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[quote=Anonymous]

Hi,

I am only a parent of a young adult who has always had a professional/personal interest in Transition in terms of mostly working with adults with barriers to find jobs, but then obviously personally trying to chart a life course for a daughter with a moderate cognitive disability.  I began about 25 years ago when I decided to look at vocational, residential and social/recreational services in our area to see what options there would be for her in the future.  I had the skills to compile, word process and put together my findings which was a 90-page book, put out back then by a local Parent Resource Center.  I decided back then that since I did not work much that I would have the time to learn about things and help connect both families AND professionals to basic information on services.  What you need to realize is that no one has time beyond their immediate job to really figure out what else is in a community large or small, and to be able to have a resource with a correct phone number to call or now web site to look up can make all the difference in the world in helping a family in crisis or a parent who does not know which way to turn.

While I might have enjoyed at least a part-time job over the years, I do feel I have made a difference in the lives of others in helping them connect to services and especially to adult services funding for a lifetime with a Medicaid Waiver.  What I know I have been able to do at least locally is to give parents of younger children a framework in which to look at services, funding, waiting lists etc. to see what may or may not apply.  In my opinion the pendulum has swung from one extreme of elf-contained for all students and teacher choice, which often was not suited to the abilities of the students served; now to inclusion for all and college for all with just about as disastrous results.  By high school, one has got to do a reality check on how a student is doing and look at what the deficits are across all the domains not just academic including:  communication, behavior, social, self-care, and community life skills.  There is a need to have goals for the teen post high school and then work backwards to see how best to meet them.  I believe many students are now being denied the specialized supports that they may need because of the hyper focus on strictly the educational domain.    At some point in time between age 18-22, your son or daughter with a moderate, significant or multiple disability will in most cases need your support so it does pay to look ahead and at least learn as much as you can about what is in your community.

And I would just add that for many of "the best and the brightest" the calamity of a "mental health disability" does not hit or surface fully until the college/20s years and for this group, too, there will be many who will need parents to help them figure out the best way to proceed with health insurance coverage, therapists, medications, schooling, jobs etc.  In our case, been there and done that, too, which was even more trying at times than raising one with a cognitive disability because you did not one with so much potential to throw it all away........I continue to learn from other parents and will share as I can.

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