30 Arco Day Ged New
Q: My daughter is a junior in high school. She was diagnosed with fibromyalgia
a few years ago. We've explored a lot of alternatives but haven't found
anything that has had a lasting effect in improving her symptoms. Instead,
she continues to get worse. She is an honor student but has reached the
point where, while she can follow what goes on in class, she cannot keep up
with the work. We've worked with the school to develop various
accommodations, first under 504 and then as "special education, other health
impaired."
Now college is coming. The school has suggested that she audit all her
classes and get a GED instead, to remove a lot of the pressure and to be
able to devote more time to finding a regimen that keeps her symptoms
stable. It would also let her sit in on AP classes that she can't consider
now because there's too much work each day. The idea has promise, but we're
concerned about the implications on
college admissions and scholarships, and what kind of accommodations would
be possible once she's admitted.
She's looking at some pretty competitive schools. What we're gathering is
that admission may be less of a problem than functioning once she's there.
The kinds of accommodations she's getting now are not all available in
college. One stumbling block is that a lot of the top schools are geared to
full-time students. If she's not up for a full class-load by then, we need
a school that also welcomes part-time students who pay by the credit. We
haven't looked into scholarships much but assume that there are quite a few
that depend on GPA or class rank, neither of which she would have if she
goes the GED route.
Does anyone have experience with these issues, or have any suggestions on
what to do or where else to look? We need to make some decisions pretty
soon.
A:I can see where there's been a few propblems already. First off, the school has
no business advising anyone to get a GED. A GED may be the only option for
those that have passed the maximum age for public-paid education, but if she has
not passed that age yet the school, I assume it's a public school, is OBLIGATED
to work with you and her on finishing her education. There are a number of
federal laws that state that. Second, get everything in writing. Today is far
different thatn long ago when a man's word was as good as gold. Now it's more
like the opposite.
I say look in the phone book for several groups that I fell can help you a lot.
1:
A: R.C.; They are called Advocacy Resource Coalition for the Developmentally Disadvantaged (some