for us that insurance would cover the cost of the testing. Others choose to go with private psychologists who do this. Some also just go to their pediatrician to try and get a diagnoses and meds but honestly It’s better to do the full work up because they look at other conditions it could be like autism, anxiety, etc. and can give a complete diagnosis. With kids who are neurodivergent, there can be multiple things going on and more than one issue. For our kid, it was both anxiety and ADHD. After the exam the neuropsychologist provides a full report and they meet either you and give you the diagnoses and a report suggesting next steps. This includes specific suggestions for school, then you take this to your MCPS school administrator and meet with them to determine if a 504 plan (school
Accommodations needed for a disability) or an IEP plan (to address needs from a disability that is impacting the student’s academic performance/education) is needed and they will take it from there. Some kids need just a 504 (like ours) because her academic performance was fine, she just had attention and behavior issues and needed additional supports in class. Some kids need an IEP. It just depends. Then you follow up with a pediatrician of child psychiatrist if you want to pursue meds. There you go - please ignore some of these other bad and inaccurate responses. I just did this this year so I know.

You are wrong- mcps has a legal child find obligation to screen kids for disabilities including adhd. They will avoid this obligation as much as possible because thet don't have the manpower to assess and then address all the neurodovergent kids in the county.

-mcps educator

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mom with ADHD of a ADHD child here in MCPS. Please post over in special needs forum. There is a ton of inaccurate information and responses here, OP. MCPS does not screen for this. If you notice an issue, first speak to your student’s teacher, then the guidance counselor, and then talk to your pediatrician. Typically a formal diagnoses of ADHD is done via a neuropsychiatric evaluation and it is administered by a neuropsychologist. It takes a while to do and can be costly - some providers change 5-6000 or more and insurance may or may not pay. We opted to get on waitlists for the neuropsych at KKI in Baltimore and CNMC - they are each about a year long. That meant for us that insurance would cover the cost of the testing. Others choose to go with private psychologists who do this. Some also just go to their pediatrician to try and get a diagnoses and meds but honestly It’s better to do the full work up because they look at other conditions it could be like autism, anxiety, etc. and can give a complete diagnosis. With kids who are neurodivergent, there can be multiple things going on and more than one issue. For our kid, it was both anxiety and ADHD. After the exam the neuropsychologist provides a full report and they meet either you and give you the diagnoses and a report suggesting next steps. This includes specific suggestions for school, then you take this to your MCPS school administrator and meet with them to determine if a 504 plan (school
Accommodations needed for a disability) or an IEP plan (to address needs from a disability that is impacting the student’s academic performance/education) is needed and they will take it from there. Some kids need just a 504 (like ours) because her academic performance was fine, she just had attention and behavior issues and needed additional supports in class. Some kids need an IEP. It just depends. Then you follow up with a pediatrician of child psychiatrist if you want to pursue meds. There you go - please ignore some of these other bad and inaccurate responses. I just did this this year so I know.

You are wrong- mcps has a legal child find obligation to screen kids for disabilities including adhd. They will avoid this obligation as much as possible because thet don't have the manpower to assess and then address all the neurodovergent kids in the county.

-mcps educator

This. An extremely high percentage of students would meet dx criteria for some DSM impairment, often ADHD or anxiety, there is simply no funding to assess and support every single kid. 504 isn’t funded at all - school staff are “voluntold” to case manage and implement plans - and there is a critical shortage in staffing for special ed.
If you want your kid to be in small classes with lots of teacher attention- private is the way to go.

[Anonymous]

Thanks all for responding. DC I’m sure won’t be able to get anything through the school system because the scores are very high and still is a good kid. But we are starting to see the struggle of EF and other issues as work gets increasingly harder.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thanks all for responding. DC I’m sure won’t be able to get anything through the school system because the scores are very high and still is a good kid. But we are starting to see the struggle of EF and other issues as work gets increasingly harder.

