Please call Josh Gwilliam at Commonwealth Academy. 1321 Leslie Avenue, Alexandria, VA 22301 – 703.548.6912. Josh doesn't mind taking calls helping people to find the right school in the area. Commonwealth starts at 3rd grade so may not be right for you - also it's a college prep school for ADHD kids - but it is one level and has very small classes and is very wheelchair accessible. I don't know if they would take an OI child but Josh can guide you. Worth a call.

Anonymous wrote:You should contact Jay Shapiro an OI expert at Kennedy Krieger in Baltimore. I am sure he will give you good recommendations of schools in the DC area that can accommodate OI students. He will also be able to provide you with a network and other resources in the area.

Best of luck.

Shapiro will probably tell you to call The OIF (Osteoegensis Imperfecta Foundation), located in Maryland. OP I have OI and live in the DC area, and still see Shapiro on a regular basis. HIPPA prevents Shapiro from giving you names of other local families, but the OIF can probably put you in touch with some. I can too if you want to post an email address. The local OI families I know send their kids to Fairfax County public and the McLean School ((in Maryland)

Anonymous wrote:Call Admissions at SSSAS. They seem very accommodating and the campus is relatively flat and one level from what I have seen.

Current SSSAS, not true. Most are two story, some three.

Call Admissions at SSSAS. They seem very accommodating and the campus is relatively flat and one level from what I have seen.

The public school classes are huge in MCPS except in the Title I schools. At our good public school, we had 28 in first grade. And after second grade, the Title I school classes are big also. You don't want your child ignored and she is smart and wants to be part of the class. I would look at the Episcopal schools. They are very kind and caring. Public school with accommodations sounds good on principle but it's so hard with a child with special needs. So much of the day is lining up and being the mom of a child in a walker, it is very hard. And when she can walk, you want her to have the opportunity to do so but it may take her longer. You need a private school.

You should contact Jay Shapiro an OI expert at Kennedy Krieger in Baltimore. I am sure he will give you good recommendations of schools in the DC area that can accommodate OI students. He will also be able to provide you with a network and other resources in the area.

Best of luck.

At JPDS, there are three teachers in each of the classrooms up until 6th grade?

OP our kids go to JPDS. It is Jewish primary day school. While he majority if kids are Jewish from atheist to modern orthodox families, we definitely have non Jewish families as well. The class sizes are small (16-17) with three teachers in each class. The south campus (up to 1st graders) is handicapped accessible and I am not 100% sure about the North campus (2nd-future 8th grade) but JPDS is renovating the building to accommodate a middle school and it will definitely be handicap accessible. The younger grades are Reggio so not rigorous academics but tons of learning going on. The school and parent community is wonderful and the school teaches inclusivity to the kids first and foremost. Tuition this year is $22k and change.

JPDS.org

We weren't so happy at Forest Knolls. Recess is lonely for the physically handicapped children. There are no staff members that lead activities for all of the kids in order to integrate them. It's a nice school and it is inclusive but it's not perfect by any means.

Anonymous wrote:I would urge you to contact Fairfax or Montgomery County Public Schools. They are likely the most qualified and have the resources to make this happen. While you didn't have success with public schools in the past, these are some of the most resourced and advanced in the country when it comes to accommodating children with specific needs.

For what it's worth, there was a medically fragile child in my daughter's class last year at MCPS. But he had a one-on-one aide as well. The problem I see with a public school (even a small one like where my daughter attends) is the playground and hallway times are very busy, and the kids are expected to be pretty independent which means they are not always highly supervised. This means kids get jostled a bit. Fine if you're a physically typical kid, but not fine for OP's daughter.

At a smaller school, I think OP would have a better chance of all the kids being educated about her daughter's needs and being aware.

Good luck, OP!

At most of the private schools, you are probably going to have to hire a one on one aide. Grace is great but the first grader in a walker has a one on one aide. It is a great community. It is extremely welcoming and accepting and inclusive. It is expensive though when you add in tuition and an aide.

I would urge you to contact Fairfax or Montgomery County Public Schools. They are likely the most qualified and have the resources to make this happen. While you didn't have success with public schools in the past, these are some of the most resourced and advanced in the country when it comes to accommodating children with specific needs.

Congressional in Falls Church has a stairlift installed on their stairs that is used by at least one student. I'm not sure of the associated medical issue, but I would assume they are willing and able to work with mobility issues. It may be worth a phone call to speak with the admissions director or the nurse.

Anonymous wrote:Ok, with that budget I would suggest Kensington/Silver Spring or Takoma and sending your DD with OI to Grace Episcopal or Christ Episcopal.

Yes, or if you are comfortable with Catholic, try Holy Redeemer in Kensington. Its a lovely family oriented school and your daughter would be treated with care and kindness.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Lower Montgomery County, so other kids can be in good public schools, and then look at Lowell, Green Acres, or possibly Grace. Or in DC, Sheridan or GDS (and for now before they eventually consolidate the campuses together, the LS and MS are near the Chain Bridge, so at GDS could also live in McLean and send the other kids to good Fairfax County schools)

I'm not sure Lowell the best fit for OP. Old building with LOTS of stairs leading up to the front entrance, but also inside. It seems like it could be daunting if OP's daughter is using a walker. They also put a high premium on outdoor time, going to the field and creek, etc.

I don't have a better suggestion but Lowell feels physically daunting for a kid with mobility issues.

I'd put Sheridan in the same category. Wonderful, warm, welcoming but unfortunately not an accessible building (no elevator) and overnight trips to their Mountain Campus which is also not accessible and a ton of movement and physical activity takes place.

How can Sheridan not have an elevator? They're not a religious program that would be exempt from ADA, and they have done substantial renovations which would have eliminated any grandfathering. They must have an elevator that's hidden away somewhere.

That doesn't mean that they are the right program for OP's kid, or that they problem solve subtle accessibility issues well, I wouldn't know that, but they must have an elevator.

No, they don't have an elevator. I don't remember the specifics, but when they renovated, they didn't renovate one side of the building where the elevator shaft would naturally fit so somehow they met the parameters of the grandfather clause. Regardless, given all the renovations they have done over the years, it's shameful.