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[quote=Anonymous]Pick up on Wednesdays is earlier than the rest of days - I'm embarrassed to say I don't know when (12:30? 1?) - we do aftercare.  Drop off starts at 8:20, you're late at 8:40.

We definitely have some issues special needs side, though far fewer than we did in DCPS, but I think the new location will be potentially far more accessible than many other schools (this depends on their planning of course - I'm sure someone at the school would be willing to chat with you about the new building, if you have accessibility concerns), and the upside of a charter seems to be that they have the ability to get and use various equipment/modifications/etc without giant bureaucratic hassle.  For some kids that means cube chairs instead of sitting on the floor, or various OT and other devices (cushions, weighed whatevers, etc).  They have some sensory equipment right now (certainly more than you might find at a number of other schools) - not sure if that will broaden with the new spaces (I'm talking like a swing and trampoline).  This all may not apply to your situation but I note because I think it shows they have some access to things and there's no (less?) fuss about getting something needed.  Same with aides - easier, though I can't promise easy, we've not dealt with that aspect.

I don't know if I can compare to most charters.  I would say yes in terms of better than most DCPS, though I hear there's a good program somewhere (SWS?) for kids with physical challenges.  They consistently provide related services, unlike our experience with DCPS (whose PT had some insane number assigned of schools - more than 20 - that just wasn't physically possible and as a result she didn't show for weeks on end and then would do marathon sessions that were useful to no one...).  I'd expect many charters to be able to do that piece better than DCPS simply from a staffing/set up stand point (and also expectations/what's acceptable - if you assign that many schools, the provider can't possibly show up consistently and must combine sessions with multiple kids regardless of whether that's appropriate etc, whereas I think a charter is more likely to have a contract provider where the expectation is individual service, whose caseload isn't insane).

I'd assume you're right on ease of getting in this year relative to next, particularly with location change, but maybe they'll lose some people who try it for a year and think this just doesn't work for us commute wise, or they'll become slightly less popular generally because of location, or something.  The location doesn't become wildly more convenient to, say, downtown, next year.  And I'd assume prek 3 entry is slightly easier than prek 4, as it is in most places.

I'd encourage you to call the school with questions, particularly related to their ability to address particular disabilities, as I'd expect them to be open to answering such questions. [/quote]

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