Wrong. My kid also has very high scores and is not a "bad" kid, although he certainly had a few teacher make him feel that way. He is old enough to have been part of the "flip your card to red" era. Anyways, after he started medication his MAP scores went way up and tested into CES. The H part of his ADHD improved greatly in MS but the EF is still a struggle for which he has inconsistent used accommodations for.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mom with ADHD of a ADHD child here in MCPS. Please post over in special needs forum. There is a ton of inaccurate information and responses here, OP. MCPS does not screen for this. If you notice an issue, first speak to your student’s teacher, then the guidance counselor, and then talk to your pediatrician. Typically a formal diagnoses of ADHD is done via a neuropsychiatric evaluation and it is administered by a neuropsychologist. It takes a while to do and can be costly - some providers change 5-6000 or more and insurance may or may not pay. We opted to get on waitlists for the neuropsych at KKI in Baltimore and CNMC - they are each about a year long. That meant for us that insurance would cover the cost of the testing. Others choose to go with private psychologists who do this. Some also just go to their pediatrician to try and get a diagnoses and meds but honestly It’s better to do the full work up because they look at other conditions it could be like autism, anxiety, etc. and can give a complete diagnosis. With kids who are neurodivergent, there can be multiple things going on and more than one issue. For our kid, it was both anxiety and ADHD. After the exam the neuropsychologist provides a full report and they meet either you and give you the diagnoses and a report suggesting next steps. This includes specific suggestions for school, then you take this to your MCPS school administrator and meet with them to determine if a 504 plan (school
Accommodations needed for a disability) or an IEP plan (to address needs from a disability that is impacting the student’s academic performance/education) is needed and they will take it from there. Some kids need just a 504 (like ours) because her academic performance was fine, she just had attention and behavior issues and needed additional supports in class. Some kids need an IEP. It just depends. Then you follow up with a pediatrician of child psychiatrist if you want to pursue meds. There you go - please ignore some of these other bad and inaccurate responses. I just did this this year so I know.

You are wrong- mcps has a legal child find obligation to screen kids for disabilities including adhd. They will avoid this obligation as much as possible because thet don't have the manpower to assess and then address all the neurodovergent kids in the county.

-mcps educator

This. An extremely high percentage of students would meet dx criteria for some DSM impairment, often ADHD or anxiety, there is simply no funding to assess and support every single kid. 504 isn’t funded at all - school staff are “voluntold” to case manage and implement plans - and there is a critical shortage in staffing for special ed.
If you want your kid to be in small classes with lots of teacher attention- private is the way to go.

This! In a class of 31 MS kids about half have 504 or IEP plans that include the accommodations of preferential seating and reducing distractions, yet often those kids ARE the distraction. MCPs has vague plans in writing but no substance in reality and it does a huge disservice to all these children growing up thinking they can just announce every 5 minutes “I’m allowed to fidget!” As they moan and clap and move their body wildly while the teacher tries to get 4 words in to the rest of the class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mom with ADHD of a ADHD child here in MCPS. Please post over in special needs forum. There is a ton of inaccurate information and responses here, OP. MCPS does not screen for this. If you notice an issue, first speak to your student’s teacher, then the guidance counselor, and then talk to your pediatrician. Typically a formal diagnoses of ADHD is done via a neuropsychiatric evaluation and it is administered by a neuropsychologist. It takes a while to do and can be costly - some providers change 5-6000 or more and insurance may or may not pay. We opted to get on waitlists for the neuropsych at KKI in Baltimore and CNMC - they are each about a year long. That meant for us that insurance would cover the cost of the testing. Others choose to go with private psychologists who do this. Some also just go to their pediatrician to try and get a diagnoses and meds but honestly It’s better to do the full work up because they look at other conditions it could be like autism, anxiety, etc. and can give a complete diagnosis. With kids who are neurodivergent, there can be multiple things going on and more than one issue. For our kid, it was both anxiety and ADHD. After the exam the neuropsychologist provides a full report and they meet either you and give you the diagnoses and a report suggesting next steps. This includes specific suggestions for school, then you take this to your MCPS school administrator and meet with them to determine if a 504 plan (school
Accommodations needed for a disability) or an IEP plan (to address needs from a disability that is impacting the student’s academic performance/education) is needed and they will take it from there. Some kids need just a 504 (like ours) because her academic performance was fine, she just had attention and behavior issues and needed additional supports in class. Some kids need an IEP. It just depends. Then you follow up with a pediatrician of child psychiatrist if you want to pursue meds. There you go - please ignore some of these other bad and inaccurate responses. I just did this this year so I know.

