In his grade school years, we home educated because we could not find a school that was a good fit for Jack - public or private.

 

For 9th - 11th grades, he attended a public high school, spending half his days in special education and the other half in accelerated classes.

 

Even though Jack was excelling academically, it was with significant support from both home and school, along with the services provided per his IEP. And socially, Jack was not thriving. Jack was very clear in his desire to pursue a PhD and attend a rigorous college program so we began to look for options for him to build the skills we knew he would need for living away from home on a college camps. We requested an additional year of high school for him but were told that the law did not permit students like Jack (academically advanced) to remain in HS longer than 4 years. This information was incorrect and after considerable effort, we were eventually able to negotiate an extra year which allowed Jack to attend a public, residential, dual credit high in Kentucky. 

 

Unfortunately, however, in order to attend, he was not permitted to have the support of his IEP so it was a struggle. Even now as a full time college student, like so many other college students with disabilities, Jack still has to contend with the disparities of understanding of not only his needs  but also of what is required to accommodate him. Check out From the School Bus to the Couch here!