Reply to Seeking parents of children with DS/SN who attend Woodrow Wilson High Schoool

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[quote=Anonymous]
As the mother of a young adult daughter with DS, I would like to chime in and note that the years in public education with FREE Services go by very quickly, and the mistake which can be made is to only focus on one or two domain areas - namely academic and social.  It is equally important for you to look at the vocational options and tracks so that your daughter will be prepared for the world of work after high school.  There ought to be the opportunity to be included in classes related to working, too.

By the Post High years, I would also ask what the Post HIgh or Transition Programs look like as then there should definitely be a focus on assessment, different work environment placements and training opportunities with any direct support fading over time.  Additionally, independent living and community living skills need to be focused upon and expanded in different settings to demonstrate the skills one has acquired.

When I talk to parents of a teenager, I pose the following questions:

1- What will my young adult son or daughter be doing - working in a competitive environment (part-time or full-time), volunteering (part-time or full-time) or participating in a center-based,  supported work program or adult activity program (part-time or full-time) during the regular work day of the parents?

2- What are the criteria  to be successful in the one or perhaps combined work week program?  Or what barriers might keep my son or daughter from being successful including:

- Needing direct one-too-one or ability to function independently or on a certain client to staff ratio.
- Lacking the soft "work place" skills such as being on time, focusing on a task, endurance to stay on the job, following workplace rules, seeking out assistance as needed, accepting criticism etc.
- Issues related to communication skills, behavioral skills etc.
- Funding for any job assessment, placement, training and follow-along services; funding for any supported work setting or adult day program.

3- How will my young adult son or daughter get to and from any of the above settings with regular and safe transportation?

4- How long can my son or daughter stay at home safely alone?

5- What will my son or daughter do in terms of social, sports and other personal interests in free time, especially on the weekends?

***The key to me is to think about these "lifetime" goals while your son or daughter is still in public education, especially between the years of 14 - 21in the choices that you make just as carefully as you decide about what academic classes to take in which setting and what lunch time supports might be needed.  Parents may complain about what services and programs are lacking in public education, but the fact remains there are no mandated adult services AND there are no free services or funding streams after public education ends.  So it is very important to set goals and then "work backwards" to see how progress can be made across all domains including summers and well as academic years.

For those families of means, there may well be the opportunity to meet the goals above through Post High specialized college programs, but they are very, very expensive for most families to afford, and so my comments are for the average family trying to make the most of public education.  Also, be sure that you apply for any appropriate Waiver in the state or DC you will reside AND do realize that a Waiver is not portable so should you get it for your daughter, you would not want to lose it.  You may want to ask if living in DC would give you a better chance for that lifetime funding stream.

One other note in terms of social experience and a connection to others, I would include a making a connection to a high school service group such as Key Club - so look into that as well ahead of time.  Our youngest was not has high functioning as your daughter so we did not have all of these issues to deal with on academics.  However, she has maintained a part-time job which she enjoys on a college campus, volunteers in a new area cafe one day a week, takes para-transit on her own, and has an active life with Special Olympics, parks and recreation activities and Young Life.

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