You are wrong- mcps has a legal child find obligation to screen kids for disabilities including adhd. They will avoid this obligation as much as possible because thet don't have the manpower to assess and then address all the neurodovergent kids in the county.

-mcps educator

This. An extremely high percentage of students would meet dx criteria for some DSM impairment, often ADHD or anxiety, there is simply no funding to assess and support every single kid. 504 isn’t funded at all - school staff are “voluntold” to case manage and implement plans - and there is a critical shortage in staffing for special ed.
If you want your kid to be in small classes with lots of teacher attention- private is the way to go.

This! In a class of 31 MS kids about half have 504 or IEP plans that include the accommodations of preferential seating and reducing distractions, yet often those kids ARE the distraction. MCPs has vague plans in writing but no substance in reality and it does a huge disservice to all these children growing up thinking they can just announce every 5 minutes “I’m allowed to fidget!” As they moan and clap and move their body wildly while the teacher tries to get 4 words in to the rest of the class.

So what do you suggest instead? My kid had accommodation to sit on a chair versus the tiny square on the carpet or hold a fidget toy to keep his hands busy. This did not require any herculean effort on the teacher's part and greatly improved his learning experience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As I recall, you start the process by asking the school counselor and principal for an IEP conference. At that conference, they and the special education staff will discuss the assessments necessary. MCPS does pay for assessments; however, it has limited resources to pay for assessments out of its budget. You will get in line for them to pay for the assessment and they will not provide services until it is done and determined that an IEP or 504 is appropriate.

It was suggested to us to pay for the assessment out of pocket to get it done and so that MCPS could move forward with the IEP/504. Sadly, they are expensive and families at Title 1 schools may not have the resources.

This is not how it works. To start the process you talk to the principal or counselor and let them know you believe your child has a disability that impacts their ability to engage in the curriculum. A meeting will be set to discuss whether an evaluation and if yes what type. MCPS will then perform the evaluation. Another meeting will be set to review the results. Then finally if it is agreed your child needs accommodations and/or services, a meeting will be set to develop a plan.

If you want an ADHD evaluation you can get it quickly through your pediatrician.

DP. That was not the case for us. I did all that, but school refused to test, saying kid was above benchmarks. Pediatrician sent in a referral, but there was a year-long wait. We were lucky that kid was in an NIH study, so we were able to get some accommodations based on that while waiting the year for our eval.

If you send in a formal request to for a 504 or IEP accommodation I believe the school is legally required to do something.

My kid was also meeting benchmarks but they were a distraction to themselves and others. Unable to complete work. Just using the checklists we were able to get a diagnosis and a 504 plan. Was certainly not a smooth ride after that but this was the start of getting him some help.

-- Parent of ADHD kid in MCPS

Hard to remember, but I'm pretty sure we did the checklists. They are geared to how adhd expresses in boys, and it can be much more subtle in girls. They dismissed it without really doing much of anything.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As I recall, you start the process by asking the school counselor and principal for an IEP conference. At that conference, they and the special education staff will discuss the assessments necessary. MCPS does pay for assessments; however, it has limited resources to pay for assessments out of its budget. You will get in line for them to pay for the assessment and they will not provide services until it is done and determined that an IEP or 504 is appropriate.

It was suggested to us to pay for the assessment out of pocket to get it done and so that MCPS could move forward with the IEP/504. Sadly, they are expensive and families at Title 1 schools may not have the resources.

Inaccurate info

What's the accurate info?

MCPS does the assessments. There is no wait time - it gets done within their guidelines. There is no line to wait in until MCPS comes up with money to pay.

Nope, they do not. Our DD just went through this. Perhaps if there is an educational disability but just generic ADHD with behavioral issues, nope. You pay yourself.